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שִׁבְעִים

𐤔𐤁𐤏𐤉𐤌

shibʻîym

H7657 adjective

SILEX Entry

Root שבע to be full, to swear, seven

Definition

The cardinal number seventy; specifically denotes a total count of seventy units, people, or years. While used primarily as a literal number, 'שִׁבְעִים' can also function symbolically in Hebrew literature to signify completeness, a large group, or a full generation.

Semantic Range

seventy (literal number), group of seventy (people or units), cross-generational total, symbol of completeness

Root / Etymology

From the root שָׁבַע (to be full, to swear, to bind by seven), with the formation expressing a numerical multiple (ten times seven). The word is formed by appending the masculine plural ending '-ִים' to the base for ten times seven, yielding 'seventies' or 'seventy.'

Historical & Contextual Notes

In the Hebrew Bible, 'שִׁבְעִים' appears in a variety of contexts, most often as a precise numerical value: the seventy descendants of Jacob/Israel who migrated to Egypt (Gen 46:27), the seventy elders appointed by Moses (Exod 24:1; Num 11:16), the seventy-year period of Babylonian exile (Jer 25:11-12; Dan 9:2), and seventy nations (Gen 10). In prophetic and poetic traditions, seventy can carry symbolic overtones of completeness, totality, or an ideal group, connected to the cultural significance of the number seven. Unlike later English phrases such as 'threescore and ten,' Hebrew usage is quantitative and direct, not idiomatic. In later Judaean, Second Temple, and rabbinic contexts, groups of seventy (such as elders or the Sanhedrin) continued this pattern but may reflect institutional memory more than precise census. The word does not possess the meaning or connotations of 'teen' or reference to ages as sometimes rendered in KJV English. Related numerical forms (ששִּׁים sixty, שמוֹנִים eighty) are constructed analogously.

Original Strong's Gloss (1890)

multiple of שֶׁבַע; seventy; seventy, threescore and ten ([phrase] -teen).

Bantu Hebrew

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Root Family

שבע (š-b-ʿ) — fullness, seven, oath-binding

Strong's Lemma SIBI-P1
H1339 בַּת־שֶׁבַע seven
H3090 יְהוֹשַׁבְעַת YHWH-has-sworn
H7620 שָׁבוּעַ in your seven-cycles
H7621 שְׁבוּעָה by oath-of
H7637 שְׁבִיעִי in the seventh

Word Forms

5 distinct forms

SIDANCE Surface Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 Occurrences
H7657-03 שִׁבְעִ֥ים shiveim HAcbpa seventy seventy 65
H7657-05 וְ/שִׁבְעִים֙ veshiveim HC/Acbpa and seventy and seventy 23
H7657-02 שִׁבְּעִ֥ים shibeim HAcbpa seventy seventy 1
H7657-04 וְ/הַ/שִּׁבְעִ֖ים vehashiveim HC/Td/Acbpa and the seventy the seventy 1
H7657-01 בְּ/שִׁבְעִ֣ים beshiveim HR/Acbpa with seventy in seventy 1

Occurrences in Scripture

91 total occurrences

SIDANCE Reference Word Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1
H7657-03 Genesis 4:24 שִׁבְעִ֥ים shiveim HAcbpa seventy seventy
H7657-03 Genesis 5:12 שִׁבְעִ֣ים shiveim HAcbpa seventy seventy
H7657-05 Genesis 5:31 וְ/שִׁבְעִים֙ veshiveim HC/Acbpa and seventy and seventy
H7657-03 Genesis 11:26 שִׁבְעִ֣ים shiveim HAcbpa seventy seventy
H7657-05 Genesis 12:4 וְ/שִׁבְעִ֣ים veshiveim HC/Acbpa and five and seventy
H7657-05 Genesis 25:7 וְ/שִׁבְעִ֥ים veshiveim HC/Acbpa and seventy and seventy
H7657-03 Genesis 46:27 שִׁבְעִֽים shiveim HAcbpa seventy seventy
H7657-03 Genesis 50:3 שִׁבְעִ֥ים shiveim HAcbpa seventy seventy
H7657-03 Exodus 1:5 שִׁבְעִ֣ים shiveim HAcbpa seventy seventy
H7657-05 Exodus 15:27 וְ/שִׁבְעִ֣ים veshiveim HC/Acbpa and seventy and seventy
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