Hebrew word · H7596

שְׁאֵלָה

she'elah

petition

A request or petition, the thing asked for. It comes from the verb shaʾal, 'to ask, request, enquire'. It is used of requests to a king (1 Kgs 2:16, 20; Esth 5:6-8) and to God (Ps 106:15).

Appears 14 times in 14 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

1) request, thing asked for, demand

1a) request, petition

1b) thing asked for

Aramaic equivalent: she.e.la (שְׁאֵלָא "affair" H7595)

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 Samuel 1:17

Range of meaning

A request or petition, the thing asked for. It comes from the verb shaʾal, 'to ask, request, enquire'. It is used of requests to a king (1 Kgs 2:16, 20; Esth 5:6-8) and to God (Ps 106:15).

Against the English

'Petition' (BSB, KJV, WEB, YLT) is accurate but formal and legal-sounding. 'What you have asked' (NIV) is plainer. Neither shows that 'petition' and 'asked' come from the same root, so a Hebrew listener heard 'your asking that you asked'.

Used elsewhere in the period

In 1 Samuel 1–2 the root sh-ʾ-l becomes a theme word: 1:17 (twice), 1:20 ('from YHWH I asked him'), 1:27 (twice), 1:28 ('I have lent him… he is sha'ul, asked/lent, to YHWH'), 2:20 ('the asking which she asked/lent').

From the study of Esther 7:2

Range of meaning

"A thing asked for, a petition, a request," from sha'al, "to ask." Used of requests to a superior (Bathsheba and Adonijah to Solomon, 1 Kgs 2:16, 20), of Gideon's request for earrings (Judg 8:24), and of Hannah's petition to God (1 Sam 1:17, 27).

Against the English

"Petition" is accurate. It carries a formal flavour in English, which fits: a petition is made to someone with the power to grant it.

Used elsewhere in the period

Common in courtly settings in Samuel–Kings. In Esther it always comes paired with baqqashah (5:6, 7, 8; 7:2, 3; 9:12).

Where it appears

Judges · 1

  1. Judges 8:24 שְׁאֵלָ֔ה a petition

    Then he added, “Let me make a request of you, that each of you give me an earring from his plunder.” (For the enemies had gold earrings because they were Ishmaelites.)

1 Samuel · 3

  1. 1 Samuel 1:17 שֵׁ֣לָתֵ֔ךְ petition your

    “Go in peace,” Eli replied, “and may the God of Israel grant the petition you have asked of Him.”

    Here: 'Your asking', the thing you asked for. It is spelled here without its silent aleph (שֵׁלָתֵךְ). It is the first of a chain of 'ask' words that run through this story.

  2. 1 Samuel 1:27 שְׁאֵ֣לָתִ֔י petition my

    I prayed for this boy, and since the LORD has granted me what I asked of Him,

    Here: 'My asking', meaning what I asked for. In this sentence the thing asked for is the boy himself. The noun comes from the root sha'al ('ask'), which runs through this whole story.

  3. 1 Samuel 2:20 הַשְּׁאֵלָ֔ה the petition

    And Eli would bless Elkanah and his wife, saying, “May the LORD give you children by this woman in place of the one she dedicated to the LORD.” Then they would go home.

1 Kings · 2

  1. 1 Kings 2:16 שְׁאֵלָ֤ה a petition

    So now I have just one request of you; do not deny me.” “State your request,” she told him.

  2. 1 Kings 2:20 שְׁאֵלָ֨ה a petition

    “I have just one small request of you,” she said. “Do not deny me.” “Make your request, my mother,” the king replied, “for I will not deny you.”

Esther · 6

  1. Esther 5:6 שְּׁאֵלָתֵ֖ךְ [is] petition your

    And as they drank their wine, the king said to Esther, “What is your petition? It will be given to you. What is your request? Even up to half the kingdom, it will be fulfilled.”

  2. Esther 5:7 שְׁאֵלָתִ֖י petition my

    Esther replied, “This is my petition and my request:

  3. Esther 5:8 שְׁאֵ֣לָתִ֔י petition my

    If I have found favor in the sight of the king, and if it pleases the king to grant my petition and fulfill my request, may the king and Haman come tomorrow to the banquet I will prepare for them. Then I will answer the king’s question.”

  4. Esther 7:2 שְּׁאֵלָתֵ֛ךְ [is] petition your

    and as they drank their wine on that second day, the king asked once more, “Queen Esther, what is your petition? It will be given to you. What is your request? Even up to half the kingdom, it will be fulfilled.”

    Here: "Your asking" — a thing asked for, from the verb "to ask." The feminine "your" is addressed to Esther.

  5. Esther 7:3 בִּשְׁאֵ֣לָתִ֔י for petition my

    Queen Esther replied, “If I have found favor in your sight, O king, and if it pleases the king, grant me my life as my petition, and the lives of my people as my request.

  6. Esther 9:12 שְּׁאֵֽלָתֵךְ֙ [is] petition your

    who said to Queen Esther, “In the citadel of Susa the Jews have killed and destroyed five hundred men, including Haman’s ten sons. What have they done in the rest of the royal provinces? Now what is your petition? It will be given to you. And what further do you request? It will be fulfilled.”

Job · 1

  1. Job 6:8 שֶֽׁאֱלָתִ֑י petition my

    If only my request were granted and God would fulfill my hope:

Psalms · 1

  1. Psalm 106:15 שֶׁאֱלָתָ֑ם petition their

    So He granted their request, but sent a wasting disease upon them.

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