Hebrew word · H3434

יָשׇׁבְעָם

yashave'am

Jashobeam

Probably 'the kinsman/people will return' or 'may the kinsman return'. ʿam can mean 'people' but in old personal names often means 'paternal kinsman, clan-god', used as a title for God (compare Eliam, Ammiel). The name may express hope that God would 'turn back' to the family.

Appears 3 times in 3 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

A man living at the time of Divided Monarchy, first mentioned at 2Sa.23.8;

son of: Zabdiel (H2068); also called Josheb-basshebeth (KJV: "that sat in the seat") at 2Sa.23.8;

Also named: yo.shev bash.she.vet (יֹשֵׁב בַּשֶּׁ֫בֶת "Josheb-basshebeth" H3429)

§ Jashobeam = "the people will return"

1) a Hachmonite, the leader of the 30 mighty warriors of David; he joined David at Ziklag and was best known as the man who slew 800 or 300 men at one time; also called 'Adino the Eznite'

2) a Korahite, another of David's mighty warriors; same as 1?

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 Chronicles 12:6

Range of meaning

Probably 'the kinsman/people will return' or 'may the kinsman return'. ʿam can mean 'people' but in old personal names often means 'paternal kinsman, clan-god', used as a title for God (compare Eliam, Ammiel). The name may express hope that God would 'turn back' to the family.

Against the English

English transliterates it. The bigger issue is identification: English readers may link this man with the Jashobeam who was chief of David's warriors.

Used elsewhere in the period

Jashobeam also appears in 1 Chronicles 11:11 (a Hachmonite, chief of the Thirty, whose name in 2 Samuel 23:8 is the corrupted 'Josheb-basshebeth') and in 1 Chronicles 27:2 (son of Zabdiel, from the line of Perez in Judah, commander of the first monthly division).

Where it appears

1 Chronicles · 3

  1. 1 Chronicles 11:11 יָשָׁבְעָ֣ם Jashobeam

    This is the list of David’s mighty men: Jashobeam son of Hachmoni was chief of the officers; he wielded his spear against three hundred men, whom he killed at one time.

  2. 1 Chronicles 12:6 וְיָשָׁבְעָ֖ם and Jashobeam

    Elkanah, Isshiah, Azarel, Joezer, and Jashobeam, who were Korahites;

    Here: "And" plus a name usually explained as "the kinsman/people will return" (yashuv 'he returns' + ʿam 'people' or 'paternal kinsman', a term sometimes used of God). This man is probably not the same as David's chief warrior Jashobeam (1 Chronicles 11:11; 27:2), who is called a Hachmonite and is linked to Judah.

  3. 1 Chronicles 27:2 יָֽשָׁבְעָ֖ם Jashobeam

    Jashobeam son of Zabdiel was in charge of the first division, which was assigned the first month. There were 24,000 men in his division.

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