חַי
living
‘living’ is one of 5 main senses fuller range ↓
Full lexicon entry — Brown-Driver-Briggs (BDB)
From Brown-Driver-Briggs (BDB)
Where this word appears
See every Absolute-state word in the Hebrew Bible →
Grammar key — what these labels mean
Part of speech
- Adjective
- A word that describes or qualifies a noun.
- Noun
- A naming word — a person, place, thing, or idea.
Noun type
- Common
- A common noun — a general class of person, place, or thing (“king,” “city,” “water”), not a specific name.
Stem
- Qal
- The basic, simple active stem — the plain form of the verb (“he wrote”).
Form
- Sequential Perfect
- A perfect with prefixed waw continuing a preceding imperfect or command (waw-consecutive perfect).
State
- Absolute
- The independent form of a noun, not bound to a following word.
- Construct
- A noun bound to a following noun in a possessive / “of” relationship (the construct chain).
Person
- 3rd Person
- The one spoken about (“he / she / it / they”).
Gender
- Masculine
- Grammatically masculine.
- Feminine
- Grammatically feminine.
- Both
- Attested as both masculine and feminine.
Number
- Singular
- One.
- Plural
- More than one (in Hebrew, generally three or more).
Grammatical forms 15 distinct
- Adjective, Adjective, Masculine, Singular, Absolute 146 times (29%)
- Noun, Common, Masculine, Plural, Construct 82 times (16%)
- Noun, Common, Feminine, Singular, Construct 66 times (13%)
- Adjective, Adjective, Masculine, Plural, Absolute 65 times (13%)
- Noun, Common, Masculine, Plural, Absolute 64 times (13%)
- Noun, Common, Feminine, Singular, Absolute 33 times (7%)
- Adjective, Adjective, Feminine, Singular, Absolute 23 times (5%)
- Noun, Common, Feminine, Plural, Absolute 12 times (2%)
+7 more forms (12 occurrences)
Parsed forms decoded from the imported morphology (morphhb / Westminster Leningrad Codex — WLC text public domain, morphhb tagging CC BY 4.0), counted across 503 parsed occurrences — not distinct verses.
Page 1 of 3 — showing verses 1–200 of 450 distinct verses where H2416 appears, across 29 books. Click any verse to open its interlinear word-by-word view. Verse text shown in the World English Bible for context — . Each verse’s Hebrew form is shown with its reference; the English is not keyword-highlighted, since the data carries no word-level English alignment. Use “Compare translations” on any verse to read it across multiple English versions. This concordance covers the Hebrew Bible; Septuagint (Greek Old Testament) occurrences are not indexed here.
Genesis 56 verses
- Genesis 1:20 חַיָּ֑ה adj Adjective fs God said, "Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth in the open expanse of sky."
- Genesis 1:21 הַֽ/חַיָּ֣ה ptcl def.art + Adjective Adjective fs God created the large sea creatures, and every living creature that moves, with which the waters swarmed, after their kind, and every winged bird after its kind. God saw that it was good.
- Genesis 1:24 חַיָּה֙ וְ/חַֽיְתוֹ adj Adjective fs conj + n c fs cs God said, "Let the earth bring forth living creatures after their kind, cattle, creeping things, and animals of the earth after their kind," and it was so.
- Genesis 1:25 חַיַּ֨ת n c fs cs God made the animals of the earth after their kind, and the cattle after their kind, and everything that creeps on the ground after its kind. God saw that it was good.
- Genesis 1:28 חַיָּ֖ה n c bs God blessed them. God said to them, "Be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth, and subdue it. Have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the sky, and over every living thing that moves on the earth."
- Genesis 1:30 חַיַּ֣ת חַיָּ֔ה n c fs cs adj Adjective fs To every animal of the earth, and to every bird of the sky, and to everything that creeps on the earth, in which there is life, I have given every green herb for food." And it was so.
- Genesis 2:7 חַיִּ֑ים חַיָּֽה n c mp adj Adjective fs Yahweh God formed man from the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.
- Genesis 2:9 הַֽ/חַיִּים֙ ptcl def.art + n c mp Out of the ground Yahweh God made every tree to grow that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
- Genesis 2:19 חַיַּ֤ת חַיָּ֖ה n c fs cs adj Adjective fs Out of the ground Yahweh God formed every animal of the field, and every bird of the sky, and brought them to the man to see what he would call them. Whatever the man called every living creature, that was its name.
- Genesis 2:20 חַיַּ֣ת n c fs cs The man gave names to all cattle, and to the birds of the sky, and to every animal of the field; but for man there was not found a helper suitable for him.
- Genesis 3:1 חַיַּ֣ת n c fs cs Now the serpent was more subtle than any animal of the field which Yahweh God had made. He said to the woman, "Yes, has God said, 'You shall not eat of any tree of the garden?'"
- Genesis 3:14 חַיַּ֣ת חַיֶּֽי/ךָ n c fs cs n c mp cs + sfx pers 2ms Yahweh God said to the serpent, "Because you have done this, cursed are you above all cattle, and above every animal of the field. On your belly shall you go, and you shall eat dust all the days of your life.
- Genesis 3:17 חַיֶּֽי/ךָ n c mp cs + sfx pers 2ms To Adam he said, "Because you have listened to your wife's voice, and have eaten of the tree, of which I commanded you, saying, 'You shall not eat of it,' cursed is the ground for your sake. In toil you will eat of it all the days of your life.
- Genesis 3:20 חָֽי adj Adjective ms The man called his wife Eve, because she was the mother of all living.
- Genesis 3:22 הַֽ/חַיִּ֔ים ptcl def.art + n c mp Yahweh God said, "Behold, the man has become like one of us, knowing good and evil. Now, lest he put forth his hand, and also take of the tree of life, and eat, and live forever..."
- Genesis 3:24 הַֽ/חַיִּֽים ptcl def.art + n c mp So he drove out the man; and he placed Cherubs at the east of the garden of Eden, and the flame of a sword which turned every way, to guard the way to the tree of life.
- Genesis 6:17 חַיִּ֔ים n c mp I, even, I do bring the flood of waters on this earth, to destroy all flesh having the breath of life from under the sky. Everything that is in the earth will die.
- Genesis 6:19 הָ֠/חַי ptcl def.art + Adjective Adjective ms Of every living thing of all flesh, you shall bring two of every sort into the ark, to keep them alive with you. They shall be male and female.
- Genesis 7:11 לְ/חַיֵּי prep + n c mp cs In the six hundredth year of Noah's life, in the second month, on the seventeenth day of the month, on the same day all the fountains of the great deep were burst open, and the sky's windows were opened.
- Genesis 7:14 הַֽ/חַיָּ֣ה ptcl def.art + n c fs they, and every animal after its kind, all the cattle after their kind, every creeping thing that creeps on the earth after its kind, and every bird after its kind, every bird of every sort.
- Genesis 7:15 חַיִּֽים n c mp They went to Noah into the ark, by pairs of all flesh with the breath of life in them.
- Genesis 7:21 וּ/בַ֣/חַיָּ֔ה conj + prep det + n c fs All flesh died that moved on the earth, including birds, cattle, animals, every creeping thing that creeps on the earth, and every man.
- Genesis 7:22 חַיִּ֜ים n c mp All in whose nostrils was the breath of the spirit of life, of all that was on the dry land, died.
- Genesis 8:1 הַֽ/חַיָּה֙ ptcl def.art + n c fs God remembered Noah, all the animals, and all the cattle that were with him in the ark; and God made a wind to pass over the earth. The waters subsided.
- Genesis 8:17 הַ/חַיָּ֨ה ptcl def.art + n c fs Bring forth with you every living thing that is with you of all flesh, including birds, cattle, and every creeping thing that creeps on the earth; that they may breed abundantly in the earth, and be fruitful, and multiply on the earth."
- Genesis 8:19 הַֽ/חַיָּ֗ה ptcl def.art + n c fs Every animal, every creeping thing, and every bird, whatever moves on the earth, after their families, went forth out of the ark.
- Genesis 8:21 חַ֖י adj Adjective ms Yahweh smelled the sweet savor. Yahweh said in his heart, "I will not again curse the ground any more for man's sake, because the imagination of man's heart is evil from his youth; neither will I ever again strike everything living, as I have done.
- Genesis 9:2 חַיַּ֣ת n c fs cs The fear of you and the dread of you will be on every animal of the earth, and on every bird of the sky. Everything that the ground teems with, and all the fish of the sea are delivered into your hand.
- Genesis 9:3 חַ֔י adj Adjective ms Every moving thing that lives will be food for you. As the green herb, I have given everything to you.
