--- title: חַי — alive · The Tanakh dictionary description: חַי (lemma:חַי), a word of Biblical Hebrew, used 118 times: alive. BDB 1906: adj. 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/lemma_3a_5d7_5b7_5d9.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/) / [ח](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/tanakh/1495-2.md)‎ / חַי‎ # חַי «חַי» in the Tanakh dictionary: **alive** — 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:** 118 times · **Key:** lemma:חַי · **BDB:** חַי² ### Glosses living (68); alive (14); of.\[the\].living (8) ### Meaning (OSHB) alive [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/tanakh/1495/lemma_3a_5d7_5b7_5d9/#m1) ### Meaning (BDB 1906) adj. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/tanakh/1495/lemma_3a_5d7_5b7_5d9/#m2) **The whole BDB entry:** adj. alive, living;—ח׳ Gn 25:6 +; חָ֑י Gn 3:20 +, חֵי Am 8:14 + 15 times (Ew§ 329 explains as cstr., but Ges§ 93, R 7 n. al. as contracted abs.); f. חַיָּה Gn 1:20 +; pl. חַיִּים ψ 116:9 +;— of God, as the living one, the fountain of life אֵל חַי Jos 3:10 (J), Ho 2:1 ψ 42:3; 84:3; אלהים חי 2 K 19:4, 16 = Is 37:4, 17; אלהים חיים Dt 5:23 1 S 17:26, 36 Je 10:10; 23:36; חי יהוה Yahweh is living ψ 18:47 = 2 S 22:47; גאלי חי my avenger is living Jb 19:25; the formula of the oath is חַי י׳ Ju 8:19 Ru 3:13 1 S 14:39, 45; 19:6; 20:3, 21; 25:34; 26:10, 16; 28:10; 29:6 2 S 4:9; 12:5; 14:11; 15:21 1 K 1:29; 2:24; 17:1, 12; 18:10; 22:14 = 2 Ch 18:13, 2 K 5:16, 20 Ho 4:15 Je 4:2; 5:2; 12:16; 16:14, 15; 23:7, 8; 38:16; חי אל Jb 27:2; חי האלהים 2 S 2:27; חי אדני י׳ Je 44:26; חי י׳ צבאות 1 K 18:15 2 K 3:14; as used by God Himself it is חי אנכי Dt 32:40, elsewhere חי אני Nu 14:21, 28 (P) Is 49:18; Je 22:24; 46:18 Ez 5:11; 14:16, 18, 20; 16:48; 17:16, 19; 18:3; 20:3, 31, 33; 33:11, 27; 34:8; 35:6, 11 Zp 2:9, cf. also חֵי דרך באר שׁבע, חֵי אלהיך דן Am 8:14; with the exception of בְּחֵי הָעֹולָם by him who liveth for ever Dn 12:7, חֵי is always (as an artificial distinction of scribes) used of non-sacred oaths, v. b. of man; אָדָם חַי a living man La 3:39, in antith. מֵת: חי חי Is 38:19; הַחַי collective Ec 7:2; Absalom 2 S 19:7; Naboth 1 K 21:15; a son or lad 2 S 12:21 1 K 3:22(×2), 23(×2), 25, 26(×2), 27; 17:23; usually pl. חיים alive, living Nu 16:30, 33 (J), 17:13 (P), Dt 4:4; 5:3 Is 8:19 ψ 55:16; 124:3 Pr 1:12 Ec 4:2(×2), 15; 6:8; 9:4, 5 Ru 2:20; taking prisoners alive Jos 8:23 (J) 1 S 15:8 1 K 20:18(×2) 2 K 7:12; 10:14(×2) 2 Ch 25:12; living (prosperously) 1 S 25:6 (We reads לָחִי = לְאָחִי (v. Klo Dr) to my brother, after 𝔙 fratribus meis); elsewhere in phrase כל־הימים אשׁר הֵם (אַתֶּם) היים על (פני) האדמה all the days that they (ye) live upon (the face of) the land Dt 4:10; 12:1; 31:13 1 K 8:40 = 2 Ch 6:31. Note phrases: עוֹד חַי (ים) yet alive Gn 25:6; 43:7, 27, 28; 45:28; 46:30 (J), 45:3, 26 Ex 4:18 (E), Dt 31:27 1 Sa 20:14 2 S 12:22; 18:14 1 K 20:32; בהיות חי 2 S 12:18 1 K 12:6 2 Ch 10:6; אֶרֶץ (הַ)חַיִים land of the living Is 38:11; 53:8 Je 11:19 Ez 26:20; 32:23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 