Hebrew word · H2245
חָבַב
chovev
to love
To love or cherish with warm affection. This is the only time the verb appears in the Hebrew Bible. The usual Hebrew verb for love is ʾāhaḇ (the 'love' of Deuteronomy 6:5 and 7:8). Some lexicons connect ḥbb with ḥōḇ, 'bosom' (Job 31:33), which suggests 'to hold close to the chest'.
Appears once in the Hebrew Old Testament. ·
What it means
(Qal) to love fervently, cherish
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 Deuteronomy 33:3
- Range of meaning
To love or cherish with warm affection. This is the only time the verb appears in the Hebrew Bible. The usual Hebrew verb for love is ʾāhaḇ (the 'love' of Deuteronomy 6:5 and 7:8). Some lexicons connect ḥbb with ḥōḇ, 'bosom' (Job 31:33), which suggests 'to hold close to the chest'.
- Against the English
English versions all say 'love', which is right. But it hides the fact that the poet passed over Deuteronomy's normal word for God's love and chose a rare one with a tender feel. The participle ('is cherishing') describes a lasting trait, which KJV's past tense 'loved' blurs.
- Used elsewhere in the period
The same root is the ordinary word for love in Aramaic and Syriac (ḥabbeb), and Arabic ḥabba / ʾaḥabba means 'love'. Later Hebrew uses it a great deal. In the Mishnah, Avot 3:14 has 'Beloved (ḥāḇîḇ) is humankind… beloved are Israel'. The rabbis' word for 'beloved' grew from this root.
Where it appears
Deuteronomy · 1
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Deuteronomy 33:3 חֹבֵ֣ב [he is] loving
Surely You love the people; all the holy ones are in Your hand, and they sit down at Your feet; each receives Your words—
Here: An active participle: 'one who cherishes'. It describes an ongoing disposition, not a single act. This is the only place the verb appears in the Hebrew Bible. Its relatives in Aramaic and Arabic mean warm, affectionate love, and it may be linked to a word for 'bosom'.
Word data: STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0), main text only.