- Genesis 9:5 חַיָּ֖ה n c fs I will surely require your blood of your lives. At the hand of every animal I will require it. At the hand of man, even at the hand of every man's brother, I will require the life of man.
- Genesis 9:10 הַֽ/חַיָּה֙ חַיַּ֥ת חַיַּ֥ת ptcl def.art + Adjective Adjective fs n c fs cs n c fs cs and with every living creature that is with you: the birds, the cattle, and every animal of the earth with you. Of all that go out of the ark, even every animal of the earth.
- Genesis 9:12 חַיָּ֖ה adj Adjective fs God said, "This is the token of the covenant which I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual generations:
- Genesis 9:15 חַיָּ֖ה adj Adjective fs and I will remember my covenant, which is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh, and the waters will no more become a flood to destroy all flesh.
- Genesis 9:16 חַיָּ֔ה adj Adjective fs The rainbow will be in the cloud. I will look at it, that I may remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth."
- Genesis 18:10 חַיָּ֔ה adj Adjective fs He said, "I will certainly return to you when the season comes round. Behold, Sarah your wife will have a son." Sarah heard in the tent door, which was behind him.
- Genesis 18:14 חַיָּ֖ה adj Adjective fs Is anything too hard for Yahweh? At the set time I will return to you, when the season comes round, and Sarah will have a son."
- Genesis 23:1 חַיֵּ֣י חַיֵּ֥י n c mp cs n c mp cs Sarah lived one hundred twenty-seven years. These were the years of Sarah's life.
- Genesis 25:6 חַ֔י adj Adjective ms but to the sons of the concubines who Abraham had, Abraham gave gifts. He sent them away from Isaac his son, while he yet lived, eastward, to the east country.
- Genesis 25:7 חַיֵּ֥י n c mp cs These are the days of the years of Abraham's life which he lived: one hundred seventy-five years.
- Genesis 25:17 חַיֵּ֣י n c mp cs These are the years of the life of Ishmael: one hundred thirty-seven years. He gave up the spirit and died, and was gathered to his people.
- Genesis 26:19 חַיִּֽים adj Adjective mp Isaac's servants dug in the valley, and found there a well of springing water.
- Genesis 27:46 בְ/חַיַּ֔/י חַיִּֽים prep + n c mp cs + sfx pers 1cs n c mp Rebekah said to Isaac, "I am weary of my life because of the daughters of Heth. If Jacob takes a wife of the daughters of Heth, such as these, of the daughters of the land, what good will my life do me?"
- Genesis 37:20 חַיָּ֥ה n c fs Come now therefore, and let's kill him, and cast him into one of the pits, and we will say, 'An evil animal has devoured him.' We will see what will become of his dreams."
- Genesis 37:33 חַיָּ֥ה n c fs He recognized it, and said, "It is my son's coat. An evil animal has devoured him. Joseph is without doubt torn in pieces."
- Genesis 42:15 חֵ֤י adj Adjective ms Hereby you shall be tested. By the life of Pharaoh you shall not go forth from here, unless your youngest brother come here.
- Genesis 42:16 חֵ֣י adj Adjective ms Send one of you, and let him get your brother, and you shall be bound, that your words may be tested, whether there is truth in you, or else by the life of Pharaoh surely you are spies."
- Genesis 43:7 חַי֙ adj Adjective ms They said, "The man asked directly concerning ourselves, and concerning our relatives, saying, 'Is your father still alive? Have you another brother?' We just answered his questions. Is there any way we could know that he would say, 'Bring your brother down?'"
- Genesis 43:27 חָֽי adj Adjective ms He asked them of their welfare, and said, "Is your father well, the old man of whom you spoke? Is he yet alive?"
- Genesis 43:28 חָ֑י adj Adjective ms They said, "Your servant, our father, is well. He is still alive." They bowed the head, and did homage.
- Genesis 45:3 חָ֑י adj Adjective ms Joseph said to his brothers, "I am Joseph! Does my father still live?" His brothers couldn't answer him; for they were terrified at his presence.
- Genesis 45:26 חַ֔י adj Adjective ms They told him, saying, "Joseph is still alive, and he is ruler over all the land of Egypt." His heart fainted, for he didn't believe them.
- Genesis 45:28 חָ֑י adj Adjective ms Israel said, "It is enough. Joseph my son is still alive. I will go and see him before I die."
- Genesis 46:30 חָֽי adj Adjective ms Israel said to Joseph, "Now let me die, since I have seen your face, that you are still alive."
- Genesis 47:8 חַיֶּֽי/ךָ n c mp cs + sfx pers 2ms Pharaoh said to Jacob, "How many are the days of the years of your life?"
- Genesis 47:9 חַיַּ֔/י חַיֵּ֣י n c mp cs + sfx pers 1cs n c mp cs Jacob said to Pharaoh, "The days of the years of my pilgrimage are one hundred thirty years. Few and evil have been the days of the years of my life, and they have not attained to the days of the years of the life of my fathers in the days of their pilgrimage."
- Genesis 47:28 חַיָּ֔י/ו n c mp cs + sfx pers 3ms Jacob lived in the land of Egypt seventeen years. So the days of Jacob, the years of his life, were one hundred forty-seven years.
Exodus 9 verses
- Exodus 1:14 חַיֵּי/הֶ֜ם n c mp cs + sfx pers 3mp and they made their lives bitter with hard service, in mortar and in brick, and in all manner of service in the field, all their service, in which they ruthlessly made them serve.
- Exodus 4:18 חַיִּ֑ים adj Adjective mp Moses went and returned to Jethro his father-in-law, and said to him, "Please let me go and return to my brothers who are in Egypt, and see whether they are still alive." Jethro said to Moses, "Go in peace."
- Exodus 6:16 חַיֵּ֣י n c mp cs These are the names of the sons of Levi according to their generations: Gershon, and Kohath, and Merari; and the years of the life of Levi were one hundred thirty-seven years.
- Exodus 6:18 חַיֵּ֣י n c mp cs The sons of Kohath: Amram, and Izhar, and Hebron, and Uzziel; and the years of the life of Kohath were one hundred thirty-three years.
- Exodus 6:20 חַיֵּ֣י n c mp cs Amram took Jochebed his father's sister to himself as wife; and she bore him Aaron and Moses: and the years of the life of Amram were a hundred and thirty-seven years.
- Exodus 21:35 הַ/חַי֙ ptcl def.art + Adjective Adjective ms "If one man's bull injures another's, so that it dies, then they shall sell the live bull, and divide its price; and they shall also divide the dead animal.
- Exodus 22:4 חַיִּ֑ים adj Adjective mp If the stolen property is found in his hand alive, whether it is ox, donkey, or sheep, he shall pay double.
- Exodus 23:11 חַיַּ֣ת n c fs cs but the seventh year you shall let it rest and lie fallow, that the poor of your people may eat; and what they leave the animal of the field shall eat. In like manner you shall deal with your vineyard and with your olive grove.
- Exodus 23:29 חַיַּ֥ת n c fs cs I will not drive them out from before you in one year, lest the land become desolate, and the animals of the field multiply against you.
Leviticus 27 verses
- Leviticus 5:2 חַיָּ֜ה n c fs "'Or if anyone touches any unclean thing, whether it is the carcass of an unclean animal, or the carcass of unclean cattle, or the carcass of unclean creeping things, and it is hidden from him, and he is unclean, then he shall be guilty.
- Leviticus 11:2 הַֽ/חַיָּה֙ ptcl def.art + n c fs "Speak to the children of Israel, saying, 'These are the living things which you may eat among all the animals that are on the earth.
- Leviticus 11:10 הַ/חַיָּ֖ה ptcl def.art + Adjective Adjective fs All that don't have fins and scales in the seas, and in the rivers, of all that move in the waters, and of all the living creatures that are in the waters, they are an abomination to you,
- Leviticus 11:27 הַֽ/חַיָּה֙ ptcl def.art + n c fs Whatever goes on its paws, among all animals that go on all fours, they are unclean to you. Whoever touches their carcass shall be unclean until the evening.
- Leviticus 11:46 הַֽ/חַיָּ֔ה ptcl def.art + Adjective Adjective fs "'This is the law of the animal, and of the bird, and of every living creature that moves in the waters, and of every creature that creeps on the earth,
- Leviticus 11:47 הַֽ/חַיָּה֙ הַֽ/חַיָּ֔ה ptcl def.art + n c fs ptcl def.art + n c fs to make a distinction between the unclean and the clean, and between the living thing that may be eaten and the living thing that may not be eaten.'"
- Leviticus 13:10 חַ֖י adj Adjective ms and the priest shall examine him. Behold, if there is a white rising in the skin, and it has turned the hair white, and there is raw flesh in the rising,
- Leviticus 13:14 חַ֖י adj Adjective ms But whenever raw flesh appears in him, he shall be unclean.
