חָבָה
𐤇𐤁𐤄
châbâh
H2247 verb
SILEX Entry
Definition
To hide, conceal, or withdraw from view, either physically or figuratively. Primarily indicates the act of making something or oneself secret, inaccessible, or unseen, often in the context of fear, protection, or modesty. The word can carry overtones of secreting away, crouching down, or otherwise making oneself or something else invisible to others, especially in situations of danger or shame.
Semantic Range
to hide oneself, to conceal oneself, to crouch or withdraw from view, to be hidden (passive/reflexive nuance), to secrete oneself, to withdraw emotionally or physically
Root / Etymology
Derived from the root חבה, possibly related to the root חבב ('to love, cherish'), though this is uncertain and debated. The relationship between concealment or secrecy and affection/cherishing remains linguistically tenuous. The root meaning here is best understood as 'to hide, conceal.'
Historical & Contextual Notes
Used predominantly in poetic or archaic contexts (e.g., Psalms, Job, Isaiah), חָבָה appears in contexts of hiding oneself due to danger, adversity, or seeking protection (e.g., Isa 49:2, Job 3:16). It rarely refers to hiding objects, focusing instead on persons withdrawing from view. It may sometimes indicate an emotional withdrawal (such as shame or fear) as well as a physical act. The term may overlap with other roots for 'hide' (e.g., סתר 'to hide, conceal'), but חָבָה typically emphasizes the agency of the one hiding themselves and is less common in prose. Standard English translations as 'hide' or 'hide oneself' capture the basic sense but sometimes miss undertones of emotional motivation or urgency found in the Hebrew. In later Hebrew, this root becomes rare or archaic.
Original Strong's Gloss (1890)
a primitive root (compare חָבַב); to secrete; hide (self).
Bantu Hebrew
No Bantu Hebrew comparisons have been submitted for this word yet.
+ Add Bantu Hebrew WordRoot Family
חבה (ḥ-b-h) — to hide, to conceal, to withdraw
| Strong's | Lemma | SIBI-P1 |
|---|---|---|
| H2252 | חֲבַיָּה | Yah has hidden |
| H2253 | חֶבְיוֹן | hiding-place of |
| H2327 | חוֹבָה | Chovah, Refuge-Place |
| H3160 | יְחֻבָּה | She Is Hidden |
| H5147 | נַחְבִּי | Hidden-one |
Word Forms
4 distinct forms
| SIDANCE | Surface | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 | Occurrences |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H2247-02 |
לְ/הֵחָבֵֽה | lehechaveh | HR/VNc |
to hide | to hide oneself | 2 |
H2247-01 |
חֲבִ֥י | chavi | HVqv2fs |
hide | Hide yourself | 1 |
H2247-03 |
וְ/נַחְבֵּתֶ֨ם | venachebetem | HC/VNq2mp |
and hide yourselves | and you hid yourselves | 1 |
H2247-04 |
וְ/נֶחְבָּ֖ה | venechebah | HC/VNq3ms |
to hide himself | and he hid himself | 1 |
Occurrences in Scripture
5 total occurrences
| SIDANCE | Reference | Word | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H2247-03 |
Joshua 2:16 | וְ/נַחְבֵּתֶ֨ם | venachebetem | HC/VNq2mp |
and hide yourselves | and you hid yourselves |
H2247-02 |
1 Kings 22:25 | לְ/הֵחָבֵֽה | lehechaveh | HR/VNc |
to hide | to hide oneself |
H2247-02 |
2 Kings 7:12 | לְ/הֵחָבֵ֤ה | lehechaveh | HR/VNc |
to hide themselves | to hide oneself |
H2247-01 |
Isaiah 26:20 | חֲבִ֥י | chavi | HVqv2fs |
hide | Hide yourself |
H2247-04 |
Jeremiah 49:10 | וְ/נֶחְבָּ֖ה | venechebah | HC/VNq3ms |
to hide himself | and he hid himself |