Hebrew word · H2061

זְאֵב

ze'ev

wolf

Wolf. It is used literally of the predator of flocks and figuratively of violent, plundering people: Benjamin as a 'ravening wolf' (Gen 49:27), Jerusalem's officials 'like wolves tearing prey' (Ezek 22:27), judges as 'evening wolves' (Zeph 3:3), and the wolf as God's agent of judgment (Jer 5:6).

Appears 7 times in 7 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

wolf

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 Isaiah 65:25

Range of meaning

Wolf. It is used literally of the predator of flocks and figuratively of violent, plundering people: Benjamin as a 'ravening wolf' (Gen 49:27), Jerusalem's officials 'like wolves tearing prey' (Ezek 22:27), judges as 'evening wolves' (Zeph 3:3), and the wolf as God's agent of judgment (Jer 5:6).

Against the English

English 'wolf' is accurate. The trouble is the popular memory of the verse, which swaps the wolf for a lion ('the lion shall lie down with the lamb'), a line that appears nowhere in Scripture.

How it drifted

Popular paraphrase has merged Isaiah 11:6 ('the wolf shall dwell with the lamb … the leopard shall lie down with the kid … the calf and the young lion') with 65:25, and the lion has crowded out the wolf in art and hymnody.

Used elsewhere in the period

Isaiah 11:6 has the same pairing (zəʾēv with keves, 'lamb'). The Sumerian Dilmun paradise text (Enki and Ninhursag) says that there 'the lion did not kill, the wolf did not snatch the lamb', so the image of predators that do not prey was already ancient. Sibylline Oracles 3.788-795, a Jewish text of about the 2nd century BC, develops it further: wolves and lambs eating grass together on the mountains.

From the study of Zephaniah 3:3

Range of meaning

'Wolf of evening': a wolf that hunts at dusk. ʿereb is the ordinary word for evening. The same consonants can also be read as ʿărāb ('Arabia, steppe') or linked to ʿărābâ ('desert plain').

Against the English

Most English versions have 'evening wolves' or 'wolves at evening'. NLT expands this into 'ravenous wolves at evening time'. The Greek Septuagint has 'wolves of Arabia'.

Used elsewhere in the period

The exact phrase recurs in Habakkuk 1:8, where Babylonian horses are 'fiercer than evening wolves'. Jeremiah 5:6 has 'a wolf of the deserts (ʿărābôt) will ravage them', which is why some scholars prefer 'steppe wolves'. The Septuagint reads 'Arabia' in both Zephaniah and Habakkuk.

From the study of Ezekiel 22:27

Range of meaning

The wolf (in this region the Arabian or Indian grey wolf). In the Bible it stands for ferocity, night hunting, and danger to flocks.

Against the English

'Wolves' is accurate. The image, though, carries more for pastoral hearers than for modern city readers.

Used elsewhere in the period

Genesis 49:27 has 'Benjamin is a ravenous wolf.' Jeremiah 5:6 has 'a wolf of the desert will destroy them.' Habakkuk 1:8 and Zephaniah 3:3 speak of 'evening wolves,' which hunt at dusk and leave nothing until morning. Later Jewish and Christian writing (e.g. Matthew 7:15, Acts 20:29) uses wolves for people who prey on God's flock.

Where it appears

Genesis · 1

  1. Genesis 49:27 זְאֵ֣ב [is] a wolf

    Benjamin is a ravenous wolf; in the morning he devours the prey, in the evening he divides the plunder.”

Isaiah · 2

  1. Isaiah 11:6 זְאֵב֙ wolf

    The wolf will live with the lamb, and the leopard will lie down with the goat; the calf and young lion and fatling will be together, and a little child will lead them.

    Here: The wolf that preys on flocks, which hunted at dusk and was a real danger to Judah's shepherds. The prophets also used it for predatory officials and invading armies (Ezek 22:27; Zeph 3:3; Hab 1:8).

  2. Isaiah 65:25 זְאֵ֨ב wolf

    The wolf and the lamb will feed together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox, but the food of the serpent will be dust. They will neither harm nor destroy on all My holy mountain,” says the LORD.

    Here: The classic predator of sheep and goats, and a stock image for violent, greedy people (Ezek 22:27; Zeph 3:3). Placed first, it is the animal a shepherd most feared.

Jeremiah · 1

  1. Jeremiah 5:6 זְאֵ֤ב a wolf of

    Therefore a lion from the forest will strike them down, a wolf from the desert will ravage them. A leopard will lie in wait near their cities, and everyone who ventures out will be torn to pieces. For their rebellious acts are many, and their unfaithful deeds are numerous.

    Here: The wolf, the classic enemy of the flock. It hints that the people are like sheep left without protection.

Ezekiel · 1

  1. Ezekiel 22:27 כִּזְאֵבִ֖ים [are] like wolves

    Her officials within her are like wolves tearing their prey, shedding blood, and destroying lives for dishonest gain.

    Here: 'Like wolves.' Wolves were the classic danger to a flock. Calling the officials wolves makes them the opposite of shepherds.

Habakkuk · 1

  1. Habakkuk 1:8 מִזְּאֵ֣בֵי more than wolves of

    Their horses are swifter than leopards, fiercer than wolves of the night. Their horsemen charge ahead, and their cavalry comes from afar. They fly like a vulture, swooping down to devour.

    Here: The wolf was the classic threat to flocks. The form ties it to the next word: wolves of the evening.

Zephaniah · 1

  1. Zephaniah 3:3 זְאֵ֣בֵי [are] wolves of

    Her princes are roaring lions; her judges are evening wolves, leaving nothing for the morning.

    Here: 'Wolves of': the wolf is the classic enemy of the flock. The image turns upside down the ideal of leaders as shepherds of the people.

Word data: STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0), main text only.