- Leviticus 13:15 הַ/חַ֖י הַ/חַ֛י ptcl def.art + Adjective Adjective ms ptcl def.art + Adjective Adjective ms The priest shall examine the raw flesh, and pronounce him unclean: the raw flesh is unclean. It is leprosy.
- Leviticus 13:16 הַ/חַ֖י ptcl def.art + Adjective Adjective ms Or if the raw flesh turns again, and is changed to white, then he shall come to the priest;
- Leviticus 14:4 חַיּ֖וֹת adj Adjective fp then the priest shall command them to take for him who is to be cleansed two living clean birds, and cedar wood, and scarlet, and hyssop.
- Leviticus 14:5 חַיִּֽים adj Adjective mp The priest shall command them to kill one of the birds in an earthen vessel over running water.
- Leviticus 14:6 הַֽ/חַיָּה֙ הַֽ/חַיָּ֗ה הַֽ/חַיִּֽים ptcl def.art + Adjective Adjective fs ptcl def.art + Adjective Adjective fs ptcl def.art + Adjective Adjective mp As for the living bird, he shall take it, and the cedar wood, and the scarlet, and the hyssop, and shall dip them and the living bird in the blood of the bird that was killed over the running water.
- Leviticus 14:7 הַֽ/חַיָּ֖ה ptcl def.art + Adjective Adjective fs He shall sprinkle on him who is to be cleansed from the leprosy seven times, and shall pronounce him clean, and shall let the living bird go into the open field.
- Leviticus 14:50 חַיִּֽים adj Adjective mp He shall kill one of the birds in an earthen vessel over running water.
- Leviticus 14:51 הַֽ/חַיָּה֒ הַֽ/חַיִּ֑ים ptcl def.art + Adjective Adjective fs ptcl def.art + Adjective Adjective mp He shall take the cedar wood, and the hyssop, and the scarlet, and the living bird, and dip them in the blood of the slain bird, and in the running water, and sprinkle the house seven times.
- Leviticus 14:52 הַֽ/חַיִּ֑ים הַ/חַיָּ֗ה ptcl def.art + Adjective Adjective mp ptcl def.art + Adjective Adjective fs He shall cleanse the house with the blood of the bird, and with the running water, with the living bird, with the cedar wood, with the hyssop, and with the scarlet;
- Leviticus 14:53 הַֽ/חַיָּ֛ה ptcl def.art + Adjective Adjective fs but he shall let the living bird go out of the city into the open field. So shall he make atonement for the house; and it shall be clean."
- Leviticus 15:13 חַיִּ֖ים adj Adjective mp "'When he who has a discharge is cleansed of his discharge, then he shall count to himself seven days for his cleansing, and wash his clothes; and he shall bathe his flesh in running water, and shall be clean.
- Leviticus 16:10 חַ֛י adj Adjective ms But the goat, on which the lot fell for the scapegoat, shall be presented alive before Yahweh, to make atonement for him, to send him away for the scapegoat into the wilderness.
- Leviticus 16:20 הֶ/חָֽי ptcl def.art + Adjective Adjective ms "When he has made an end of atoning for the Holy Place, the Tent of Meeting, and the altar, he shall present the live goat.
- Leviticus 16:21 הַ/חַי֒ ptcl def.art + Adjective Adjective ms Aaron shall lay both his hands on the head of the live goat, and confess over him all the iniquities of the children of Israel, and all their transgressions, even all their sins; and he shall put them on the head of the goat, and shall send him away into the wilderness by the hand of a man who is in readiness.
- Leviticus 17:13 חַיָּ֛ה n c fs "'Whatever man there is of the children of Israel, or of the strangers who live as foreigners among them, who takes in hunting any animal or bird that may be eaten; he shall pour out its blood, and cover it with dust.
- Leviticus 18:18 בְּ/חַיֶּֽי/הָ prep + n c mp cs + sfx pers 3fs "'You shall not take a wife to her sister, to be a rival, to uncover her nakedness, while her sister is yet alive.
- Leviticus 25:7 וְ/לַֽ/חַיָּ֖ה conj + prep det + n c fs For your cattle also, and for the animals that are in your land, shall all the increase of it be for food.
- Leviticus 26:6 חַיָּ֤ה n c fs "'I will give peace in the land, and you shall lie down, and no one will make you afraid; and I will remove evil animals out of the land, neither shall the sword go through your land.
- Leviticus 26:22 חַיַּ֤ת n c fs cs I will send the wild animals among you, which will rob you of your children, destroy your cattle, and make you few in number; and your roads will become desolate.
Numbers 7 verses
- Numbers 14:21 חַי adj Adjective ms but in very deed, as I live, and as all the earth shall be filled with the glory of Yahweh;
- Numbers 14:28 חַי adj Adjective ms Tell them, As I live, says Yahweh, surely as you have spoken in my ears, so will I do to you:
- Numbers 16:30 חַיִּ֖ים adj Adjective mp But if Yahweh make a new thing, and the ground open its mouth, and swallow them up, with all that appertain to them, and they go down alive into Sheol; then you shall understand that these men have despised Yahweh.
- Numbers 16:33 חַיִּ֖ים adj Adjective mp So they, and all that appertained to them, went down alive into Sheol: and the earth closed on them, and they perished from among the assembly.
- Numbers 16:48 הַֽ/חַיִּ֑ים ptcl def.art + Adjective Adjective mp He stood between the dead and the living; and the plague was stayed.
- Numbers 19:17 חַיִּ֖ים adj Adjective mp For the unclean they shall take of the ashes of the burning of the sin-offering; and running water shall be put thereto in a vessel:
- Numbers 35:3 חַיָּתָֽ/ם n c fs cs + sfx pers 3mp The cities shall they have to dwell in; and their suburbs shall be for their cattle, and for their substance, and for all their animals.
Deuteronomy 19 verses
- Deuteronomy 4:4 חַיִּ֥ים adj Adjective mp But you who did cleave to Yahweh your God are alive everyone of you this day.
- Deuteronomy 4:9 חַיֶּ֑י/ךָ n c mp cs + sfx pers 2ms Only take heed to yourself, and keep your soul diligently, lest you forget the things which your eyes saw, and lest they depart from your heart all the days of your life; but make them known to your children and your children's children;
- Deuteronomy 4:10 חַיִּים֙ adj Adjective mp the day that you stood before Yahweh your God in Horeb, when Yahweh said to me, Assemble me the people, and I will make them hear my words, that they may learn to fear me all the days that they live on the earth, and that they may teach their children.
- Deuteronomy 5:3 חַיִּֽים adj Adjective mp Yahweh didn't make this covenant with our fathers, but with us, even us, who are all of us here alive this day.
- Deuteronomy 5:26 חַיִּ֜ים adj Adjective mp For who is there of all flesh, that has heard the voice of the living God speaking out of the midst of the fire, as we have, and lived?
- Deuteronomy 6:2 חַיֶּ֑י/ךָ n c mp cs + sfx pers 2ms that you might fear Yahweh your God, to keep all his statutes and his commandments, which I command you, you, and your son, and your son's son, all the days of your life; and that your days may be prolonged.
- Deuteronomy 7:22 חַיַּ֥ת n c fs cs Yahweh your God will cast out those nations before you by little and little: you may not consume them at once, lest the animals of the field increase on you.
- Deuteronomy 12:1 חַיִּ֖ים adj Adjective mp These are the statutes and the ordinances which you shall observe to do in the land which Yahweh, the God of your fathers, has given you to possess it, all the days that you live on the earth.
- Deuteronomy 16:3 חַיֶּֽי/ךָ n c mp cs + sfx pers 2ms You shall eat no leavened bread with it; seven days shall you eat unleavened bread therewith, even the bread of affliction; for you came forth out of the land of Egypt in haste: that you may remember the day when you came forth out of the land of Egypt all the days of your life.
- Deuteronomy 17:19 חַיָּ֑י/ו n c mp cs + sfx pers 3ms and it shall be with him, and he shall read therein all the days of his life; that he may learn to fear Yahweh his God, to keep all the words of this law and these statutes, to do them;
- Deuteronomy 28:66 חַיֶּ֔י/ךָ בְּ/חַיֶּֽי/ךָ n c mp cs + sfx pers 2ms prep + n c mp cs + sfx pers 2ms and your life shall hang in doubt before you; and you shall fear night and day, and shall have no assurance of your life.
- Deuteronomy 30:6 חַיֶּֽי/ךָ n c mp cs + sfx pers 2ms Yahweh your God will circumcise your heart, and the heart of your seed, to love Yahweh your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, that you may live.
