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יֵהוּא

𐤉𐤄𐤅𐤀

Yehu

H3058 noun

SILEX Entry

Root יהו to be, exist (as component in theophoric names); he is

Definition

Personal name: Jehu. Most notably, Jehu was the son of Nimshi, who became king of Israel in the ninth century BCE, known for his overthrow of the house of Ahab. The name likely expresses the affirmation 'Yahweh is He' or 'Yahweh is (the one who exists/acts/rescues),' functioning as a theophoric name in the Israelite tradition. In the Hebrew Bible, Jehu refers to: (1) Jehu son of Nimshi, king of Israel; (2) a Simeonite chief; (3) the son of Hanani, a prophet; (4) a Judahite; (5) an ancestor mentioned in genealogies. The name embodies the relationship between the individual and the deity, employing a formula common to Hebrew personal names.

Semantic Range

personal name; Jehu son of Nimshi (king of Israel); Jehu the prophet; individuals named Jehu in genealogical lists

Root / Etymology

From the root יהו (a theophoric element representing Yahweh) combined with הוא ('he, he is/exists'), yielding 'Yahweh is he.'

Historical & Contextual Notes

The name יֵהוּא appears predominantly in narratives of the monarchic period. The core occurrence is Jehu son of Nimshi (2 Kings 9–10), an Israelite military commander anointed king, who led a violent coup with strong religious undertones, sometimes connected to prophetic endorsement. Jehu's role marks a pivotal shift in the Israelite monarchy, ending the Omride dynasty. The name also appears in genealogical and prophetic contexts (e.g., a prophet during Baasha's reign, an ancestor in 1 Chronicles 4:35). While later English translations sometimes render יֵהוּא as 'Jehu,' the underlying Hebrew preserves a theophoric structure that is significant in the context of Israelite onomastics. The construction is characteristic of names from the monarchic period that encode theological confession or identity. Although sometimes interpreted as 'Yahweh is He,' the name is best understood as affirming Yahweh’s unique status or action, which aligns with parallel constructions in other biblical personal names. The name is not in use for deity or title beyond personal names.

Original Strong's Gloss (1890)

from יְהֹוָה and הוּא; Jehovah (is) He; Jehu, the name of five Israelites; Jehu.

Bantu Hebrew

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Root Family

יהו (y-h-w) — to be, exist; he is (theophoric element for Yahweh)

Strong's Lemma SIBI-P1
H1933 הָוָא Yahweh‑is‑He

Word Forms

3 distinct forms

SIDANCE Surface Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 Occurrences
H3058-03 יֵה֣וּא yehu HNp Jehu Yahweh-is-He 47
H3058-02 וְ/יֵה֗וּא veyehu HC/Np and Jehu and Yahweh-is-He 10
H3058-01 לְ/יֵהוּא֙ leyehu HR/Np of Jehu to Yahweh-is-He 1

Occurrences in Scripture

58 total occurrences

SIDANCE Reference Word Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1
H3058-03 1 Kings 16:1 יֵה֣וּא yehu HNp Jehu Yahweh-is-He
H3058-03 1 Kings 16:7 יֵה֨וּא yehu HNp Jehu Yahweh-is-He
H3058-03 1 Kings 16:12 יֵה֥וּא yehu HNp Jehu Yahweh-is-He
H3058-03 1 Kings 19:16 יֵה֣וּא yehu HNp Jehu Yahweh-is-He
H3058-03 1 Kings 19:17 יֵה֑וּא yehu HNp Jehu Yahweh-is-He
H3058-03 1 Kings 19:17 יֵה֖וּא yehu-2 HNp of Jehu Yahweh-is-He
H3058-03 2 Kings 9:2 יֵה֨וּא yehu HNp Jehu Yahweh-is-He
H3058-03 2 Kings 9:5 יֵהוּא֙ yehu HNp Jehu Yahweh-is-He
H3058-02 2 Kings 9:11 וְ/יֵה֗וּא veyehu HC/Np Then Jehu and Yahweh-is-He
H3058-03 2 Kings 9:13 יֵהֽוּא yehu HNp Jehu Yahweh-is-He
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