--- title: שְׁאוֹל — Shᵉ’ōl · The Tanakh dictionary description: שְׁאוֹל (7585), a word of Biblical Hebrew, used 65 times: Shᵉ’ōl. BDB 1906: n.f. underworld. With 2 verses in Hebrew, word for word and JPS 1917. --- [Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/tanakh/w/7585.html) [home](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) / [dictionaries](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/) / [Tanakh](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/tanakh/) / [ש](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/tanakh/1513.md)‎ / שְׁאוֹל‎ # שְׁאוֹל «שְׁאוֹל» in the Tanakh dictionary: **Shᵉ’ōl** — how often it is used, MACULA's glosses, its meanings in the printed dictionaries and why they were chosen, and 2 verses in layers. **Used:** 65 times · **Key:** 7585 · **BDB:** שְׁאוֹל ### Glosses Sheol (48); of.Sheol (14); O.Sheol (1) ### Meaning (OSHB) Shᵉ’ōl [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/tanakh/1513/7585/#m1) ### Meaning (BDB 1906) n.f. underworld [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/tanakh/1513/7585/#m2) **The whole BDB entry:** n.f. ψ 86:13 (appar. m. Jb 26:6 cf. Is 14:9, v. AlbrZAW xvi (1896), 51) Sheʾôl, underworld (√ dub.; שׁאל, i.e. place of inquiry (ref. to necromancy) JastrAm. J. Sem. Lang. xiv. 170, cf. JBL xix (1900), 88 ff. (JeremLeben n. d. Tode 109 ‘Ort der Entscheidung’); Thes BöDe Inf. § 158 Di al. cp. √ שׁעל, whence שֹׁעַל hollow hand, etc.; שׁ׳ then = hollow place, ‘Hölle’, hell; other conj. v. Hup Ps. 6:6; De Is. 5:14 BeerBibl. Hades in HoltzmannFestgabe, 1902, 15; most now refrain from positive etymology (e.g. Buhl); Old Aramaic שאול, Syriac ܫܝܽܘܠ; Assyrian šu-alu is dub.: so read and interpr. DlPa 121; Prol. 47, 145 JastrAm. J. Sem. Lang. xiv. 165 ff. Ency. Bib.s.v.; opp. by BertinTSBA viii. 269 JenKosmol. 223 ff. ZimKAT 3. 636 al.; v. also Muss-ArnoltJBL xi (1892), 169 and reff.);—always abs., שְׁאוֹל Dt 32:22 + 52 times, ה—ָ Gn 42:38 ψ 9:18; שְׁאֹל 1 K 2:6; Jb 17:16, ה—ָ Gn 37:35 + 7 times; + Is 7:11 (so read for שְׁאָ֫לָה Aq Σ Θ Du Che and now most);— the underworld, שׁ׳ תַּחְתִּית Dt 32:22, מִתַּחַת Is 14:9; מִשּׁ׳ מָ֑טָּה Pr 15:24; ‖ מָוֶת 5:5; 7:27; Ct 8:6 ψ 89:49; whither men descend at death, Gn 37:35 (E), 42:38; 44:29, 31 (J), 1 S 2:6; 1 K 2:6, 9; Jb 7:9; 21:13; Is 14:11, 15 ψ 88:4, and Ḳoraḥ and associates go down alive by י׳’s judgment, Nu 16:30, 33 (J), cf. ψ 55:16; under mts. and sea Jb 26:6 (cf. v 5), בֶּטֶן שׁ׳ Jon 2:3 (cf. v 7); with bars Jb 17:16 (si vera l.: v. 