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יָטַב

𐤉𐤈𐤁

yâṭab

H3190 verb

SILEX Entry

Definition

To be good, pleasant, right, or fitting in quality or action; to act or become beneficial or appropriate. Used of moral, aesthetic, or practical 'goodness'—including being well, pleasing, successful, or proper. In the causative, to make good, improve, or treat well.

Semantic Range

to be good, to become good, to act rightly, to be pleasing, to prosper, to make good, to improve, to treat well, to benefit, to make beautiful or fitting, to please, to be accepted, to succeed, to bring joy, to deal kindly, to act skillfully

Root / Etymology

From the root יטב, meaning 'to be good' or 'do good.' The verb derives directly from this root and fundamentally denotes a state or action characterized by goodness, suitability, or propriety.

Historical & Contextual Notes

יָטַב is commonly used throughout the Hebrew Bible in descriptions of action, state, or circumstance being good or pleasing, either inherently (as in quality) or in effect (as in conduct or treatment). The verb can be stative ('to be good/pleasant') or active-causative ('to do good, make something good'). It often carries moral or evaluative weight, as with being 'right' or 'well-pleasing' in the sight of others or of God. In legal and narrative texts, it can mean to deal favorably or act kindly toward others. In poetry and wisdom literature, it may describe success, happiness, or harmony. Later, during the post-exilic and Second Temple periods, derivatives of this root continued to carry both moral and practical implications. The range of translations in English (such as 'do good,' 'be well,' 'please,' 'prosper') can obscure the consistent emphasis on goodness or suitability at the core of יָטַב. Distinguish from טוֹב (H2896)—the adjective/noun 'good'—which more commonly denotes inherent quality, while יָטַב focuses on the act or process of becoming or making good. The standard translations do not always capture nuances such as fittingness or suitability.

Translation Consistency

primary "be" 3 occurrences

yâṭab primarily describes a state or condition — to be good, well, pleasing, or to prosper — which the English verb “be” naturally conveys. This keeps renderings consistent for the common stative uses (be good, be well, go well, be pleasing), while causative or benefactive senses can be expressed with auxiliaries (make/bring) in the target phrase while retaining the same core verb form.

Alternatives (47 occurrences):
"good" (20x) "well" (8x) "do good" (4x) "go well" (2x) "make good" (2x) "done well" (2x) "thoroughly" (2x) "became good" (1x) "did good" (1x) "when he makes it good" (1x) "do good to" (1x) "do you good" (1x) "making merry" (1x) "who makes good" (1x)

Original Strong's Gloss (1890)

a primitive root; to be (causative) make well, literally (sound, beautiful) or figuratively (happy, successful, right); be accepted, amend, use aright, benefit, be (make) better, seem best, make cheerful, be comely, [phrase] be content, diligent(-ly), dress, earnestly, find favour, give, be glad, do (be, make) good(-ness), be (make) merry, please ([phrase] well), shew more (kindness), skilfully, [idiom] very small, surely, make sweet, thoroughly, tire, trim, very, be (can, deal, entreat, go, have) well (said, seen).

Bantu Hebrew

No Bantu Hebrew comparisons have been recorded for this word yet.

Root Family

יטב (Ytevah) — to be good, to do good, to make good, to treat well

Root יטב to be good, to do good, to make good, to treat well
Strong's Lemma SIBI-P1
H3192 יׇטְבָה Pleasant-Place
H3193 יׇטְבָתָה in Pleasant-Place
H4105 מְהֵיטַבְאֵל God-does-good
H4315 מֵיטָב in the choicest portion of

