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Genesis 35:25 — Word Study

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WLCוּבְנֵ֤י בִלְהָה֙ שִׁפְחַ֣ת רָחֵ֔ל דָּ֖ן וְנַפְתָּלִֽי׃

BSAThe sonsbên [descendants, male offspring] of Rachel’sRâchêl [wife of Jacob, mother of Joseph and Benjamin] maidservantshiphchâh [female slave, personal attendant] Bilhah [were]Bilhâh [troubled, concubine of Jacob] DanDân [judge, leader of a tribe] and NaphtaliNaphtâlîy [wrestling, struggling]

Word
Listen & take awayGenesis 35
English ↓ Download MP3 The Berean Standard Bible chapter audio already hosted for the site's Bible section — verse 25 is in this chapter.
Hebrew ↓ Download MP3 The Masoretic text of this chapter, read aloud. Read by Abraham Shmuelof, courtesy of Audio Scriptures International. Chapter divisions by the Academy of Ancient Languages..
Say the word Each Hebrew word carries its transliteration (ve.naf.ta.Li) — no per-word recordings of the Hebrew exist to link to.
Take it away
Genesis 35:25quick helps
In a sentenceRachel's maidservant Bilhah bore two sons: Dan and Naphtali.
Who is speakingThe narrator, recounting the lineage of Jacob.
Where we areIn the context of Jacob's family tree.
The hard wordבֵּן
Take awayThis verse outlines the descendants of Jacob through Bilhah.
4 commentators on this verse Gill, Jamieson, Cambridge, Whedon & more — read them › clause The sentence as the grammar sees it Open the tree ›
How rare are these words?in the Old Testament

Every word here is used elsewhere in the Old Testament.

Bars are logarithmic — אֵת, the commonest word in the Hebrew Bible, stands about 11,000 times, so a linear scale would leave everything else invisible. Click a row to open that word.

Deep Study — Genesis 35:25

Sections marked generated are written from the data on this page rather than by a named author. Everything else — the lexicon entries, the cross references, the manuscript readings, the counts — is quoted from its source unchanged.

Context — The Lineage of Jacobgenerated

24The sons of Rachel were Joseph and Benjamin.
25The sons of Rachel’s maidservant Bilhah were Dan and Naphtali.
26And the sons of Leah’s maidservant Zilpah were Gad and Asher. These are the sons of Jacob, who were born to him in Paddan-aram.
27Jacob returned to his father Isaac at Mamre, near Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron), where Abraham and Isaac had stayed.

Genesis 35:25 provides a brief account of the sons born to Jacob through his wives and maidservants. In this verse, we learn specifically about the sons of Bilhah, Rachel's maidservant, highlighting the complex family dynamics within Jacob's household. This context is essential for understanding the formation of the twelve tribes of Israel, as seen in the broader narrative of Genesis.


Cross References

ReferenceText (BSB)
1Genesis 30:4–8So Rachel gave Jacob her servant Bilhah as a wife, and he slept with her,
2Genesis 37:2This is the account of Jacob. When Joseph was seventeen years old, he was tending the flock with his brothers, the sons of his father’s wives Bilhah and Zilpah, and he brought their father a bad report about them.
3Genesis 46:23–25The son of Dan: Hushim.

The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge — 3 references, hung on the phrase they belong to

And the sons of Bilhah, Rachel's handmaid; Dan, and Naphtali:Genesis 30:4–8 Genesis 37:2 Genesis 46:23–25

The Key Word בֵּן, u.ve.Neigenerated

The word בֵּן (ben) means 'son' or 'male child' and encompasses a range of meanings including descendants and young animals. Its usage in the Bible often indicates family relationships and inheritance, as seen in various contexts throughout the Old Testament.

This particular form is a masculine plural construct, indicating multiple sons or descendants. It emphasizes the familial ties and lineage, which are significant in the genealogical records of the Israelites.


How Translations Differ — measured against the Berean Standard Biblegenerated

All translations agree on the meaning of בֵּן as 'sons'.


Sentence Structuregenerated

The finite verb is absent in this verse, as it is a straightforward declarative statement listing the sons of Bilhah. The structure is simple, presenting a noun phrase as the subject followed by the names of the sons.

The word order places emphasis on the sons, indicating their importance in the lineage of Jacob. The Hebrew syntax reflects a common structure for genealogical listings.


Septuagint Backgroundgenerated

The Septuagint translates בֵּן as υἱοὶ (huioi), meaning 'sons'. This choice aligns closely with the Hebrew meaning, maintaining the focus on familial relationships.

The translation shows a consistent understanding of the term in both Hebrew and Greek contexts, emphasizing the continuity of the lineage.


In plain words — the whole versegenerated

Genesis 35:25 tells us that the sons of Rachel's maidservant Bilhah were Dan and Naphtali. This verse is part of the genealogy of Jacob, showing the family connections and the origins of the tribes of Israel.


Frequently Asked Questionsgenerated

Who were Dan and Naphtali?

Dan and Naphtali were the sons of Jacob through Bilhah, Rachel's maidservant, and they became the founders of two of the twelve tribes of Israel.

What does the name Bilhah mean?

The name Bilhah is thought to mean 'troubled', reflecting perhaps her position as a concubine in Jacob's household.

Why is the lineage of Jacob important?

The lineage of Jacob is crucial as it establishes the twelve tribes of Israel, which are foundational to the history and identity of the Israelite people.

How does this verse connect to the larger narrative of Genesis?

This verse contributes to the broader narrative of Genesis by detailing the family dynamics and the fulfillment of God's promises to Jacob regarding his descendants.