- Deuteronomy 30:15 הַֽ/חַיִּ֖ים ptcl def.art + n c mp Behold, I have set before you this day life and good, and death and evil;
- Deuteronomy 30:19 הַ/חַיִּ֤ים בַּֽ/חַיִּ֔ים ptcl def.art + n c mp prep det + n c mp I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day, that I have set before you life and death, the blessing and the curse: therefore choose life, that you may live, you and your seed;
- Deuteronomy 30:20 חַיֶּ֨י/ךָ֙ n c mp cs + sfx pers 2ms to love Yahweh your God, to obey his voice, and to cleave to him; for he is your life, and the length of your days; that you may dwell in the land which Yahweh swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give them.
- Deuteronomy 31:13 חַיִּים֙ adj Adjective mp and that their children, who have not known, may hear, and learn to fear Yahweh your God, as long as you live in the land where you go over the Jordan to possess it.
- Deuteronomy 31:27 חַ֨י adj Adjective ms For I know your rebellion, and your stiff neck: behold, while I am yet alive with you this day, you have been rebellious against Yahweh; and how much more after my death?
- Deuteronomy 32:40 חַ֥י adj Adjective ms For I lift up my hand to heaven, And say, As I live forever,
- Deuteronomy 32:47 חַיֵּי/כֶ֑ם n c mp cs + sfx pers 2mp For it is no vain thing for you; because it is your life, and through this thing you shall prolong your days in the land, where you go over the Jordan to possess it.
Joshua 4 verses
- Joshua 1:5 חַיֶּ֑י/ךָ n c mp cs + sfx pers 2ms There shall not any man be able to stand before you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will not fail you, nor forsake you.
- Joshua 3:10 חַ֖י adj Adjective ms Joshua said, Hereby you shall know that the living God is among you, and that he will without fail drive out from before you the Canaanite, and the Hittite, and the Hivite, and the Perizzite, and the Girgashite, and the Amorite, and the Jebusite.
- Joshua 4:14 חַיָּֽי/ו n c mp cs + sfx pers 3ms On that day Yahweh magnified Joshua in the sight of all Israel; and they feared him, as they feared Moses, all the days of his life.
- Joshua 8:23 חָ֑י adj Adjective ms The king of Ai they took alive, and brought him to Joshua.
Judges 2 verses
- Judges 8:19 חַי adj Adjective ms He said, They were my brothers, the sons of my mother: as Yahweh lives, if you had saved them alive, I would not kill you.
- Judges 16:30 בְּ/חַיָּֽי/ו prep + n c mp cs + sfx pers 3ms Samson said, Let me die with the Philistines. He bowed himself with all his might; and the house fell on the lords, and on all the people who were therein. So the dead that he killed at his death were more than those who he killed in his life.
Ruth 2 verses
- Ruth 2:20 הַ/חַיִּ֖ים ptcl def.art + Adjective Adjective mp Naomi said to her daughter-in-law, Blessed be he of Yahweh, who has not left off his kindness to the living and to the dead. Naomi said to her, The man is a close relative to us, one of our near kinsmen.
- Ruth 3:13 חַי n c bs Stay this night, and it shall be in the morning, that if he will perform to you the part of a kinsman, well; let him do the kinsman's part: but if he will not do the part of a kinsman to you, then will I do the part of a kinsman to you, as Yahweh lives: lie down until the morning.
1 Samuel 24 verses
- 1 Samuel 1:11 חַיָּ֔י/ו n c mp cs + sfx pers 3ms She vowed a vow, and said, Yahweh of hosts, if you will indeed look on the affliction of your handmaid, and remember me, and not forget your handmaid, but will give to your handmaid a man-child, then I will give him to Yahweh all the days of his life, and there shall no razor come on his head.
- 1 Samuel 1:26 חֵ֥י adj Adjective ms She said, Oh, my lord, as your soul lives, my lord, I am the woman who stood by you here, praying to Yahweh.
- 1 Samuel 2:15 חָֽי adj Adjective ms Yes, before they burnt the fat, the priest's servant came, and said to the man who sacrificed, Give flesh to roast for the priest; for he will not have boiled flesh of you, but raw.
- 1 Samuel 7:15 חַיָּֽי/ו n c mp cs + sfx pers 3ms Samuel judged Israel all the days of his life.
- 1 Samuel 14:39 חַי adj Adjective ms For, as Yahweh lives, who saves Israel, though it be in Jonathan my son, he shall surely die. But there was not a man among all the people who answered him.
- 1 Samuel 14:45 חַי adj Adjective ms The people said to Saul, Shall Jonathan die, who has worked this great salvation in Israel? Far from it: as Yahweh lives, there shall not one hair of his head fall to the ground; for he has worked with God this day. So the people rescued Jonathan, that he didn't die.
- 1 Samuel 15:8 חָ֑י adj Adjective ms He took Agag the king of the Amalekites alive, and utterly destroyed all the people with the edge of the sword.
- 1 Samuel 17:26 חַיִּֽים adj Adjective mp David spoke to the men who stood by him, saying, What shall be done to the man who kills this Philistine, and takes away the reproach from Israel? for who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should defy the armies of the living God?
- 1 Samuel 17:36 חַיִּֽים adj Adjective mp Your servant struck both the lion and the bear: and this uncircumcised Philistine shall be as one of them, seeing he has defied the armies of the living God.
- 1 Samuel 17:46 וּ/לְ/חַיַּ֣ת conj + prep + n c fs cs This day will Yahweh deliver you into my hand; and I will strike you, and take your head from off you; and I will give the dead bodies of the host of the Philistines this day to the birds of the sky, and to the wild animals of the earth; that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel,
- 1 Samuel 17:55 חֵֽי adj Adjective ms When Saul saw David go forth against the Philistine, he said to Abner, the captain of the host, Abner, whose son is this youth? Abner said, As your soul lives, O king, I can't tell.
- 1 Samuel 18:18 חַיַּ֔/י n c mp cs + sfx pers 1cs David said to Saul, Who am I, and what is my life, [or] my father's family in Israel, that I should be son-in-law to the king?
- 1 Samuel 19:6 חַי adj Adjective ms Saul listened to the voice of Jonathan: and Saul swore, As Yahweh lives, he shall not be put to death.
- 1 Samuel 20:3 חַי וְ/חֵ֣י adj Adjective ms conj + Adjective Adjective ms David swore moreover, and said, Your father knows well that I have found favor in your eyes; and he says, Don't let Jonathan know this, lest he be grieved: but truly as Yahweh lives, and as your soul lives, there is but a step between me and death.
- 1 Samuel 20:14 חָ֑י adj Adjective ms You shall not only while yet I live show me the loving kindness of Yahweh, that I not die;
- 1 Samuel 20:21 חַי adj Adjective ms Behold, I will send the boy, [saying], Go, find the arrows. If I tell the boy, Behold, the arrows are on this side of you; take them, and come; for there is peace to you and no hurt, as Yahweh lives.
- 1 Samuel 25:6 לֶ/חָ֑י prep det + Adjective Adjective ms and thus shall you tell him who lives [in prosperity], Peace be to you, and peace be to your house, and peace be to all that you have.
- 1 Samuel 25:26 חַי וְ/חֵֽי adj Adjective ms conj + Adjective Adjective ms Now therefore, my lord, as Yahweh lives, and as your soul lives, seeing Yahweh has withheld you from blood guiltiness, and from avenging yourself with your own hand, now therefore let your enemies, and those who seek evil to my lord, be as Nabal.
- 1 Samuel 25:29 הַ/חַיִּ֗ים ptcl def.art + Adjective Adjective mp Though men be risen up to pursue you, and to seek your soul, yet the soul of my lord shall be bound in the bundle of life with Yahweh your God; and the souls of your enemies, them shall he sling out, as from the hollow of a sling.
- 1 Samuel 25:34 חַי adj Adjective ms For in very deed, as Yahweh, the God of Israel, lives, who has withheld me from hurting you, except you had hurried and come to meet me, surely there wouldn't have been left to Nabal by the morning light so much as one man-child.
- 1 Samuel 26:10 חַי adj Adjective ms David said, As Yahweh lives, Yahweh will strike him; or his day shall come to die; or he shall go down into battle and perish.
- 1 Samuel 26:16 חַי adj Adjective ms This thing isn't good that you have done. As Yahweh lives, you are worthy to die, because you have not kept watch over your lord, Yahweh's anointed. Now see where the king's spear is, and the jar of water that was at his head.
- 1 Samuel 28:10 חַי adj Adjective ms Saul swore to her by Yahweh, saying, As Yahweh lives, there shall no punishment happen to you for this thing.
