StrongerBible

ḥava

חָבָא

HebrewH2244hide, hide oneself, ...

Appears 33 times · tap a cell to see the verses

Gen 3:8Gen 3:10Gen 31:27Jos 6:17Jos 6:25Jos 10:16Jos 10:17Jos 10:27Jdg 9:51Sa 10:221Sa 13:61Sa 14:111Sa 14:221Sa 19:21Sa 23:232Sa 17:91Ki 18:41Ki 18:132Ki 6:292Ki 11:31Ch 21:202Ch 18:242Ch 22:92Ch 22:12Job 5:21Job 24:4Job 29:8Job 29:10Job 38:30Isa 42:22Isa 49:2Dan 10:7Amo 9:3
Root family
Names & words formed with this
Word studykhah-VAHverb

What ḥava means

to hide: to take cover out of sight, to conceal or shelter another person or thing, or to be kept from view, usually to escape danger or stay safe

TranslatabilityDirectCertaintySettled

The verb chava is the plain Hebrew word for getting out of sight. Most often it describes a person taking cover: fleeing to a cave, crouching in a field, or slipping away when an enemy or danger is near. Adam and Eve hiding among the trees, David hiding from Saul, and whole armies hiding in the hills are all this one word.

The same verb works the other way around too, for putting someone else out of sight to keep them safe: Rahab hiding the spies on her roof, Obadiah hiding a hundred prophets in caves, a nurse keeping the infant prince Joash hidden in the temple. It can also describe simply being hidden or kept from view, whether a prisoner shut away or, in a poem, floodwaters locked under ice.

In every case the word stays concrete and physical. It is about people and things out of sight, usually with fear or safety in view, not about concealing feelings or secrets. That plainness is why the single English word "hide" fits it so well.

Nuances

1ato hide oneself, take cover, slip out of sight, most often to escape danger or an enemy
Gen 3:8Gen 3:10Gen 31:27Jos 2:16Jos 10:16Jos 10:17Jos 10:27Jdg 9:51Sa 10:221Sa 13:61Sa 14:111Sa 14:22
1bto hide, conceal, or shelter another person or thing, putting it out of sight to protect it
Jos 6:17Jos 6:251Ki 18:41Ki 18:132Ki 6:29Isa 49:2
1cto be hidden, concealed, or kept from view
Job 5:21Job 29:10Job 38:30Isa 42:22

What scholars say about ḥava

The standard lexica (BDB, HALOT, DCH) treat chava (חבא) as a single verb to hide or conceal, with the range of sense following the stem: the niphal and hithpael are reflexive or passive (hide oneself, be hidden), the hiphil is causative (hide someone or something), and the hophal and pual are passive (be hidden). No serious disagreement exists over the basic meaning. The verb is a byform of chavah (חבה, H2247), a rarer collateral form with the same sense; lexica cross-reference the two. The word denotes concrete physical concealment and is distinguished in the lexica from satar (סתר), the broader and more figurative verb for concealment, and taman (טמן), to hide by burying.

Sources

  • HALOT, s.v. חבאlexicon
  • BDB, s.v. חבאlexicon
  • David J. A. Clines (ed.), The Dictionary of Classical Hebrew, s.v. חבאlexicon

All attested forms of חָבָא

hithpael participle m s absolute

מִתְחַבֵּא

2Ki 11:3, 2Ch 22:9, 2Ch 22:12

hiphil perfect 3fs

הֶחְבְּאַתָה, הֶחְבִּיאָה

Jos 6:17, Jos 6:25

hithpael participle m p absolute

מִתְחַבְּאִים, מִּתְחַבְּאִים

1Ch 21:20, 1Sa 14:22

niphal infinitive-construct construct

הֵחָבֵא

2Ch 18:24, Dan 10:7

niphal participle m s absolute

נֶחְבָּא

1Sa 10:22, 2Sa 17:9

niphal perfect 3cp

נֶחְבְּאוּ, נֶחְבָּאוּ

Jos 10:27, Job 29:10

hiphil consecutive-imperfect 1cs

וָאַחְבִּא

1Ki 18:13

hiphil consecutive-imperfect 3fs

וַתַּחְבִּא

2Ki 6:29

hiphil consecutive-imperfect 3ms

וַיַּחְבִּיאֵ

1Ki 18:4

hiphil perfect 3ms

הֶחְבִּיאָ

Isa 49:2

hithpael consecutive-imperfect 3mp

וַיִּתְחַבְּאוּ

1Sa 13:6

hithpael consecutive-imperfect 3ms

וַיִּתְחַבֵּא

Gen 3:8

hithpael imperfect 3mp

יִתְחַבָּאוּ

Job 38:30

hithpael imperfect 3ms

יִתְחַבֵּא

1Sa 23:23

hithpael perfect 3cp

הִתְחַבְּאוּ

1Sa 14:11

hophal perfect 3cp

הָחְבָּאוּ

Isa 42:22

niphal consecutive-imperfect 1cs

וָאֵחָבֵא

Gen 3:10

niphal consecutive-imperfect 3mp

וַיֵּחָבְאוּ

Jos 10:16

niphal consecutive-perfect 2ms

וְנַחְבֵּאתָ

1Sa 19:2

niphal consecutive-perfect 3cp

וְנֶחְבָּאוּ

Job 29:8

niphal imperfect 2ms

תֵּחָבֵא

Job 5:21

niphal imperfect 3mp

יֵחָבְאוּ

Amo 9:3

niphal participle m p absolute

נֶחְבְּאִים

Jos 10:17

niphal perfect 2ms

נַחְבֵּאתָ

Gen 31:27

niphal perfect 3ms

נֶחְבָּא

Jdg 9:5

pual perfect 3cp

חֻבְּאוּ

Job 24:4