Reflection Questionsgenerated

  1. What can we learn from the relationships between Jacob's wives and their maidservants?
  2. How does understanding the lineage of Jacob help us comprehend the history of Israel?
  3. In what ways do family dynamics influence our understanding of identity and heritage?
  4. What significance do the names Dan and Naphtali hold in the context of the tribes of Israel?

Commentators on this verse — 4 expositors, verse by verse

Each of these wrote on Genesis 35:25 itself, not merely on the chapter around it.

John Gill1697–1771Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible

And the sons of Bilhah,.... Then Bilhah's sons, who was Rachel's handmaid, and these were two, Dan and Naphtali.

Read John Gill on Genesis 35 →
Robert Jamieson1802–1880Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown's Commentary

The sons of Leah; Reuben, Jacob's firstborn, and Simeon, and Levi, and Judah, and Issachar, and Zebulun: Sons of Jacob ... born ... in Padan-aram.

Read Robert Jamieson on Genesis 35 →
CambridgeThe Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

22b–29 (P). Jacob’s Sons, and the Death of Isaac 22b. the sons of Jacob] The names of Jacob’s sons are enumerated after the mention of Benjamin’s birth. But the enumeration is that of P, which assumes that all the sons of Jacob, including Benjamin, were born to him in Paddan-aram (Genesis 35:26), in direct contradiction to Genesis 35:16-18 (J). twelve] A sacred number, found also in the sons of Nahor and Ishmael (Genesis 17:20, Genesis 22:20-24, Genesis 25:16).

Read Cambridge on Genesis 35 →
Daniel Denison Whedon1808–1885Whedon's Commentary on the Bible

22. Bilhah — Rachel’s handmaid, and mother of Dan and of Naphtali. Genesis 30:3-8. Israel heard — And it occasioned to Reuben the loss of his birthright, and the words of reproach recorded in Genesis 49:4.

Read Daniel Denison Whedon on Genesis 35 →

The verse in English, compared — 17 translations, and where they part company

Every translation on this page is a decision someone had to make and commit to. Read down a column and you see one translator's judgement; read across a row and you see the range the Greek actually allows. The BSB is the wording the rest of this page is measured against, so it is listed first.

Modern formal

BSBBerean Standard Bible2020

The sons of Rachel’s maidservant Bilhah were Dan and Naphtali.

WEBWorld English Bible2000

The sons of Bilhah (Rachel’s servant): Dan and Naphtali.

MSBMajority Standard Bible2022

The sons of Rachel’s maidservant Bilhah were Dan and Naphtali.

NETBNew English Translation2006

The sons of Bilhah, Rachel’s servant, were Dan and Naphtali.

Tyndale line

KJVKing James Version1611

And the sons of Bilhah, Rachel’s handmaid; Dan, and Naphtali:

ASVAmerican Standard Version1901

and the sons of Bilhah, Rachel’s handmaid: Dan and Naphtali;

RVARevised Version, American1894

and the sons of Bilhah, Rachel’s handmaid; Dan and Naphtali:

NWBWebster's Bible1833

And the sons of Bilhah, Rachel's handmaid; Dan, and Naphtali:

GNVGeneva Bible1599

And the sonnes of Bilhah Rahels maide: Dan and Naphtali.

Strictly literal

DBYDarby Translation1890

And the sons of Bilhah, Rachel's maidservant: Dan and Naphtali.

YLTYoung's Literal Translation1862

And sons of Bilhah, Rachel's maid-servant: Dan and Naphtali.

LSVLiteral Standard Version2020

And sons of Bilhah, Rachel’s maidservant: Dan and Naphtali.

ILTInterlinear Literal Translation2000

And the sons of Bilhah, Rachel's handmaid, Dan, and Naphtali.

ULBUnlocked Literal Bible2017

His sons by Bilhah, Rachel's female servant, were Dan and Naphtali.

From the Latin

DRADouay-Rheims (Challoner)1899

The sons of Bala, Rachel’s handmaid: Dan and Nephtali.

Simplified

FBVFree Bible Version2020

The sons of Rachel's personal maid Bilhah: Dan and Naphtali.

BBEBible in Basic English1949

The sons of Bilhah, Rachel's servant: Dan and Naphtali;

Counted from the translations carried on this site, not from a survey of every English Bible. A rendering shared by many versions is usually inherited rather than independently arrived at — the Tyndale line in particular runs through most of them.


The sentence as the grammar sees it — from the MACULA Hebrew treebank

This is not our own analysis: it is the scholarly syntax tree for the verse, showing how the clause actually holds together.

וּandclausenoun phrase · subjectבְנֵ֤יthe.sonsnoun phraseבִלְהָה֙of.Bilhahnoun phraseשִׁפְחַ֣תthe.maidservantרָחֵ֔לof.Rachelnoun phrase · predicateדָּ֖ןDanוְandנַפְתָּלִֽיNaphtali

Boxes are the grammarian's groupings — clause, noun phrase, prepositional phrase.


The four witnesses to this verse — Masoretic, Septuagint, Samaritan, Qumran

The Masoretic Text is supported by the Samaritan Pentateuch, which agrees word for word. The Dead Sea Scrolls also provide evidence, with one scroll showing all six words intact, while another has the words supplied by an editor due to damage.

Masoretic TextLeningrad Codex, c. AD 1008 — the text this page is built on

וּבְנֵ֤י בִלְהָה֙ שִׁפְחַ֣ת רָחֵ֔ל דָּ֖ן וְנַפְתָּלִֽי׃

Septuagintthe Greek the translators chose, word by word
וּבְנֵ֤יυἱοὶבִלְהָה֙βαλλαςשִׁפְחַ֣תπαιδίσκηςרָחֵ֔לραξηλדָּ֖ןδανוְנַפְתָּלִֽי׃νεφθαλι

6 of the 6 words are matched. This is the word-by-word correspondence, not the Septuagint's own sentence — its word order and its articles are its own.