- 1 Samuel 29:6 חַי adj Adjective ms Then Achish called David, and said to him, As Yahweh lives, you have been upright, and your going out and your coming in with me in the host is good in my sight; for I have not found evil in you since the day of your coming to me to this day: nevertheless the lords don't favor you.
2 Samuel 20 verses
- 2 Samuel 1:23 בְּ/חַיֵּי/הֶ֔ם prep + n c mp cs + sfx pers 3mp Saul and Jonathan were lovely and pleasant in their lives, In their death they were not divided: They were swifter than eagles, They were stronger than lions.
- 2 Samuel 2:27 חַ֚י adj Adjective ms Joab said, As God lives, if you had not spoken, surely then in the morning the people had gone away, nor followed everyone his brother.
- 2 Samuel 4:9 חַי adj Adjective ms David answered Rechab and Baanah his brother, the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, and said to them, As Yahweh lives, who has redeemed my soul out of all adversity,
- 2 Samuel 11:11 חַיֶּ֨/ךָ֙ וְ/חֵ֣י n c bp cs + sfx pers 2ms conj + n c bs cs Uriah said to David, The ark, and Israel, and Judah, abide in booths; and my lord Joab, and the servants of my lord, are encamped in the open field; shall I then go into my house, to eat and to drink, and to lie with my wife? as you live, and as your soul lives, I will not do this thing.
- 2 Samuel 12:5 חַי adj Adjective ms David's anger was greatly kindled against the man, and he said to Nathan, "As Yahweh lives, the man who has done this is worthy to die!
- 2 Samuel 12:18 חַ֗י adj Adjective ms It happened on the seventh day, that the child died. The servants of David feared to tell him that the child was dead; for they said, Behold, while the child was yet alive, we spoke to him, and he didn't listen to our voice: how will he then vex himself, if we tell him that the child is dead!
- 2 Samuel 12:21 חַי֙ adj Adjective ms Then said his servants to him, What thing is this that you have done? you did fast and weep for the child, while it was alive; but when the child was dead, you did rise and eat bread.
- 2 Samuel 12:22 חַ֔י וְ/חַ֥י adj Adjective ms conj + Qal wpf 3ms He said, While the child was yet alive, I fasted and wept: for I said, Who knows whether Yahweh will not be gracious to me, that the child may live?
- 2 Samuel 14:11 חַי adj Adjective ms Then said she, Please let the king remember Yahweh your God, that the avenger of blood destroy not any more, lest they destroy my son. He said, As Yahweh lives, there shall not one hair of your son fall to the earth.
- 2 Samuel 14:19 חֵֽי adj Adjective ms The king said, Is the hand of Joab with you in all this? The woman answered, As your soul lives, my lord the king, none can turn to the right hand or to the left from anything that my lord the king has spoken; for your servant Joab, he bade me, and he put all these words in the mouth of your handmaid;
- 2 Samuel 15:21 חַי וְ/חֵי֙ לְ/חַיִּ֔ים adj Adjective ms conj + n c bs cs prep + n c mp Ittai answered the king, and said, As Yahweh lives, and as my lord the king lives, surely in what place my lord the king shall be, whether for death or for life, even there also will your servant be.
- 2 Samuel 18:14 חַ֖י adj Adjective ms Then said Joab, I may not wait thus with you. He took three darts in his hand, and thrust them through the heart of Absalom, while he was yet alive in the midst of the oak.
- 2 Samuel 18:18 ב/חי/ו בְ/חַיָּי/ו֙ prep + n c ms cs + sfx pers 3ms prep + n c mp cs + sfx pers 3ms Now Absalom in his lifetime had taken and reared up for himself the pillar, which is in the king's dale; for he said, I have no son to keep my name in memory: and he called the pillar after his own name; and it is called Absalom's monument, to this day.
- 2 Samuel 19:6 חַי֙ adj Adjective ms in that you love those who hate you, and hate those who love you. For you have declared this day, that princes and servants are nothing to you: for this day I perceive that if Absalom had lived, and all we had died this day, then it had pleased you well.
- 2 Samuel 19:34 חַיַּ֔/י n c mp cs + sfx pers 1cs Barzillai said to the king, How many are the days of the years of my life, that I should go up with the king to Jerusalem?
- 2 Samuel 21:10 חַיַּ֥ת n c fs cs Rizpah the daughter of Aiah took sackcloth, and spread it for her on the rock, from the beginning of harvest until water was poured on them from the sky; and she allowed neither the birds of the sky to rest on them by day, nor the animals of the field by night.
- 2 Samuel 22:47 חַי adj Adjective ms Yahweh lives; Blessed be my rock; Exalted be God, the rock of my salvation,
- 2 Samuel 23:11 לַ/חַיָּ֗ה prep det + n c fs After him was Shammah the son of Agee a Hararite. The Philistines were gathered together into a troop, where was a plot of ground full of lentils; and the people fled from the Philistines.
- 2 Samuel 23:13 וְ/חַיַּ֣ת conj + n c fs cs Three of the thirty chief men went down, and came to David in the harvest time to the cave of Adullam; and the troop of the Philistines was encamped in the valley of Rephaim.
- 2 Samuel 23:20 חי adj Adjective ms Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, the son of a valiant man of Kabzeel, who had done mighty deeds, he killed the two [sons of] Ariel of Moab: he went down also and killed a lion in the midst of a pit in time of snow.
1 Kings 22 verses
- 1 Kings 1:29 חַי adj Adjective ms The king swore, and said, As Yahweh lives, who has redeemed my soul out of all adversity,
- 1 Kings 2:24 חַי adj Adjective ms Now therefore as Yahweh lives, who has established me, and set me on the throne of David my father, and who has made me a house, as he promised, surely Adonijah shall be put to death this day.
- 1 Kings 3:22 הַ/חַי֙ הֶ/חָ֑י ptcl def.art + Adjective Adjective ms ptcl def.art + Adjective Adjective ms The other woman said, No; but the living is my son, and the dead is your son. This said, No; but the dead is your son, and the living is my son. Thus they spoke before the king.
- 1 Kings 3:23 הַ/חַ֖י הֶ/חָֽי ptcl def.art + Adjective Adjective ms ptcl def.art + Adjective Adjective ms Then said the king, The one says, This is my son who lives, and your son is the dead: and the other says, No; but your son is the dead, and my son is the living.
- 1 Kings 3:25 הַ/חַ֖י ptcl def.art + Adjective Adjective ms The king said, Divide the living child in two, and give half to the one, and half to the other.
- 1 Kings 3:26 הַ/חַ֜י הַ/חַ֔י ptcl def.art + Adjective Adjective ms ptcl def.art + Adjective Adjective ms Then spoke the woman whose the living child was to the king, for her heart yearned over her son, and she said, Oh, my lord, give her the living child, and in no way kill it. But the other said, It shall be neither mine nor yours; divide it.
- 1 Kings 3:27 הַ/חַ֔י ptcl def.art + Adjective Adjective ms Then the king answered, Give her the living child, and in no way kill it: she is the mother of it.
- 1 Kings 4:21 חַיָּֽי/ו n c mp cs + sfx pers 3ms Solomon ruled over all the kingdoms from the River to the land of the Philistines, and to the border of Egypt: they brought tribute, and served Solomon all the days of his life.
- 1 Kings 8:40 חַיִּ֖ים adj Adjective mp that they may fear you all the days that they live in the land which you gave to our fathers.
- 1 Kings 11:34 חַיָּ֔י/ו n c mp cs + sfx pers 3ms However I will not take the whole kingdom out of his hand; but I will make him prince all the days of his life, for David my servant's sake whom I chose, who kept my commandments and my statutes;
- 1 Kings 12:6 חַ֖י adj Adjective ms King Rehoboam took counsel with the old men, who had stood before Solomon his father while he yet lived, saying, What counsel give you me to return answer to this people?
- 1 Kings 15:5 חַיָּ֔י/ו n c mp cs + sfx pers 3ms because David did that which was right in the eyes of Yahweh, and didn't turn aside from anything that he commanded him all the days of his life, except only in the matter of Uriah the Hittite.
- 1 Kings 15:6 חַיָּֽי/ו n c mp cs + sfx pers 3ms Now there was war between Rehoboam and Jeroboam all the days of his life.
- 1 Kings 17:1 חַי adj Adjective ms Elijah the Tishbite, who was of the foreigners of Gilead, said to Ahab, As Yahweh, the God of Israel, lives, before whom I stand, there shall not be dew nor rain these years, but according to my word.
- 1 Kings 17:12 חַי adj Adjective ms She said, As Yahweh your God lives, I don't have a cake, but a handful of meal in the jar, and a little oil in the jar: and, behold, I am gathering two sticks, that I may go in and bake it for me and my son, that we may eat it, and die.
