Hebrew word · H3105

יוּבַל

yuval

stream

"Stream, watercourse, channel." It occurs only here as a noun of this exact form. It is related to the verb yabal, "to carry, conduct," and to the plural forms in Isaiah 30:25 ("streams of water") and Isaiah 44:4 ("willows by flowing streams").

Appears once in the Hebrew Old Testament. · Updated October 21, 2026

What it means

stream

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 Jeremiah 17:8

Range of meaning: "Stream, watercourse, channel." It occurs only here as a noun of this exact form. It is related to the verb yabal, "to carry, conduct," and to the plural forms in Isaiah 30:25 ("streams of water") and Isaiah 44:4 ("willows by flowing streams").
Against the English: KJV "river" is too large. The word suggests a channel or running stream, possibly a dug irrigation channel, like the "channels of water" (palgei mayim) in Psalm 1:3.
Used elsewhere in the period: Isa 30:25; 44:4 (related forms). HALOT and BDB both give "stream, watercourse."

Where it appears

Jeremiah · 1

Jeremiah 17:8 יוּבַל֙ a stream

He is like a tree planted by the waters that sends out its roots toward the stream. It does not fear when the heat comes, and its leaves are always green. It does not worry in a year of drought, nor does it cease to produce fruit.

Here: A rare word for a channel of flowing water, related to a verb meaning "to carry, conduct." It may suggest an irrigation channel. Compare Isaiah 30:25 and 44:4, which use related forms.

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