Samaritan Pentateuchthe Torah as the Samaritan community kept it

ובני בלהה שׁפחת רחל דן ונפתלי

Agrees with the Masoretic Text here, word for word.

Dead Sea Scrolls — Sdeir1a copy a thousand years older than the Leningrad Codex

[ובני] [בלהה] [שפחת] [רחל] [דן] [ונפתלי]

nothing on the leather here — 6 supplied entire by an editor.

Dead Sea Scrolls — 4Q1a copy a thousand years older than the Leningrad Codex

בני בלהה שפחת רחל דן ונפתלי

6 words on the leather.

Four traditions, not one. “On the leather” means the letters physically survive on the scroll, as against letters an editor has supplied to fill a hole in it — a restoration is a scholar’s reading, not a reading of the manuscript. Words in [square brackets] are supplied; the notes count them apart from what survives.


The map of this verse — what each word keeps company with

This is a map of two things, both counted rather than judged. Company kept: which words stand within three words of each of these, anywhere in the Hebrew Bible — the thicker the line, the more often the pair meet compared with chance. Built from: the words a word is made out of, taken from its own Strong’s entry. It is not a map of meaning: nothing here claims two words mean the same thing. Click any circle to see the numbers behind it.

Genesis 35:25בֵּןand [the] sand [the] sons בֵּןבִּלְהָהBilhahBilhahבִּלְהָהשִׁפְחָה[the] maids[the] maidservaשִׁפְחָהרָחֵלRachelRachelרָחֵלדָּןDanDanדָּןנַפְתָּלִיand Naphtaland Naphtaliנַפְתָּלִיבָּנָהto buildto buildבָּנָהבָּלַהּto troubleto troubleבָּלַהּדִּיןto judgeto judgeדִּיןפָּתַלto twistto twistפָּתַלמִשְׁפָּחָהfamilyfamilyמִשְׁפָּחָהרָחֵלeweeweרָחֵלעַמּוֹןAmmonAmmonעַמּוֹןרְאוּבֵןReubenReubenרְאוּבֵןשִׁפְחָהmaidservanmaidservantשִׁפְחָהרָחֵלRachelRachelרָחֵלזִלְפָּהZilpahZilpahזִלְפָּהבִּלְהָהBilhahBilhahבִּלְהָהלֵאָהLeahLeahלֵאָהיַעֲקֹבJacobJacobיַעֲקֹבבְּאֵרBeershebaBeershebaבְּאֵרקֶ֫דֶשׁKedeshKedeshקֶ֫דֶשׁאָשֵׁרAsherAsherאָשֵׁר
meets it a little oftener than chancemeets it far oftener than chancebuilt from the same roottwo words of the verse share ita word of this versea related word

Lexicons — every word in Genesis 35:25

One dossier per word, with every reference work grouped by kind — Hebrew lexicons, morphology, Bible dictionaries, topical chains and the English of the translators themselves. The verse sits at the head of each block with the word under study lit, so you never lose your place. The panel above gives the short answer; this is the long one, and it is the part of the page worth indexing.

Every entry below is the lexicographer's own text. On the Hebrew: Brown-Driver-Briggs entire and its gloss set, Strong's Hebrew Dictionary, and Tyndale House's Translators Brief lexicon. Where a cell says a work has no entry, that work genuinely has none for this word.

and [the] sons of Bilhah [the] maidservant of Rachel Dan and Naphtali
וּבְנֵ֤יu.ve.Nei and [the] sons of H1121 Conjunction · noun common masculine plural construct
4,943× in the OT scale is logarithmic — the commonest word, אֵת, appears about 11,000×
In plain English
Meaning
In the Bible, this word means a son or descendant, and can also refer to a grandson, nation, or quality. It appears in 1 Chronicles 24, describing a Levite named Beno. The word is used to show family relationships and inheritance.
Amplified meaning
descendants, male offspring
Tyndale gloss
son: child
Hebrew lexiconskeyed to Strong's numbers
Layman’s summary of all Lexicon entries.generated

בֵּן (ben) means 'son' or 'male child' and encompasses a wide range of meanings, including descendants, young animals, and even figurative uses like sparks or arrows. It can refer to members of a tribe or class and is used in various contexts throughout the Old Testament, such as in 1 Chronicles 24:26. The word is derived from a root meaning 'to build' and implies a connection to family or lineage.

Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew Lexicon (full)

בֵּן 4870 n.m. son

son, male child, born of a woman

children (male and female)

youth, young men

the young of animals

of plant shoots

fig. of lifeless things, sparks, stars, arrows

member of a guild, order or class

of animals son of (the) herd

ב׳ as n. relat. followed by word of quality, characteristic, etc.

n. relat. of age

base

בְּנוֹ 1 Ch 24:26, 27 as n.pr.m. in AV, RV, but render: the sons of Jaaziah his son, & the sons of Merari by Jaaziah his son, cf. VB & Be Öt.

done

Brown-Driver-Briggs glosses

H1121a בֵּן son . son, male child, born of a woman

. children (male and female)

. youth, young men

. the young of animals

. of plant shoots

. fig. of lifeless things, sparks, stars, arrows

. . member of a guild, order or class

. of animals son of (the) herd

. ב׳ as n. relat. followed by word of quality, characteristic, etc.