- 1 Kings 17:23 חַ֥י adj Adjective ms Elijah took the child, and brought him down out of the chamber into the house, and delivered him to his mother; and Elijah said, Behold, your son lives.
- 1 Kings 18:10 חַ֣י adj Adjective ms As Yahweh your God lives, there is no nation or kingdom, where my lord has not sent to seek you: and when they said, He is not here, he took an oath of the kingdom and nation, that they didn't find you.
- 1 Kings 18:15 חַ֚י adj Adjective ms Elijah said, As Yahweh of Hosts lives, before whom I stand, I will surely show myself to him today.
- 1 Kings 20:18 חַיִּ֑ים חַיִּ֥ים adj Adjective mp adj Adjective mp He said, Whether they are come out for peace, take them alive, or whether they are come out for war, taken them alive.
- 1 Kings 20:32 חַ֖י adj Adjective ms So they girded sackcloth on their loins, and [put] ropes on their heads, and came to the king of Israel, and said, Your servant Ben Hadad says, please let me live. He said, Is he yet alive? he is my brother.
- 1 Kings 21:15 חַ֖י adj Adjective ms It happened, when Jezebel heard that Naboth was stoned, and was dead, that Jezebel said to Ahab, Arise, take possession of the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite, which he refused to give you for money; for Naboth is not alive, but dead.
- 1 Kings 22:14 חַי adj Adjective ms Micaiah said, As Yahweh lives, what Yahweh says to me, that will I speak.
2 Kings 16 verses
- 2 Kings 2:2 חַי וְ/חֵֽי adj Adjective ms conj + Adjective Adjective ms Elijah said to Elisha, Please wait here, for Yahweh has sent me as far as Bethel. Elisha said, As Yahweh lives, and as your soul lives, I will not leave you. So they went down to Bethel.
- 2 Kings 2:4 חַי וְ/חֵֽי adj Adjective ms conj + Adjective Adjective ms Elijah said to him, Elisha, please wait here, for Yahweh has sent me to Jericho. He said, As Yahweh lives, and as your soul lives, I will not leave you. So they came to Jericho.
- 2 Kings 2:6 חַי וְ/חֵֽי adj Adjective ms conj + Adjective Adjective ms Elijah said to him, "Please wait here, for Yahweh has sent me to the Jordan." He said, "As Yahweh lives, and as your soul lives, I will not leave you." They two went on.
- 2 Kings 3:14 חַי adj Adjective ms Elisha said, As Yahweh of Hosts lives, before whom I stand, surely, were it not that I regard the presence of Jehoshaphat the king of Judah, I would not look toward you, nor see you.
- 2 Kings 4:16 חַיָּ֔ה adj Adjective fs He said, At this season, when the time comes round, you shall embrace a son. She said, No, my lord, you man of God, do not lie to your handmaid.
- 2 Kings 4:17 חַיָּ֔ה adj Adjective fs The woman conceived, and bore a son at that season, when the time came round, as Elisha had said to her.
- 2 Kings 4:30 חַי וְ/חֵֽי adj Adjective ms conj + Adjective Adjective ms The mother of the child said, As Yahweh lives, and as your soul lives, I will not leave you. He arose, and followed her.
- 2 Kings 5:16 חַי adj Adjective ms But he said, As Yahweh lives, before whom I stand, I will receive none. He urged him to take it; but he refused.
About this entry
At a glance — auto-summarized from this page’s data, not written by a person. Every figure links to its source below. This summary describes the numbers; it doesn’t interpret them.
חי — transliterated chay — is a Hebrew word carrying the sense “living.” The King James Version’s older “liveth” has given way to “life” in modern versions, as the renderings breakdown shows. The Hebrew Bible uses it across 450 verses — common. It first appears in Genesis 1:20. It is not a single-sense word — see its full sense range. See the sense tree, 450-verse concordance, and the renderings breakdown below.
Gloss history
Strong's 1890 vs modern scholarship
About this word
Strong's H2416 catalogs a Hebrew word from the Hebrew Old Testament.
These counts are not copied from any lexicon or concordance. They are computed here, from the morphology-tagged Hebrew Old Testament. What Lemma adds →
- 450
- distinct verses
- The word appears in 450 distinct verses.
- 29 / 39
- OT books
- The word appears in 29 of 39 Old Testament books.
- #99
- by frequency
- Top 100 most frequent Hebrew words (rank 99 of 8,640 Hebrew words by occurrence).
View all 450 occurrences in the concordance →
By section of the Old Testament
By traditional corpus
Conventional, traditional groupings — biblical authorship is debated, so this is a traditional corpus grouping, not an authorship claim. Each share is this word’s portion of its verses in that division of the Hebrew canon. Each figure is a share of the word’s 450 distinct verses.
- Prophets (Nevi'im) 194 verses · 43%
- Writings (Ketuvim) 138 verses · 31%
- Torah (Pentateuch) 118 verses · 26%
How translations render this word
Counts come from each version’s own published word-to-Strong’s tagging or interlinear alignment — an approximate guide to how each version renders this word, not a word-level alignment the data otherwise carries. Because each total is that version’s own tagged count, the per-version totals vary from one another and need not match the appearance or distinct-verse counts above. These counts may also differ from a printed concordance because Lemma counts each distinctly tagged rendering and does not collapse phrase taggings into a single head-word total. This is a fixed set of word-tagged versions (KJV, ASV, BSB, ULT) and does not change with the reading translation you choose elsewhere. Each version’s license is shown beside its name below (and on Sources).
BDB lists this Strong’s number as 5 distinct words (homographs). Each count above pools all of them and is not split by sense — see the Senses section below. A low-frequency rendering may belong to a different one of those words, not the primary meaning.
- King James Version†: Life 122×, Liveth 66×, Living 53×
- American Standard Version†: Life 107×, Liveth 58×, Living 52×
- Berean Standard Bible†: Life 100×, Lives 62×, Living 53×
- unfoldingWord Literal Text†: Life 118×, Living 92×, Life of 58×
King James Version Public Domain
Renders H2416 across 498† tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus other, less common renderings. Plus 80 renderings that appear only once — usually multi-word phrases or single function words the recovered tagging swept in, not distinct renderings. Not rendered by a distinct English word in 3 further occurrences.
American Standard Version Public Domain
Renders H2416 across 492† tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus other, less common renderings. Plus 108 renderings that appear only once — usually multi-word phrases or single function words the recovered tagging swept in, not distinct renderings.
Berean Standard Bible Public Domain
Renders H2416 across 485† tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus other, less common renderings. Plus 56 renderings that appear only once — usually multi-word phrases or single function words the recovered tagging swept in, not distinct renderings. Not rendered by a distinct English word in 14 further occurrences.
unfoldingWord Literal Text CC BY-SA 4.0
Renders H2416 across 528† tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus other, less common renderings. Plus 53 renderings that appear only once — usually multi-word phrases or single function words the recovered tagging swept in, not distinct renderings.
16 senses and sub-senses in the full BDB
What do BDB’s symbols mean?
BDB uses these scholarly abbreviations:
| Symbol | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 𝔊 | the Septuagint (the ancient Greek translation, LXX) |
| 𝔙 | the Vulgate (the Latin translation) |
| 𝔖 | the Syriac version (the Peshitta) |
| 𝔗 | the Targum (the Aramaic translation) |
| ψ | the Psalms |
| √ | root (the underlying root or stem) |
| ‖ | parallel passage (a synonymous or contrasted parallel) |
| † | the dagger: every passage where the word occurs is cited |
The 16 senses and sub-senses the full Brown-Driver-Briggs lexicon distinguishes for this word, in lexicon order (not ranked by frequency), with BDB’s own verbatim wording and sub-sense lettering. Shown in Hebrew script with BDB’s own scholarly abbreviations. The condensed entry is in the Lexicon Entry tab. See also the Forms in the corpus table below.
חי I alive, living
- 1.