𝔊 Du); פִּי שׁ׳ ψ 141:7; שַׁעֲרֵי שׁ׳ Is 38:10; personif. Is 28:15, 18 (‖ מות) as insatiable monster 5:14; Hb 2:5; Pr 1:12; 27:20; 30:16; as said (fig.) to have snares, חֶבְלֵי שׁ׳, ψ 18:6 = 2 S 22:6, cf. מְצָרֵי שׁ׳ ψ 116:3; opp. (height of) שָׁמַיִם Am 9:2; Jb 11:8 ψ 139:8 + (opp. לְמָ֑עְלָה) Is 7:11 (v. supra); dark, gloomy, without return Jb 17:13 (cf. v 16; 7:9; 10:21; 16:22; all being alike 3:17–19; 21:23–26); without work or knowledge or wisdom according to Ec 9:5, 6, 10 (cf. Jb 14:21, and v. רְפָאִים sub רפה; yet cf. Is 14:9 f.). condition of righteous and wicked disting. in שׁ׳ (later than 1 S 28, especially in WisdLt): wicked יָשׁוּבוּ לִשְׁא֑וֹלָה ψ 9:18, יִדְּמוּ לִשׁ׳ 31:18; death is their shepherd, without power and honour they waste away 49:15(×2); שׁ׳ consumes them as drought water Jb 24:19; righteous dread it because no praise or presence of God there (as in temple) ψ 6:6 (cf. 88:6), Is 38:18; deliverance from it a blessing ψ 30:4; 86:13; Pr 23:14. In Ezek. שׁ׳ is land below, place of reproach, abode of uncircumcised Ez 31:15, 16, 17; 32:21, 27. righteous shall not be abandoned, לשׁ׳ ψ 16:10 (‖ שַׁחַת q.v.; opp. אֹרַח הַיִּים, etc., v 11, cf. 17:15), is ransomed from שׁ׳ 49:16 (cf. 73:23, 25; Is 57:1, 2); cf. Job’s expectation and desire Jb 14:13; 17:13 (cf. 10:21; 19:25 f.). later distinction of places in שׁ׳: depths of שׁ׳ for sensualist Pr 9:18. שׁ׳ וַאֲבַדּוֹן Pr 15:11, v. אֲבַדּוֹן. \[שַׁחַת and בּוֹר, q.v., when ‖ שׁ׳, are usually in bad sense (ψ 88:4); prob. = pit in שׁ׳, \> שׁ׳ itself as pit; words at least prepare for local distinctions of postB. Judaism and NT.\] שׁ׳ fig. of extreme degradation in sin Is 57:9; as place of exile for Israel Ho 13:14(×2) (cf. Is 26:19). Why these entries: BDB: headword, part of speech differs, 63 of its verses cited, 0 words shared with the glosses, lists its Strong's number (5 candidates); OSHB: headword, part of speech differs, 0 words shared with the BDB entry, 0 with the glosses (5 candidates) ### Trees and pragmatics [Every English meaning of «שְׁאוֹל» parsed by Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/tanakh/1513/7585/), each sentence with its dependency tree and frames. ### In the verses [Isaiah 14:15](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/neviim/ISA.14.15/) אַ֧ךְ אֶל־שְׁא֛וֹל תּוּרָ֖ד אֶל־יַרְכְּתֵי־בֽוֹר׃ *Word for word:* nevertheless to Sheol you.have.been.brought.down to \[the\].remotest.parts of.\[the\].pit *JPS 1917:* Yet thou shalt be brought down to the nether-world, to the uttermost parts of the pit. [1 Samuel 2:6](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/neviim/1SA.2.6/) יְהוָ֖ה מֵמִ֣ית וּמְחַיֶּ֑ה מוֹרִ֥יד שְׁא֖וֹל וַיָּֽעַל׃ *Word for word:* Yahweh \[is\].killing and \[he.is\].restoring.to.life \[he.is\].bringing.down Sheol and he.has.brought.up *JPS 1917:* The LORD killeth, and maketh alive; He bringeth down to the grave, and bringeth up. - ← previous: [שָׁאָה](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/tanakh/w/lemma_3a_5e9_5b8_5c1_5d0_5b8_5d4.md) - next →: [שָׁאוּל](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/tanakh/w/7586.md) - ↑ back to [ש](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/tanakh/1513.md)