. n. relat. of age

H1121b בְּנוֹ as n. pr. m. in AV, RV, but render: the sons of Jaaziah his son, & the sons of Merari by Jaaziah his son

Strong's Hebrew Dictionary

1121 ben bane

from 1129; a son (as a builder of the family name), in the

widest sense (of literal and figurative relationship,

including grandson, subject, nation, quality or condition,

etc., (like 1, 251, etc.)):--+ afflicted, age, (Ahoh-)

(Ammon-) (Hachmon-) (Lev-)ite, (anoint-)ed one, appointed to,

(+) arrow, (Assyr-) (Babylon-) (Egypt-) (Grec-)ian, one born,

bough, branch, breed, + (young) bullock, + (young) calf, X

came up in, child, colt, X common, X corn, daughter, X of

first, + firstborn, foal, + very fruitful, + postage, X in, +

kid, + lamb, (+) man, meet, + mighty, + nephew, old, (+)

people, + rebel, + robber, X servant born, X soldier, son, +

spark, + steward, + stranger, X surely, them of, + tumultuous

one, + valiant(-est), whelp, worthy, young (one), youth.

see HEBREW for 01129

see HEBREW for 01

see HEBREW for 0251

Translators Brief Hebrew Lexicon

בֵּן (ben) — son: child.

: child/son

בְּנוֹ (be.no) — Beno.

A man of the tribe of Levi living at the time of Divided Monarchy, first mentioned at 1Ch.24.26;

son of: Jaaziah (H3269);

brother of: Shoham (H7719), Zaccur (H2139I) and Ibri (H5681)

§ Beno = "his son"

the sons of Jaaziah and the sons of Merari by Jaahziah (his son)

בֵּן (ben) — son: descendant/people.

: descendant, people, tribe, nation

A sub-meaning of ben (בֵּן ": child" H1121)

§ : child/son

בֵּן (ben) — son: young animal.

: calf/lamb/young(ANIMAL)

A sub-meaning of ben (בֵּן ": child" H1121)

§ : descendant

בֵּן (ben) — son: type of.

: rebel/son(Belial)

A sub-meaning of ben (בֵּן ": child" H1121)

§ : people/men/nation/tribe

בֵּן (ben) — son.

: [inheriting]son/heir

A sub-meaning of ben (בֵּן ": child" H1121)

בֵּן (ben) — son: warrior.

: warrior/son(strong)

Read the full entry →
Morphologythe parsing behind the code
Berean parsing
Conj | N-mp — Conjunction · noun common masculine plural construct
HC/Ncmpc
Bible dictionarieson the English sense
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

ov:

(1) In Anglo-Saxon, had the meaning "from," "away from" (as the strengthened form "off" has still), and was not used for genitive or possessive relations, these being expressed by special case-forms. In the Norman period, however, "of" was taken to represent the French de (a use well developed by the time of Chaucer), and in the Elizabethan period both senses of "of" were in common use. But after about 1600 the later force of the word became predominant, and in the earlier sense (which is now practically obsolete) it was replaced by other prepositions. In consequence the King James Version (and in some cases the Revised Version (British and American)) contains many uses of "of" that are no longer familiar--most of them, to be sure, causing no difficulty, but there still being a few responsible for real obscurities.

English usagewhat the translators’ English meant
Webster's Dictionary (1828), Webster's Unabridged (1913), Webster's Dictionary (1806)

OF, preposition ov. [Gr.]

1. From or out of; proceeding from, as the cause, source, means, author or agent bestowing.

I have received of the Lord that which also I delivered to you. 1 Corinthians 11:1.

For it was of the Lord to harden their hearts. Joshua 11:1.

It is of the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed.

Lamentations 3:1.

The whole disposing thereof is of the Lord. Proverbs 16:1.

Go, inquire of the Lord for me. 2 Chronicles 34:2.

That holy thing that shall be born of thee. Luke 1:1.

Hence of is the sign of the genitive case, the case that denotes production; as the son of man, the son proceeding from man, produced from man. This is the primary sense, although we now say, produced by man. 'Part of these were slain; ' that is, a number separate, for part denotes a division; the sense then is, a number from or out of the whole were slain. So also, 'some of these were slain; ' that is…

and [the] sons of Bilhah [the] maidservant of Rachel Dan and Naphtali
בִלְהָה֙vil.Hah Bilhah H1090 Noun proper feminine
11× in the OT scale is logarithmic — the commonest word, אֵת, appears about 11,000×
In plain English
Meaning
Bilhah was a concubine of Jacob and also the name of a place in Palestine, meaning troubled. She appears in Genesis 29-30. Bilhah was given to Jacob by his wife Rachel.
Amplified meaning
troubled, concubine of Jacob
Tyndale gloss
Bilhah
Hebrew lexiconskeyed to Strong's numbers
Layman’s summary of all Lexicon entries.generated

בִּלְהָה (bilhah) refers to both a woman and a place. As a person, she is Rachel's handmaid and Jacob's concubine, mothering Dan and Naphtali. The name may mean 'troubled.' Additionally, it denotes a city in Simeon, mentioned in 1 Chronicles 4:29.

Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew Lexicon (full)

בִּלְהָה n.pr.f. (etym. dub.) handmaid of Rachel, concubine of Jacob

base

בִּלְהָה n.pr.loc. a city of Simeon 1 Ch 4:29

ref

Brown-Driver-Briggs glosses

H1090a בִּלְהָה mandmaid of Rachel, concubine of Jacob H1090b בִּלְהָה a city of Simeon

Strong's Hebrew Dictionary

1090 Bilhah bil-haw'

from 1089; timid; Bilhah, the name of one of Jacob's

concubines; also of a place in Palestine:--Bilhah.

see HEBREW for 01089

Translators Brief Hebrew Lexicon

בִּלְהָה (bil.hah) — Bilhah.

A woman living at the time of the Patriarchs, first mentioned at Gen.29.29; married to Israel (H3478);

mother of: Dan (H1835H) and Naphtali (H5321)

§ Bilhah = "troubled"

Rachel's handmaid whom she gave to Jacob as a concubine, mother to two of Jacob's children, Dan and Naphtali

בִּלְהָה (bil.hah) — Bilhah.