- a. of God, as the living one, the fountain of life אֵל חַי Jos 3:10 (J), Ho 2:1 ψ 42:3; 84:3; אלהים חי 2 K 19:4, 16 = Is 37:4, 17; אלהים חיים Dt 5:23 1 S 17:26, 36 Je 10:10; 23:36; חי יהוה Yahweh is living ψ 18:47 = 2 S 22:47; גאלי חי my avenger is living Jb 19:25; the formula of the oath is חַי י׳ Ju 8:19 Ru 3:13 1 S 14:39, 45; 19:6; 20:3, 21; 25:34; 26:10, 16; 28:10; 29:6 2 S 4:9; 12:5; 14:11; 15:21 1 K 1:29; 2:24; 17:1, 12; 18:10; 22:14 = 2 Ch 18:13, 2 K 5:16, 20 Ho 4:15 Je 4:2; 5:2; 12:16; 16:14, 15; 23:7, 8; 38:16; חי אל Jb 27:2; חי האלהים 2 S 2:27; חי אדני י׳ Je 44:26; חי י׳ צבאות 1 K 18:15 2 K 3:14; as used by God Himself it is חי אנכי Dt 32:40, elsewhere חי אני Nu 14:21, 28 (P) Is 49:18; Je 22:24; 46:18 Ez 5:11; 14:16, 18, 20; 16:48; 17:16, 19; 18:3; 20:3, 31, 33; 33:11, 27; 34:8; 35:6, 11 Zp 2:9, cf. also חֵי דרך באר שׁבע, חֵי אלהיך דן Am 8:14; with the exception of בְּחֵי הָעֹולָם by him who liveth for ever Dn 12:7, חֵי is always (as an artificial distinction of scribes) used of non-sacred oaths, v. b. e.g. Joshua 3:10
- b. of man; אָדָם חַי a living man La 3:39, in antith. מֵת: חי חי Is 38:19; הַחַי collective Ec 7:2; Absalom 2 S 19:7; Naboth 1 K 21:15; a son or lad 2 S 12:21 1 K 3:22(×2), 23(×2), 25, 26(×2), 27; 17:23; usually pl. חיים alive, living Nu 16:30, 33 (J), 17:13 (P), Dt 4:4; 5:3 Is 8:19 ψ 55:16; 124:3 Pr 1:12 Ec 4:2(×2), 15; 6:8; 9:4, 5 Ru 2:20; taking prisoners alive Jos 8:23 (J) 1 S 15:8 1 K 20:18(×2) 2 K 7:12; 10:14(×2) 2 Ch 25:12; living (prosperously) 1 S 25:6 (We reads לָחִי = לְאָחִי (v. Klo Dr) to my brother, after 𝔙 fratribus meis); elsewhere in phrase כל־הימים אשׁר הֵם (אַתֶּם) היים על (פני) האדמה all the days that they (ye) live upon (the face of) the land Dt 4:10; 12:1; 31:13 1 K 8:40 = 2 Ch 6:31. Note phrases: עוֹד חַי (ים) yet alive Gn 25:6; 43:7, 27, 28; 45:28; 46:30 (J), 45:3, 26 Ex 4:18 (E), Dt 31:27 1 Sa 20:14 2 S 12:22; 18:14 1 K 20:32; בהיות חי 2 S 12:18 1 K 12:6 2 Ch 10:6; אֶרֶץ (הַ)חַיִים land of the living Is 38:11; 53:8 Je 11:19 Ez 26:20; 32:23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 32 ψ 27:13; 52:7; 142:6 Jb 28:13; ארצות הח׳ ψ 116:9; ספר ח׳ ψ 69:29; צרור הח׳ bundle of the living 1 S 25:29; אור הח׳ light of the living Jb 33:30 ψ 56:14. In the oath by life of men חי is pointed always חֵי: חֵי אדני המלך as my lord the king liveth 2 S 15:21; חֵי פרעה Gn 42:15, 16 (E); חֵי נַפְשְׁךָ 1 S 1:26; 17:55 2 S 14:19; חַי י׳ וְחֵי נַפְשְׁךָ as Yahweh liveth and as thy soul (or thyself) liveth 1 S 20:3; 25:26 2 K 2:2, 4, 6; 4:30 חַיֶּךָ וְחֵי נ׳ 2 S 11:11 (but on text v. We Dr). e.g. Lamentations 3:39
- c. of animals, alive, living: ox Ex 21:35; 22:3 (E); goat Lv 16:10, 20, 21 (P); bird Lv 14:4, 6(×2), 7, 51, 53; dog, לְכֶלֶב חַי הוּא טוֹב מִן־הָאַרְיֵה הַמֵּת Ec 9:4 (comp. Arabic prov. Kalb ḥay wa-lâ maiyit, a living dog and no dead lion Wetzst Verhand. Berl. Anthrop. Ges 1878, 388); reptiles Gn 1:28 (P); animals in general Gn 9:3 (P); בשׂר חי living, raw flesh Lv 13:10, 14, 15(×2), 16 (P) 1 S 2:15. e.g. Exodus 21:35
- d. animals and man, phrases for either or both: כל חי Gn 3:20; 8:21 (J) Jb 12:10; 28:21; 30:23 ψ 143:2; 145:16; כל החי Gn 6:19 (P); נֶפֶשׁ חַיָּה Gn 1:20, 24, 30 (P) 2:7, 19 (J); כל נֶפֶשׁ חַיָּה Gn 9:12, 15, 16 (P) Ez 47:9; כל נפשׁ החיה Gn 1:21; 9:10 Lv 11:10, 46 (P). e.g. Genesis 3:20
- e. (dub.) of vegetation, as thorns, green, ψ 58:10 (Ges Ew Ol Pe, but De Ri Che Bae raw flesh, v. c supr. ad fin.) e.g. Psalms 58:10
- f. of water, flowing, fresh מים חיים Gn 26:19 (J), Lv 14:5, 6, 50, 51, 52; 15:13 Nu 19:17 (P), Je 2:13; 17:13 Zc 14:8 Ct 4:15. e.g. Genesis 26:19
- 2. (dub.) lively, active: אישׁ חַי an active man 2 S 23:20 (but Qr אישׁ חַיִל is to be preferred); איבי חיים mine enemies are lively ψ 38:20 (RV, but Houb Ol Ew Hu. Che al. read חִנָּם, ‖ שׁקר). e.g. 2 Samuel 23:20
- 3. reviving: כָּעֵת חַיָּה at the time (when it is) reviving, the spring Gn 18:10, 14 (J), 2 K 4:16, 17. e.g. Genesis 18:10
חי II [m.] kinsfolk (Arabic حَىٌّ a group of families united by vital ties RSK 36–40 DrSm 119), pl. sf. חַיַּי 1 S 18
חי III living thing, animal (Zinj. wild beast DHMSendsch. 34)
- 1. animal, as a living, active being:
- a. in general, Gn 8:17 Lv 11:2, 27, 47(×2) Nu 35:3 (P) ψ 104:25 Is 46:1 Dn 8:4. e.g. Genesis 8:17
- b. wild animals, on account of their vital energy and activity Gn 7:14, 21; 8:1, 19; 9:5 (P) Lv 17:13; 25:7 (H) Jb 37:8 ψ 148:10 Is 40:16 Ez 14:15; 33:27 Zp 2:14, 15; ח׳ קנה ψ 68:31 wild animal of the reeds; ח׳ רעה evil beast Gn 37:20, 33 (JE) Lv 26:6 (H) Ez 5:17; 14:15, 21; 34:25; ח׳ טמאה Lv 5:2 (P) unclean beast; ח׳ הארץ Gn 1:25, 30; 9:2, 10(×2) (P) 1 S 17:46 Ez 29:5; 32:4; 34:28 Jb 5:22; חיתו ארץ Gn 1:24 (P) ψ 79:2; ח׳ השׂדה Ex 23:11, 29 (covt. code) Lv 26:22 (H) Dt 7:22 2 S 21:10, 2 K 14:9 = 2 Ch 25:18, Ho 2:14, 20; 4:3; 13:8 Is 43:20 Je 27:6; 28:14 Ez 38:20; 39:4 Jb 5:23; 39:15; כל ח׳ השׂדה Gn 2:19, 20; 3:1, 14 (J) Jb 40:20 Je 12:9 Ez 31:6, 13; 34:5, 8; 39:17; חיתו שׂדי Is 56:9 ψ 104:11; חיתו (ב)יער Is 56:9 ψ 50:10; 104:20; פְּרִיץ חיות Is 35:9 destroyer among beasts. e.g. Genesis 7:14
- c. living beings, of the cherubic chariot Ez 1:5, 13(×2), 14, 15(×2), 19(×2), 20, 21, 22; 3:13; 10:15, 17, 20. e.g. Ezekiel 1:5
- 2. life, only in late poetry, ψ 143:3 Jb 33:18, 20, 22, 28; 36:14 Ez 7:13(×2), and (dub.) ψ 74:19; 78:50. e.g. Psalms 143:3
- 3. appetite, activity of hunger: חית כפרים appetite of young lions Jb 38:39. e.g. Job 38:39
- 4. revival, renewal: חַיַּת יָדֵךְ מָצָאתְ thou didst find renewal of thy strength (re-invigoration) Is 57:10; v. חָיָה 2. e.g. Isaiah 57:10
חי IV (si vera l.) community (= fem. of ii. חַי according to NöZMG, 1886, 176)
- —Several other passages are dub.: וַיֵּאָסְפוּ פְלִשְׁתִּים לַחַיָּה 2 S 23:11 assembled into a troop, or by bands (RV, but neither rend. justif.: Bö Ew We Klo Dr rightly read לֶ֫חְיָה to Leḥi, cf. Ju 15:9; wd. om. by accident in ‖ 1 Ch 11:13 Dr); חַיָּֽתְךָ יָֽשְׁבוּ־בָהּ ψ 68:11 thy troop dwelt in it (Thes SS RVm Hi Ri Che, but 𝔊 𝔖 Jer Pe thy (living) creatures, of the people; Hup id., ref. to quails; improb.); אַל־תִּתֵּן לְחַיַּת נֶפֶשׁ תּוֹרֶךָ חַיַּת עֲנִיֶּיךָ אַל־תִּשְׁכַּח לָנֶ֫צַח ψ 74:19 give not the soul of thy turtle-dove to the wild beasts, the life of thine afflicted do not forget for ever: RV Hi Pe Bae Sch render thus, giving חית diff. meanings in the two clauses, the former being archaic fem. abs. Ges§ 80, 2. R. 2; text doubtless corrupt, read poss. למות Schr Ri, for לחית, or לשׁחת Kroch; Gr either of these; Che either, or better לחרב. e.g. 2 Samuel 23:11
Senses from the full Brown-Driver-Briggs lexicon (Brown, Driver, Briggs; Oxford 1906 — public domain), digitized via Sefaria, supplemented by the OpenScriptures HebrewLexicon (CC BY 4.0). Full attribution on Sources.