Word Forms

42 distinct forms

SIDANCE Surface Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 SIBI-P2 Occurrences
H3190-42 יִטַ֣ב yitav HVqi3ms it may be well he will be good it may be well 17
H3190-28 וַ/יִּיטַ֥ב vayitav HC/Vqw3ms and it was good and he became good and it was good 15
H3190-08 הֵיטֵ֔ב heytev HVha thoroughly to make good thoroughly 9
H3190-14 לְ/הֵיטִ֣יב leheytiv HR/Vhc to do good to make good to do good 7
H3190-40 יֵיטִ֖יב yeytiv HVhi3ms does good he will make good he will cause to be good 7
H3190-13 הֵיטִ֖יבוּ heytivu HVhp3cp they have done well they made good make good 6
H3190-36 וְ/יִטַ֣ב veyitav HC/Vqj3ms and let it be good and he will be good and it will be well 6
H3190-20 תֵּיטִיב֙ teytiv HVhi2ms you do well you will make good you will be good 4
H3190-03 הַ/הֵיטֵ֖ב haheytev HTi/Vha Is it right to make good to cause to be good 2
H3190-09 הֵיטֵיב֙ heyteyv HVha do good to make good to cause to be good 2

Occurrences in Scripture

112 occurrences

SIDANCE Reference Word Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 SIBI-P2
H3190-20 Genesis 4:7 תֵּיטִיב֙ teytiv HVhi2ms you do well you will make good you will be good
H3190-20 Genesis 4:7 תֵיטִ֔יב teytiv-2 HVhi2ms you do well you will make good you will be good
H3190-42 Genesis 12:13 יִֽיטַב yitav HVqi3ms it may go well he will be good it may go well
H3190-10 Genesis 12:16 הֵיטִ֖יב heytiv HVhp3ms dealt well he made good he made it be good
H3190-30 Genesis 32:10 וְ/אֵיטִ֥יבָה veeytivah HC/Vhh1cs and I will do good let me make good and I will do good
H3190-08 Genesis 32:13 הֵיטֵ֥ב heytev HVha surely do good to make good to be well
H3190-02 Genesis 32:13 אֵיטִ֖יב eytiv HVhi1cs I will do good I will make good I will make good
H3190-29 Genesis 34:18 וַ/יִּֽיטְב֥וּ vayitevu HC/Vqw3mp pleased and they became good and they became good
H3190-42 Genesis 40:14 יִ֣יטַב yitav HVqi3ms it goes well he will be good it is good
H3190-28 Genesis 41:37 וַ/יִּיטַ֥ב vayitav HC/Vqw3ms was good and he became good and it was good
H3190-28 Genesis 45:16 וַ/יִּיטַב֙ vayitav HC/Vqw3ms and it was good and he became good and it was good
H3190-27 Exodus 1:20 וַ/יֵּ֥יטֶב vayeytev HC/Vhw3ms Therefore God dealt well and he made good and he did good
H3190-01 Exodus 30:7 בְּ/הֵיטִיב֛/וֹ beheytivo HR/Vhc/Sp3ms when he trims in his making him good when he makes it good
H3190-14 Leviticus 5:4 לְ/הֵיטִ֗יב leheytiv HR/Vhc to do good to make good to do good
H3190-05 Leviticus 10:19 הַ/יִּיטַ֖ב hayitav HTi/Vqi3ms would it be good will he be good? would it be good
H3190-28 Leviticus 10:20 וַ/יִּיטַ֖ב vayitav HC/Vqw3ms and it was good and he became good and it was good
H3190-31 Numbers 10:29 וְ/הֵטַ֣בְנוּ vehetavenu HC/Vhq1cp and we will do good to and we made good and we will do good
H3190-40 Numbers 10:32 יֵיטִ֧יב yeytiv HVhi3ms does good he will make good he will cause to be good
H3190-31 Numbers 10:32 וְ/הֵטַ֥בְנוּ vehetavenu HC/Vhq1cp we will do good and we made good and we will make good
H3190-28 Deuteronomy 1:23 וַ/יִּיטַ֥ב vayitav HC/Vqw3ms And it was good and he became good and it was good