§ Bilhah = "troubled"

n prloc

a city in Simeon

Morphologythe parsing behind the code
Berean parsing
N-proper — Noun proper feminine
HNpf
Bible dictionarieson the English sense
Easton's Bible Dictionary

Bilhah

Faltering; bashful, Rachel’s handmaid, whom she gave to Jacob (Gen. 29:29). She was the mother of Dan and Naphtali (Gen. 30:3-8). Reuben was cursed by his father for committing adultry with her (35:22; 49:4). He was deprived of the birth-right, which was given to the sons of Joseph.

Smith's Bible Dictionary

(timid, bashful), handmaid of Rachel, (Genesis 29:29) and concubine of Jacob, to whom she bore Dan and Naphtali. (Genesis 30:3-8; 35:25; 46:25; 1 Chronicles 7:13) (B.C 53.)

American Tract Society Bible Dictionary

The handmaid of Rachel, given by her to her husband Jacob when herself childless, that she might become a mother through her handmaid. Bilhah was the mother of Dan and Naphtali, Ge 30:1- 8.

Hitchcock's Bible Names Dictionary

Bilhan, who is old or confused

and [the] sons of Bilhah [the] maidservant of Rachel Dan and Naphtali
שִׁפְחַ֣תshif.Chat [the] maidservant of H8198 Noun common · feminine singular construct
63× in the OT scale is logarithmic — the commonest word, אֵת, appears about 11,000×
In plain English
Meaning
A shiphchah was a female slave or servant in a household, often belonging to a mistress. This term is used to describe a lowly position, and is sometimes used as a term of humility or respect.
Amplified meaning
female slave, personal attendant
Tyndale gloss
maidservant
Hebrew lexiconskeyed to Strong's numbers
Layman’s summary of all Lexicon entries.generated

שִׁפְחָה (shiphchah) refers to a maid or maid-servant, often indicating a female slave within a household. It derives from a root meaning to spread out, suggesting a role in family or domestic settings. The term can also imply humility in certain contexts, but the primary focus remains on servitude.

Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew Lexicon (full)

שִׁפְחָה n.f. maid, maid-servant

base

Brown-Driver-Briggs glosses

H8198 שִׁפְחָה maid, maid-servant

Strong's Hebrew Dictionary

8198 shiphchah shif-khaw'

feminine from an unused root meaning to spread out (as a

family; see 4940); a female slave (as a member of the

household):--(bond-, hand-)maid(-en, -servant), wench,

bondwoman, womanservant.

see HEBREW for 04940

Translators Brief Hebrew Lexicon

שִׁפְחָה (shiph.chah) — maidservant.

1) maid, maid-servant, slavegirl

1a) maid, maid-servant (as belonging to a mistress)

1b) of address, speaker, humility (fig)

Morphologythe parsing behind the code
Berean parsing
N-fs — Noun common · feminine singular construct
HNcfsc
Bible dictionarieson the English sense
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

ov:

(1) In Anglo-Saxon, had the meaning "from," "away from" (as the strengthened form "off" has still), and was not used for genitive or possessive relations, these being expressed by special case-forms. In the Norman period, however, "of" was taken to represent the French de (a use well developed by the time of Chaucer), and in the Elizabethan period both senses of "of" were in common use. But after about 1600 the later force of the word became predominant, and in the earlier sense (which is now practically obsolete) it was replaced by other prepositions. In consequence the King James Version (and in some cases the Revised Version (British and American)) contains many uses of "of" that are no longer familiar--most of them, to be sure, causing no difficulty, but there still being a few responsible for real obscurities.

English usagewhat the translators’ English meant
Webster's Dictionary (1828), Webster's Unabridged (1913), Webster's Dictionary (1806)

OF, preposition ov. [Gr.]

1. From or out of; proceeding from, as the cause, source, means, author or agent bestowing.

I have received of the Lord that which also I delivered to you. 1 Corinthians 11:1.

For it was of the Lord to harden their hearts. Joshua 11:1.

It is of the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed.

Lamentations 3:1.

The whole disposing thereof is of the Lord. Proverbs 16:1.

Go, inquire of the Lord for me. 2 Chronicles 34:2.

That holy thing that shall be born of thee. Luke 1:1.

Hence of is the sign of the genitive case, the case that denotes production; as the son of man, the son proceeding from man, produced from man. This is the primary sense, although we now say, produced by man. 'Part of these were slain; ' that is, a number separate, for part denotes a division; the sense then is, a number from or out of the whole were slain. So also, 'some of these were slain; ' that is…

and [the] sons of Bilhah [the] maidservant of Rachel Dan and Naphtali
רָחֵ֔לra.Chel Rachel H7354 Noun proper feminine
47× in the OT scale is logarithmic — the commonest word, אֵת, appears about 11,000×
In plain English
Meaning
Rachel was a wife of Jacob and the mother of Joseph and Benjamin. Her name means ewe, and she is an important figure in the book of Genesis, where her story is told in detail.
Amplified meaning
wife of Jacob, mother of Joseph and Benjamin
Tyndale gloss
Rachel
Hebrew lexiconskeyed to Strong's numbers
Layman’s summary of all Lexicon entries.generated

רָחֵל (Rachel) refers to the daughter of Laban and wife of Jacob, known for being the mother of Joseph and Benjamin. The name is associated with the meaning 'ewe.' She is first mentioned in Genesis 29:6. There are no significant disagreements among the lexicons regarding her identity or familial connections.

Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew Lexicon (full)

רָחֵל 47 n.pr.f. Rachel, daughter of Laban and wife of Jacob

base

Brown-Driver-Briggs glosses

H7354 רָחֵל Rachel, daughter of Laban and wife of Jacob

Strong's Hebrew Dictionary

7354 Rachel raw-khale'

the same as 7353; Rachel, a wife of Jacob:--Rachel.

see HEBREW for 07353

Translators Brief Hebrew Lexicon

רָחֵל (ra.chel) — Rachel.

A woman living at the time of the Patriarchs, first mentioned at Gen.29.6;

daughter of: Laban (H3837A);

sister of: Leah (H3812); married to Israel (H3478);

mother of: Joseph (H3130) and Benjamin (H1144)

Also named: Rhachēl (Ῥαχήλ "Rachel" G4478)

§ Rachel = "ewe"

daughter of Laban, wife of Jacob, and mother of Joseph and Benjamin

Morphologythe parsing behind the code
Berean parsing
N-proper — Noun proper feminine
HNpf
Bible dictionarieson the English sense
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

ra'-chel (rachel, "ewe"; Rhachel (Ge 29:6; Jer 31:15, the King James Version "Rahel")):

1. Biography:

An ancestress of Israel, wife of Jacob, mother of Joseph and Benjamin. Rachel was the younger daughter of Laban, the Aramean, the brother of Jacob's mother; so Rachel and Jacob were cousins. They met for the first time upon the arrival of Jacob at Haran, when attracted by her beauty he immediately fell in love with her, winning her love by his chivalrous act related in Ge 29:10 ff. According to the custom of the times Jacob contracted with Laban for her possession, agreeing to serve him 7 years as the stipulated price (29:17-20). But when the time had passed, Laban deceived Jacob by giving him Leah instead of Rachel. When Jacob…

Easton's Bible Dictionary

Rachel

Ewe, “the daughter”, “the somewhat petulant, peevish, and self-willed though beautiful younger daughter” of Laban, and one of Jacob’s wives (Gen. 29:6, 28). He served Laban fourteen years for her, so deep was Jacob’s affection for her. She was the mother of Joseph (Gen. 30:22-24). Afterwards, on Jacob’s departure from Mesopotamia, she took with her her father’s teraphim (31:34, 35). As they journeyed on from Bethel, Rachel died in giving birth to Benjamin (35:18, 19), and was buried “in the way to Ephrath, which is Bethlehem. And Jacob set a pillar upon her grave”. Her sepulchre is still regarded with great veneration by the Jews. Its traditional site is about half a mile from Jerusalem.

Smith's Bible Dictionary

(ewe, or sheep), the younger of the daughters of Laban, the wife of Jacob (B.C. 1753) and mother of Joseph and Benjamin. The incidents of her life may be found in Genesis29-33, 35. The story of Jacob and Rachel has always had a peculiar interest. The beauty of Rachel, Jacob’s deep love and long servitude for her, their marriage, and Rachel’s death on giving birth to Benjamin, with Jacob’s grief at her loss, (Genesis 48:7) makes a touching tale. Yet from what is related to us concerning her character there does not seem much to claim any high degree of admiration and esteem. She appears to have shared all the duplicity and falsehood of her family. See, for instance, Rachel’s stealing her father’s images, and the ready dexterity and presence of mind with which she concealed her theft. (

Ewe or sheep, Ru 4:11, the younger sister of Leah, daughter of Laban, and the chosen wife of Jacob, though her sister was favored with more children. Rachel was the mother of Joseph and Benjamin, and died soon after the birth of the latter. See her history in Ge 29:1-35:29. Her sepulchre, half an hour’s walk north of Bethlehem, is shown unto this day, the spot being marked by a Mohammedan wely or tomb, a stone enclosure and a dome. The prophecy, Jer 31:15, representing her as mourning over her posterity, the tribes of Ephraim, Manasseh, and Benjamin, is quoted in Mt 2:18, in reference to the massacre at Bethlehem, in which undoubtedly many of her descendants suffered. It is…

and [the] sons of Bilhah [the] maidservant of Rachel Dan and Naphtali
דָּ֖ןdan Dan H1835 Noun proper masculine
70× in the OT scale is logarithmic — the commonest word, אֵת, appears about 11,000×
In plain English
Meaning
Dan was a son of Jacob and the founder of one of the twelve tribes of Israel. The tribe of Dan was known for its skills in warfare and is mentioned in the book of Genesis.
Amplified meaning
judge, leader of a tribe
Tyndale gloss
Dan
Hebrew lexiconskeyed to Strong's numbers
Layman’s summary of all Lexicon entries.generated

דָּן (Dan) means 'judge' and refers to the fifth son of Jacob and Bilhah. It encompasses the tribe descended from him and a city located in northern Israel, significant as a landmark in Palestine. The entries consistently highlight these aspects without notable disagreement.

Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew Lexicon (full)

דָּן n.pr.m. (judge)

son of Jacob and Bilhah

the tribe of Dan

a city on northern frontier of Israel at one of the sources of the Jordan

base

Brown-Driver-Briggs glosses

H1835 דָּן judge . son of Jacob and Bilhah

. the tribe of Dan

. a city on northern frontier of Israel at one of the sources of the Jordan

Strong's Hebrew Dictionary

1835 Dan dawn

from 1777; judge; Dan, one of the sons of Jacob; also the

tribe descended from him, and its territory; likewise a place

in Palestine colonized by them:--Dan.

see HEBREW for 01777

Translators Brief Hebrew Lexicon

דָּן (dan) — Dan.

§ Dan = "a judge"

1) the territory of the tribe of Dan 2) a city in Dan, the most northern landmark of Palestine

דָּן (dan) — Dan.