Word origin
I. v. sub חיה infr.
II. adj. alive, living;—ח׳ Gn 25:6 +; חָ֑י Gn 3:20 +, חֵי Am 8:14 + 15 times (Ew§ 329 explains as cstr., but Ges§ 93, R 7 n. al. as contracted abs.); f. חַיָּה Gn 1:20 +; pl. חַיִּים ψ 116:9 +;—
III. n.[m.] kinsfolk (Arabic حَىٌّ a group of families united by vital ties RSK 36–40 DrSm 119), pl. sf. חַיַּי 1 S 18:18, incorrectly pointed with the interpretation my life RV, but read חַיִּי my kinsfolk, We Ki Dr RS SS RVm VB. It is explained by the gloss משׁפחת אבי We (Klo reads אַחַי וּ).
I. n.f. living thing, animal (Zinj. wild beast DHMSendsch. 34)—ח׳ Gn 8:17 +; cstr. חַיַּת Is 57:10 +; old case ending (poetic) חַיְתוֹ Gn 1:24 ψ 50:10; 79:2; 104:11, 20 Is 56:9(×2) Zp 2:14; sf. חַיָּתִי ψ 143:3, etc.; pl. חַיּוֹת Lv 14:4 + 12 times—
II. n.f. (si vera l.) community (= fem. of ii. חַי according to NöZMG, 1886, 176)—וְחַיַּת פְּלִשְׁתִּים חֹנָה and a community of Philistines (i.e. a group of allied families, making a raid together) was encamping 2 S 23:13 (= מַחֲנֵה 1 Ch 11:15); perhaps also ψ 68:11 (cf. infr.)
— Brown-Driver-Briggs (Oxford 1906, public domain), digitized via Sefaria, supplemented by the OpenScriptures HebrewLexicon (CC BY 4.0). See Sources.
Derived from חיה (châyâh) (H2421) — to live.
Jastrow Dictionary
A second Hebrew/Aramaic lexicon for comparison, covering Aramaic and post-biblical (Talmudic, Targumic, Midrashic) usage that the biblical-Hebrew BDB does not. Matched by lemma rather than by Strong’s number, so a lemma may carry more than one Jastrow headword (shown separately below), and the entries cover usage well beyond the Bible.
חַי
- 1. living, alive; living creature; healthy. Ber. 27ᵇ אלמלא אני חי והוא מת יכול החי וכ׳ if I were alive and he dead, the living one might give the lie to the dead. Ib. V, 5 זה חי this one is destined to live (recover). Sabb. 94ᵃ, a. e. החי נושא את עצמו a living being carries itself (the carrying of a living being on the Sabbath is not unlawful). Ib. X, 5 את החי במטה (he who carries) a living person on a couch; a. v. fr.—אבר מן החי, v. אֵבֶר.—Pl. חַיִּים, חַיִּין. Ab. IV, 22 והח׳ לידון and the living are destined to be judged. Sabb. 94ᵃ בין ח׳ ובין שחוטין whether alive or slaughtered; a. fr.—Ab. Zar. 5ᵇ (ref. to החי, Gen. VI, 19) שחיין ראשי וכ׳ the ends of whose limbs live (exist). e.g. Genesis 6:19
- 2. in natural condition, raw (opp. בשול); unmixed (opp. מָזוּג). Snh. 70ᵃ בשר חי raw meat, יין חי unmixed wine. Ab. Zar. 38ᵃ, a. fr. הנאכל כמות שהוא חי what is eatable in its natural state; a. fr.—Fem. חַיָּה. Ḥull. 42ᵃ (ref. to Lev. XI, 2) ח׳ אכול וכ׳ what is in a healthy condition (viable), you may eat, v. טְרֵפָה. [V. חַיָּה.] e.g. Leviticus 11:2
חַי ²
- Targ. Gen. IX, 3; a. fr.—Targ. Ex. XII, 9 כד חי (half-)raw; a. fr.—Sabb. 18ᵇ קרא חייא raw cabbage.—Midr. Till. to Ps. XXII, 7 [read:] חשיך חי דבעי למיתא luckless in the living one that is dependent on the dead; Yalk. ib. 686; a. fr.—Pl. חַיִּין, חַיַּיָּא, חַיֵּי. Targ. Ps. XXXVIII, 20. Targ. Num. XVII, 13; a. fr.—Snh. 98ᵇ אי מן ח׳ הוא if he is one of the living (the present age); Y. Ber. II, 5ᵃ top; a. fr.—Fem. חַיָּיא, חַיָּא, חַיְּתָא, חַיְּי׳. Targ. Gen. I, 20. Targ. Y. ib. XXXVII, 2; a. e.—Sabb. 18ᵇ קדרא ח׳ a raw dish.—Pl. חַיָּיתָא, חַיָּין. Targ. Y. Gen. I, 21; a. fr.—Targ. Y. II, Ex. I, 19 (strong).—[B. Kam. 38ᵇ דהוה חַיָּה (h. form.) that she would have lived.
A Dictionary of the Targumim, the Talmud Babli and Yerushalmi, and the Midrashic Literature (Marcus Jastrow; London, Luzac, 1903) — Public Domain. Digitized via Sefaria. Digitized via Sefaria. Full attribution on Sources.
Forms in the corpus
The 196 distinct written forms H2416 takes in the Hebrew Bible, most frequent first — each parse links to that state’s occurrences in the concordance. Hebrew forms include their vowel points and cantillation, so a single lemma takes many written forms.
The 60 most common forms are shown; 136 rarer forms follow in the full concordance.
Same root — word family
Other BDB entries built from the same root as H2416, grouped by Strong’s listed origin. These share a root / origin per the lexicon — not necessarily a shared meaning. Each links to that word’s own entry.
Derives from
Shares the same root
- חיא chăyâʼ H2418 to live
- חיה châyeh H2422 lively
- חיות chayûwth H2424 living
- חיי châyay H2425 to live
- מחיה michyâh H4241 sustenance
Proper names from this root
People and places named from this root — a name, not an additional meaning of the word.
Compare all same-root words → Showing 4 of 10 — not the complete family. 3 of the same-root words are proper names (people or places). They share a root, not necessarily a meaning.
Septuagint verse parallels
This word appears in 425 verses that also exist in the Greek Old Testament (Septuagint), out of the 450 Hebrew verses it occurs in. You can read those verses in Greek by switching the Old Testament edition to the Septuagint.
Read these verses in the Septuagint
- Genesis 1:20
- Exodus 1:14
- Leviticus 5:2
- Numbers 14:21
- Deuteronomy 4:4
- Joshua 1:5
- Judges 8:19
- Ruth 2:20
- 1 Samuel 1:11
- 2 Samuel 1:23
- 1 Kings 1:29
- 2 Kings 2:2
This is a verse-level parallel only — the same verses exist in both the Hebrew and Greek Old Testaments. No word-level Hebrew↔Greek correspondence is claimed: the data carries no such alignment, so no Greek word is shown as this Hebrew word’s translation. Coverage is not total — the Septuagint omits the deuterocanon and renumbers the Psalms, so some Hebrew verses have no direct Greek parallel.
