Hebrew word · H1134
בֶּן־חַ֫יִל
chayil
Ben-hail
Ḥayil means strength, capability, wealth, or an army. The phrase ben-ḥayil, 'son of strength', is a common idiom for a valiant or capable man (1 Sam 14:52; 2 Sam 2:7; 1 Kgs 1:52). The related phrase ʾēšet ḥayil is the 'woman of strength/worth' in Prov 31:10.
Appears 2 times in 1 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·
What it means
A man living at the time of Divided Monarchy, only mentioned at 2Ch.17.7
§ Ben-hail = "son of strength" or "son (man) of might"
a ruler (prince) under Jehoshaphat
Abridged from Brown, Driver and Briggs, A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament (1906), via STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0).
In depth
From the study of 2 Chronicles 17:7
- Range of meaning
Ḥayil means strength, capability, wealth, or an army. The phrase ben-ḥayil, 'son of strength', is a common idiom for a valiant or capable man (1 Sam 14:52; 2 Sam 2:7; 1 Kgs 1:52). The related phrase ʾēšet ḥayil is the 'woman of strength/worth' in Prov 31:10.
- Against the English
All the supplied English versions treat it as a personal name, Ben-hail. The Septuagint appears to translate it as a description, so a reader of the Greek meets a different list.
- Used elsewhere in the period
This is the only place it occurs as a name. The idiom elsewhere, always 'sons of valor' or 'man of valor', is what lay behind the Greek reading.
Similar words
Where it appears
2 Chronicles · 2
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2 Chronicles 17:7 לְבֶן־ חַ֙יִל֙ <to> Ben-, Hail
In the third year of his reign, Jehoshaphat sent his officials Ben-hail, Obadiah, Zechariah, Nethanel, and Micaiah to teach in the cities of Judah,
Here: The first half of the name Ben-hail, 'son of'. In Hebrew idiom 'son of X' often means 'a person marked by X'.
Word data: STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0), main text only.