H3190-42 Deuteronomy 4:40 יִיטַ֣ב yitav HVqi3ms it may be well he will be good it may be well
H3190-42 Deuteronomy 5:16 יִ֣יטַב yitav HVqi3ms it may go well he will be good he will be good
H3190-13 Deuteronomy 5:28 הֵיטִ֖יבוּ heytivu HVhp3cp they have done well they made good they have done well
H3190-42 Deuteronomy 5:29 יִיטַ֥ב yitav HVqi3ms it-might-be-well he will be good it might be well
H3190-42 Deuteronomy 6:3 יִיטַ֣ב yitav HVqi3ms it-may-be-good he will be good it may be good
H3190-42 Deuteronomy 6:18 יִ֣יטַב yitav HVqi3ms it-may-be-well he will be good it may be well
H3190-15 Deuteronomy 8:16 לְ/הֵיטִֽבְ/ךָ֖ leheytivekha HR/Vhc/Sp2ms to do you good to do good to you to do good to you
H3190-08 Deuteronomy 9:21 הֵיטֵ֔ב heytev HVha very-well to make good well
H3190-42 Deuteronomy 12:25 יִיטַ֤ב yitav HVqi3ms it may be well he will be good it may be good
H3190-42 Deuteronomy 12:28 יִיטַ֨ב yitav HVqi3ms it may go well he will be good it may go well
H3190-08 Deuteronomy 13:15 הֵיטֵ֑ב heytev HVha thoroughly to make good thoroughly
H3190-08 Deuteronomy 17:4 הֵיטֵ֔ב heytev HVha well to make good well
H3190-13 Deuteronomy 18:17 הֵיטִ֖יבוּ heytivu HVhp3cp they have done well they made good they have done well
H3190-08 Deuteronomy 19:18 הֵיטֵ֑ב heytev HVha thoroughly to make good thoroughly
H3190-42 Deuteronomy 22:7 יִ֣יטַב yitav HVqi3ms it may be well he will be good it may be well
H3190-08 Deuteronomy 27:8 הֵיטֵֽב heytev HVha clearly to make good well
H3190-14 Deuteronomy 28:63 לְ/הֵיטִ֣יב leheytiv HR/Vhc to do good to make good to do good
H3190-33 Deuteronomy 30:5 וְ/הֵיטִֽבְ/ךָ֥ veheytivekha HC/Vhq3ms/Sp2ms and will do you good and he will make you good and he will do you good
H3190-28 Joshua 22:30 וַ/יִּיטַ֖ב vayitav HC/Vqw3ms and it was good and he became good and it was good
H3190-28 Joshua 22:33 וַ/יִּיטַ֣ב vayitav HC/Vqw3ms and it was good and he became good and it was good
H3190-10 Joshua 24:20 הֵיטִ֥יב heytiv HVhp3ms he-has-done-good he made good he made it be good
H3190-40 Judges 17:13 יֵיטִ֥יב yeytiv HVhi3ms will do good he will make good he will cause to be good
H3190-28 Judges 18:20 וַ/יִּיטַב֙ vayitav HC/Vqw3ms and it was good and he became good and it was good
H3190-36 Judges 19:6 וְ/יִטַ֥ב veyitav HC/Vqi3ms and let it be well and he will be good and let it be well
H3190-36 Judges 19:9 וְ/יִיטַ֣ב veyitav HC/Vqi3ms and let it be good and he will be good and let it be good
H3190-19 Judges 19:22 מֵיטִיבִ֣ים meytivim HVhrmpa were making merry those who make good were making merry
H3190-40 1 Samuel 2:32 יֵיטִ֖יב yeytiv HVhi3ms I do good he will make good he will cause to be good
H3190-17 1 Samuel 16:17 מֵיטִ֣יב meytiv HVhrmsa who can play well the one who makes good who makes good
H3190-28 1 Samuel 18:5 וַ/יִּיטַב֙ vayitav HC/Vqw3ms And it was good and he became good and he was good
H3190-40 1 Samuel 20:13 יֵיטִ֨ב yeytiv HVhi3ms it-is-good he will make good he will cause to be good
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