A man of the tribe of Dan living at the time of the Patriarchs, first mentioned at Gen.30.6;

son of: Israel (H3478) and Bilhah (H1090A);

brother of: Naphtali (H5321);

half-brother of: Reuben (H7205), Simeon (H8095), Levi (H3878), Judah (H3063), Gad (H1410), Asher (H0836), Issachar (H3485), Zebulun (H2074), Dinah (H1783), Joseph (H3130) and Benjamin (H1144);

father of: Hushim (H2366B)

§ Dan = "a judge"

1) the 5th son of Jacob, the 1st of Bilhah, Rachel's handmaid

2) the tribe descended from Dan, the son of Jacob

3) a city in Dan, the most northern landmark of Palestine

Morphologythe parsing behind the code
Berean parsing
N-proper — Noun proper masculine
HNpm
Bible dictionarieson the English sense
Easton's Bible Dictionary

Dan

A judge. (1.) The fifth son of Jacob. His mother was Bilhah, Rachel’s maid (Gen. 30:6, “God hath judged me”, Heb. dananni). The blessing pronounced on him by his father was, “Dan shall judge his people” (49:16), probably in allusion to the judgeship of Samson, who was of the tribe of Dan.

The tribe of Dan had their place in the march through the wilderness on the north side of the tabernacle (Num. 2:25, 31; 10:25). It was the last of the tribes to receive a portion in the Land of Promise. Its position and extent are described in Josh. 19:40-48.

The territory of Dan extended from the west of that of Ephraim and Benjamin to the sea. It was a small territory, but was very fertile. It included in it, among others, the…

Smith's Bible Dictionary

(a judge). The fifth son of Jacob, and the first of Bilhah, Rachel’s maid. (Genesis 30:6) (B.C. after 1753.) The origin of the name is given in the exclamation of Rachel. The records of Dan are unusually meagre. Only one son is attributed to him, (Genesis 46:23) but his tribe was, with the exception of Judah, the most numerous of all. In the division of the promised land Dan was the last of the tribes to receive his portion, which was the smallest of the twelve. (Joshua 19:48) But notwithstanding its smallness it had eminent natural advantages. On the north and east it was completely embraced by its two brother tribes Ephraim and Benjamin, while on the southeast and south it joined Judah, and was thus surrounded by the three…

American Tract Society Bible Dictionary

A judge,

1. A son of Jacob by Bilhah, Ge 30:3 35:25. The tribe of Dan was second only to that of Judah in numbers before entering Canaan, Nu 1:39 26:43. A portion was assigned to Dan, extending southeast from the seacoast near Joppa. It bordered on the land of the Philistines, with whom the tribe of Dan had much to do, Jud 13:1-16:31. Their territory was fertile, but small, and the natives were powerful. A part of the tribe therefore sought and conquered another home, Jos 19:1-51 Jud 18:1-31

Hitchcock's Bible Names Dictionary

judgment; he that judges

and [the] sons of Bilhah [the] maidservant of Rachel Dan and Naphtali
וְנַפְתָּלִֽי׃ve.naf.ta.Li and Naphtali H5321 Conjunction · noun proper masculine
51× in the OT scale is logarithmic — the commonest word, אֵת, appears about 11,000×
In plain English
Meaning
Naphtali was a son of Jacob and the founder of one of the twelve tribes of Israel. He was born to Bilhah, Rachel's servant, and is first mentioned in Genesis 30:8. Naphtali's descendants lived in the region of Galilee.
Amplified meaning
wrestling, struggling
Tyndale gloss
Naphtali
Hebrew lexiconskeyed to Strong's numbers
Layman’s summary of all Lexicon entries.generated

נַפְתָּלִי (Naphtali) refers to a son of Jacob and the tribe that descended from him, as well as the territory assigned to that tribe. The name is derived from a root meaning 'my wrestling.' He is first mentioned in Genesis 30:8, and is noted to be the second son of Jacob by Bilhah, Rachel's handmaid.

Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew Lexicon (full)

נַפְתָּלִי 61 n.pr.m. et trib. Naphtali

base

Brown-Driver-Briggs glosses

H5321 נַפְתָּלִי Naphtali

Strong's Hebrew Dictionary

5321 Naphtaliy naf-taw-lee'

from 6617; my wrestling; Naphtali, a son of Jacob, with the

tribe descended from him, and its territory:--Naphtali.

see HEBREW for 06617

Translators Brief Hebrew Lexicon

נַפְתָּלִי (naph.ta.li) — Naphtali.

A man of the tribe of Naphtali living at the time of the Patriarchs, first mentioned at Gen.30.8;

son of: Israel (H3478) and Bilhah (H1090A);

brother of: Dan (H1835H);

half-brother of: Reuben (H7205), Simeon (H8095), Levi (H3878), Judah (H3063), Gad (H1410), Asher (H0836), Issachar (H3485), Zebulun (H2074), Dinah (H1783), Joseph (H3130) and Benjamin (H1144);

father of: Jahzeel (H3183), Guni (H1476), Jezer (H3337) and Shillem (H8006)

Also named: Nephthaleim (Νεφθαλείμ "Naphtali" G3508)

§ Naphtali = "wrestling"

1) the 5th son of Jacob and the 2nd by Bilhah the handmaid of Rachel

2) the tribe descended from Naphtali the son of Jacob

3) the territory assigned to the tribe of Naphtali

נַפְתָּלִי (naph.ta.li) — (Kedesh)-naphtali.

