Hebrew word · H5250

נִמְשִׁי

nimshi

Nimshi

Hebrew "son of" (ben) covers son, grandson, descendant, member of a clan or group ("sons of the prophets," v. 1), and even someone with a given quality.

Appears 5 times in 5 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

A man of the Kingdom of Israel, living at the time of Divided Monarchy, first mentioned at 1Ki.19.16;

father of: Jehoshaphat (H3092J)

§ Nimshi = "rescued"

grandfather of Jehu

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 2 Kings 9:2

Range of meaning

Hebrew "son of" (ben) covers son, grandson, descendant, member of a clan or group ("sons of the prophets," v. 1), and even someone with a given quality.

Against the English

English "son of" normally means the immediate father. Here the full line is father Jehoshaphat, grandfather Nimshi. Elsewhere Jehu is called "son of Nimshi" for short.

Used elsewhere in the period

Elsewhere Jehu is "son of Nimshi" (1 Kgs 19:16; 2 Kgs 9:20; 2 Chr 22:7). The Assyrian Black Obelisk of Shalmaneser III (c. 841 BC) shows Jehu bowing in tribute and calls him "Jehu, son of Omri," meaning ruler of the land Assyria called after Omri. Jehu actually wiped out Omri's family. "Son of" in that period could mark a dynasty, a territory or a clan as easily as a father.

Where it appears

1 Kings · 1

  1. 1 Kings 19:16 נִמְשִׁ֔י Nimshi

    You are also to anoint Jehu son of Nimshi as king over Israel and Elisha son of Shaphat from Abel-meholah to succeed you as prophet.

    Here: Jehu's grandfather, or the ancestor his family was known by. Jehu is usually called by this name (2 Kings 9:20, 'the driving of Jehu son of Nimshi').

2 Kings · 3

  1. 2 Kings 9:2 נִמְשִׁ֗י Nimshi

    When you arrive, look for Jehu son of Jehoshaphat, the son of Nimshi. Go in, get him away from his companions, and take him to an inner room.

    Here: Jehu's grandfather. Elsewhere Jehu is called simply "son of Nimshi" (1 Kgs 19:16; 2 Kgs 9:20), because Hebrew "son" can mean any male descendant. Nimshi seems to have been the better-known name of the clan.

  2. 2 Kings 9:14 נִמְשִׁ֖י Nimshi

    Thus Jehu son of Jehoshaphat, the son of Nimshi, conspired against Joram. (Now Joram and all Israel had been defending Ramoth-gilead against Hazael king of Aram,

    Here: Jehu's grandfather or clan ancestor. This is the name by which his family was known.

  3. 2 Kings 9:20 נִמְשִׁ֔י Nimshi

    Again the watchman reported, “He reached them, but he is not coming back. And the charioteer is driving like Jehu son of Nimshi—he is driving like a madman!”

    Here: Jehu's grandfather, probably the better-known family name, which is why the watchman uses it.

2 Chronicles · 1

  1. 2 Chronicles 22:7 נִמְשִׁ֔י Nimshi

    Ahaziah’s downfall came from God when he went to visit Joram. When Ahaziah arrived, he went out with Joram to meet Jehu son of Nimshi, whom the LORD had anointed to destroy the house of Ahab.

    Here: Jehu's ancestor, the name his family went by.

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