Hebrew word · H2715

חֹר

hachorim

noble

Free-born men of standing: the leading families, local gentry, notables. The root means 'free' (compare Aramaic and later Hebrew ben ḥorin, 'a free man').

Appears 13 times in 13 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

a noble, freeborn one

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 1 Kings 21:11

Range of meaning

Free-born men of standing: the leading families, local gentry, notables. The root means 'free' (compare Aramaic and later Hebrew ben ḥorin, 'a free man'). The word occurs almost only in the plural and only in late or northern texts: 1 Kgs 21:8, 11; Neh 2:16; 4:14, 19; 5:7; 6:17; 7:5; 13:17; Isa 34:12; Jer 27:20; 39:6; Eccl 10:17.

Against the English

BSB, KJV, WEB and NASB have 'nobles' and YLT has 'freemen'. ESV and NLT use broader words such as 'leaders'. 'Nobles' can suggest a titled, hereditary aristocracy, but the core idea is freeborn notables with standing in the community.

How it drifted

English 'noble' comes loaded with European feudal ranks such as lords, barons and courts. Nothing like that existed in a small Israelite town.

Used elsewhere in the period

The Septuagint renders it eleutheroi, 'free men', in this chapter. In Nehemiah the ḥorim sit alongside officials as the leading Jerusalem families whom Nehemiah rebukes for charging interest (Neh 5:7). Ecclesiastes 10:17 praises a land whose king is 'a son of ḥorim', i.e. well-born.

From the study of Nehemiah 4:14

Range of meaning

Chorim: literally 'free-born ones', meaning nobles and the leading men of a town (1 Kgs 21:8, 11; Jer 27:20; Neh 2:16; 5:7). Seganim: appointed officials or prefects. The word comes from the Akkadian (Mesopotamian) title šaknu, 'appointed one, governor', and is used in the Bible chiefly of Babylonian and Persian-era officials (Jer 51:23; Ezra 9:2; Neh 2:16).

Against the English

'Nobles' and 'officials/rulers' are fair. YLT's 'freemen' and 'prefects' keep the original sense of each word: high birth for the first, appointed office for the second.

Used elsewhere in the period

The two words appear as a pair throughout Nehemiah (2:16; 4:19; 5:7; 7:5; 12:40; 13:11). Nehemiah later has sharp conflicts with exactly these groups over debt-slavery (5:7) and Sabbath trade (13:17).

From the study of Nehemiah 4:19

Range of meaning

'Freeborn ones' and so 'nobles': members of leading free families, the local landed aristocracy. Always plural in the Bible.

Against the English

BSB, KJV, WEB: 'nobles'. YLT: 'freemen', which keeps the root idea of free birth but makes them sound like ordinary citizens rather than an elite.

How it drifted

'Nobles' is broadly right, but English readers may picture a titled hereditary aristocracy like European dukes and earls. In Persian-period Judah these were heads of prominent local families with land and influence, not a formal peerage.

Used elsewhere in the period

1 Kings 21:8, 11 (the 'elders and nobles' of Jezreel); Jeremiah 27:20; 39:6; Isaiah 34:12; Ecclesiastes 10:17 ('son of nobles', i.e. freeborn); Nehemiah 2:16; 4:14; 5:7; 6:17; 7:5; 13:17. The root is common in Aramaic, and later Hebrew uses ben ḥorin for 'a free man', which supports the 'freeborn' sense.

Similar words

Where it appears

1 Kings · 2

  1. 1 Kings 21:8 הַֽחֹרִים֙ the nobles

    Then Jezebel wrote letters in Ahab’s name, sealed them with his seal, and sent them to the elders and nobles who lived with Naboth in his city.

  2. 1 Kings 21:11 וְהַחֹרִ֗ים and the nobles

    So the elders and nobles who lived in Naboth’s city did as Jezebel had instructed in the letters she had written to them.

    Here: "And the nobles": the free-born leading men of the town's prominent families, the local gentry. Together with the elders they formed the town's ruling body.

Nehemiah · 7

  1. Nehemiah 2:16 וְלַחֹרִ֣ים and to the nobles

    The officials did not know where I had gone or what I was doing, for I had not yet told the Jews or priests or nobles or officials or any other workers.

  2. Nehemiah 4:14 הַחֹרִ֤ים the nobles

    After I had made an inspection, I stood up and said to the nobles, the officials, and the rest of the people, “Do not be afraid of them. Remember the Lord, who is great and awesome, and fight for your brothers, your sons and your daughters, your wives and your homes.”

    Here: The 'free-born' men: the leading Judean families of standing, the local aristocracy. The literal sense is 'free men', which is why YLT has 'freemen'.

  3. Nehemiah 4:19 הַחֹרִ֤ים the nobles

    Then I said to the nobles, the officials, and the rest of the people: “The work is great and extensive, and we are spread out far from one another along the wall.

    Here: The leading free families of Judah, the local landed elite. They are named first, as the people of highest social standing.

  4. Nehemiah 5:7 הַחֹרִ֣ים the nobles

    and after serious thought I rebuked the nobles and officials, saying, “You are exacting usury from your own brothers!” So I called a large assembly against them

    Here: The hereditary, landed upper class of Judah (literally 'the free-born'). They held the land and capital, and were the creditors in this crisis.

  5. Nehemiah 6:17 חֹרֵ֤י [the] nobles of

    Also in those days, the nobles of Judah sent many letters to Tobiah, and Tobiah’s letters kept coming to them.

  6. Nehemiah 7:5 הַחֹרִ֧ים the nobles

    Then my God put it into my heart to assemble the nobles, the officials, and the people to be enrolled by genealogy. I found the genealogical register of those who had first returned, and I found the following written in it:

  7. Nehemiah 13:17 חֹרֵ֣י [the] nobles of

    Then I rebuked the nobles of Judah and asked, “What is this evil you are doing—profaning the Sabbath day?

Ecclesiastes · 1

  1. Ecclesiastes 10:17 חוֹרִ֑ים nobles

    Blessed are you, O land whose king is a son of nobles, and whose princes feast at the proper time—for strength and not for drunkenness.

Isaiah · 1

  1. Isaiah 34:12 חֹרֶ֥יהָ nobles its

    No nobles will be left to proclaim a king, and all her princes will come to nothing.

Jeremiah · 2

  1. Jeremiah 27:20 חֹרֵ֥י [the] nobles of

    which Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon did not take when he carried Jeconiah son of Jehoiakim king of Judah into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon, along with all the nobles of Judah and Jerusalem.

  2. Jeremiah 39:6 חֹרֵ֣י [the] nobles of

    There at Riblah the king of Babylon slaughtered the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes, and he also killed all the nobles of Judah.

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