32 ψ 27:13; 52:7; 142:6 Jb 28:13; ארצות הח׳ ψ 116:9; ספר ח׳ ψ 69:29; צרור הח׳ bundle of the living 1 S 25:29; אור הח׳ light of the living Jb 33:30 ψ 56:14. In the oath by life of men חי is pointed always חֵי: חֵי אדני המלך as my lord the king liveth 2 S 15:21; חֵי פרעה Gn 42:15, 16 (E); חֵי נַפְשְׁךָ 1 S 1:26; 17:55 2 S 14:19; חַי י׳ וְחֵי נַפְשְׁךָ as Yahweh liveth and as thy soul (or thyself) liveth 1 S 20:3; 25:26 2 K 2:2, 4, 6; 4:30 חַיֶּךָ וְחֵי נ׳ 2 S 11:11 (but on text v. We Dr). of animals, alive, living: ox Ex 21:35; 22:3 (E); goat Lv 16:10, 20, 21 (P); bird Lv 14:4, 6(×2), 7, 51, 53; dog, לְכֶלֶב חַי הוּא טוֹב מִן־הָאַרְיֵה הַמֵּת Ec 9:4 (comp. Arabic prov. Kalb ḥay wa-lâ maiyit, a living dog and no dead lion Wetzst Verhand. Berl. Anthrop. Ges 1878, 388); reptiles Gn 1:28 (P); animals in general Gn 9:3 (P); בשׂר חי living, raw flesh Lv 13:10, 14, 15(×2), 16 (P) 1 S 2:15. animals and man, phrases for either or both: כל חי Gn 3:20; 8:21 (J) Jb 12:10; 28:21; 30:23 ψ 143:2; 145:16; כל החי Gn 6:19 (P); נֶפֶשׁ חַיָּה Gn 1:20, 24, 30 (P) 2:7, 19 (J); כל נֶפֶשׁ חַיָּה Gn 9:12, 15, 16 (P) Ez 47:9; כל נפשׁ החיה Gn 1:21; 9:10 Lv 11:10, 46 (P). (dub.) of vegetation, as thorns, green, ψ 58:10 (Ges Ew Ol Pe, but De Ri Che Bae raw flesh, v. c supr. ad fin.) of water, flowing, fresh מים חיים Gn 26:19 (J), Lv 14:5, 6, 50, 51, 52; 15:13 Nu 19:17 (P), Je 2:13; 17:13 Zc 14:8 Ct 4:15. (dub.) lively, active: אישׁ חַי an active man 2 S 23:20 (but Qr אישׁ חַיִל is to be preferred); איבי חיים mine enemies are lively ψ 38:20 (RV, but Houb Ol Ew Hu. Che al. read חִנָּם, ‖ שׁקר). reviving: כָּעֵת חַיָּה at the time (when it is) reviving, the spring Gn 18:10, 14 (J), 2 K 4:16, 17. Why these entries: BDB: headword, part of speech agrees, 108 of its verses cited, 0 words shared with the glosses (3 candidates); OSHB: headword, part of speech agrees, 1 words shared with the BDB entry, 1 with the glosses (2 candidates) ### Trees and pragmatics [Every English meaning of «חַי» parsed by Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/tanakh/1495/lemma_3a_5d7_5b7_5d9/), each sentence with its dependency tree and frames. ### In the verses [Lamentations 3:39](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/ketuvim/LAM.3.39/) מַה־יִּתְאוֹנֵן֙ אָדָ֣ם חָ֔י גֶּ֖בֶר עַל־חֲטָאָֽיו׃ס *Word for word:* why? will.he.complain a.person living a.man on sins his *JPS 1917:* Wherefore doth a living man complain, a strong man because of his sins? [Leviticus 13:14](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/torah/LEV.13.14/) וּבְי֨וֹם הֵרָא֥וֹת בּ֛וֹ בָּשָׂ֥ר חַ֖י יִטְמָֽא׃ *Word for word:* and on the.day appears on him flesh living he.will.be.unclean *JPS 1917:* But whensoever raw flesh appeareth in him, he shall be unclean. - ← previous: [חֹטֵר](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/tanakh/w/2415.md) - next →: [חִיאֵל](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/tanakh/w/2419.md) - ↑ back to [ח](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/tanakh/1495-2.md)