Combined with qe.desh (קֶ֫דֶשׁ "Kedesh" H6943)

§ Naphtali = "wrestling"

Read the full entry →
Morphologythe parsing behind the code
Berean parsing
Conj | N-proper — Conjunction · noun proper masculine
HC/Npm
Bible dictionarieson the English sense
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

naf'-ta-li (naphtali; Nephthaleim):

I. THE PATRIARCH

1. Name

2. Circumstances of His Birth

3. Historical and Traditional Details

II. TRIBE OF NAPHTALI

1. Its Relative Position

2. Its Location in Palestine

3. Physical Features

4. Distinction of the Tribe

5. Sites and Inhabitants

6. Labors of Jesus in This District

I. The Patriarch.

1. Name:

The 5th son of Jacob, and the 2nd born to him by Rachel's handmaid, Bilhah. He was full brother of Da (Ge 30:7).

At his birth Rachel is said to have exclaimed, naphtule 'Elohim niphtalti, "wrestlings of God"--i.e. "mighty wrestlings"--"have I wrestled."

2. Circumstances of His Birth:

Her sister's fruitfulness was a sore trial to the barren Rachel. By her artifice she had obtained children, the offspring of her maid ranking as her own; and thus her reproach of childlessness was removed. The name Naphtali given to…

Easton's Bible Dictionary

Naphtali

My wrestling, the fifth son of Jacob. His mother was Bilhah, Rachel’s handmaid (Gen. 30:8). When Jacob went down into Egypt, Naphtali had four sons (Gen. 46:24). Little is known of him as an individual.

Smith's Bible Dictionary

(wrestling), the fifth son of Jacob; the second child name to him by Bilhah, Rachel’s slave. His birth and the bestowal of his name are recorded in (Genesis 30:8) When the census was taken at Mount Sinai the tribe of Naphtali numbered no less than 53,400 fighting men, (Numbers 1:43; 2:50) but when the borders of the promised land were reached, its numbers were reduced to, 45,400. (Numbers 26:48-50) During the march through the wilderness Naphtali occupied a position on the north of the sacred tent with Dan and Asher. (Numbers 2:25-31) In the apportionment of the land, the lot of Naphtali was enclosed on three sides by those of other tribes. On the west lay Asher, on the…

American Tract Society Bible Dictionary

The sixth son of Jacob, by Bilhah, Rachel’s handmaid, Ge 30:8. We know but few particulars of the lie of Naphtali. His sons were four, Ge 46:24. The patriarch Jacob, when he gave his blessing, said, as it is in the English Bible, "Naphtali is a hind let loose; he giveth goodly words," Ge 49:21. For an illustration of this passage, see HIND.

The tribe of Naphtali, called Nephtalim in Mt 4:15, were located in a rich and fertile portion of northern Palestine; having Asher on the west, the upper Jordan and part of the sea of Tiberias on the east; and running north into the Lebanon range, some lower offshoots of which prolonged to the south formed the "mountains of Naphtali,"…

Sources on this page. Lexicons and dictionaries imported from the CrossWire SWORD modules — Abbott-Smith, Strong's, Dodson, the Intermediate Liddell-Scott-Jones, Robinson and Packard, Webster and Cawdrey. Thayer’s Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament (Harper, 1889 — Grimm’s Wilke’s Clavis Novi Testamenti, translated, revised and enlarged by Joseph Henry Thayer) is public domain and is set here from the Internet Archive page scan greekenglishlex00grim; it is uncorrected OCR, marked as such on the entry itself, and the Strong’s numbers — which Thayer’s own edition does not carry — were matched by lemma against the other modules on this page. Trench’s Synonyms of the New Testament (Macmillan, 1880) and Moulton and Milligan’s Vocabulary of the Greek Testament (Hodder & Stoughton, 1930, which entered the United States public domain on 1 January 2026) are set from Internet Archive page scans synonymsofnewtes00treniala and vocabularyofgree00mouluoft, and are likewise uncorrected OCR matched to Strong’s numbers by lemma. Trench treats a group of words at once, so the same essay stands on the page of each word it compares. The Mounce Concise Greek-English Dictionary is © 1993 and is used here by permission for non-commercial use, www.teknia.com/greek-dictionary. The full Liddell-Scott-Jones and the Hebrew word data (TAHOT) come from STEPBible.org, CC BY 4.0. Brown-Driver-Briggs is the OpenScriptures digitisation, public domain. Syntax analysis is the Nestle 1904 Lowfat treebank (biblicalhumanities.org); the concordance and morphology are built from the tagged Nestle 1904 text. Septuagint occurrences use the Open Scriptures Septuagint lemma index, derived from CCAT (University of Pennsylvania) and the Rahlfs 1935 dataset by Eliran Wong, CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 — used here on a non-commercial ministry site. Greek of Josephus and Barnabas from the Perseus Digital Library, CC BY-SA 4.0. Commentaries and the Ante-Nicene Fathers are public-domain texts hosted on this site. Everyday Greek from the Duke Databank of Documentary Papyri, CC BY 3.0, with dates and provenance from the Heidelberger Gesamtverzeichnis. Philo and the Apostolic Fathers from Open Greek and Latin (First1KGreek), CC BY-SA 4.0. The apparatus and the fifth Greek column are the SBL Greek New Testament, © 2010 SBL and Logos Bible Software, CC BY 4.0. The Latin is the Clementine Vulgate (public domain); the Syriac New Testament is the ETCBC edition (MIT licence). The Hebrew behind the Greek is computed here from the Septuagint index and TAHOT, not taken from any aligned edition. The translation spread and the per-word edition marks come from the Translators Amalgamated Greek NT (STEPBible, CC BY 4.0); clause roles from the Nestle 1904 Lowfat treebank (CC BY-SA 4.0); place identifications and their confidence from OpenBible.info Bible Geocoding (CC BY 4.0), with map tiles © OpenStreetMap contributors. Gospel parallels are computed here from shared uncommon vocabulary, not taken from any printed harmony. Cross references are the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge and the subject headings are Nave’s Topical Bible, both public domain. Works under Creative Commons licences are used unchanged apart from markup removal.

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