Hebrew word · H7951

שָׁלָה

shalu

to prosper

To be at ease, quiet, secure, untroubled. The related noun shalvah means ease, prosperity, or careless security. The word can carry a hint of complacency.

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

What it means

1) to be at rest, prosper, be quiet, be at ease

1a) (Qal)

1a1) to be or have quiet

1a2) to be at ease, prosper

Aramaic equivalent: she.lah (שְׁלֵה "safe" H7954)

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 12:1

Range of meaning

To be at ease, quiet, secure, untroubled. The related noun shalvah means ease, prosperity, or careless security. The word can carry a hint of complacency.

Against the English

KJV has "happy", which today means an emotion. BSB's "live at ease" and WEB's "at ease" are accurate. YLT's "at rest" is close.

How it drifted

In 1611 "happy" could still mean fortunate or well-off (from "hap," luck). Today it means feeling glad, and that sense is not in the Hebrew.

Used elsewhere in the period

Job 12:6: "The tents of robbers are at peace (yishlayu)", the same complaint. Ps 73:12: "These are the wicked, always at ease (shalvey olam), they increase in wealth." Lam 1:5: "her enemies are at ease (shalu)." Job 3:26: "I am not at ease." Ps 122:6: "may those who love you be secure." Jer 22:21: "I spoke to you in your prosperity (shalvah)."

From the study of Job 12:6

Range of meaning

To be quiet, at ease, untroubled, settled. Related nouns are שַׁלְוָה (ease, quiet security) and שָׁלֵו (at ease). In some contexts it can carry a careless complacency, the ease of someone who feels nothing can touch him.

Against the English

KJV and WEB say 'prosper', which modern readers hear as money and success. BSB says 'are safe', ESV and YLT 'are at peace'. The Hebrew is more about being undisturbed than getting rich, though the two go together.

How it drifted

In 1611 'prosper' meant broadly 'to fare well, thrive'. Today it leans toward finance and success.

Used elsewhere in the period

Job 3:26: 'I am not at ease (lōʾ šālawtî)… and turmoil (rōgez) comes.' Psalm 122:6 uses the same unusual form, yishlāyû: 'may those who love you be at ease.' Psalm 73:12 describes the wicked as 'always at ease' (šalwê ʿôlām), the same complaint. Same form also at Lamentations 1:5 (BDB, HALOT).

From the study of Psalm 122:6

Range of meaning

To be quiet, at ease, untroubled, secure, carefree. The related noun shalvah means ease, quiet security, and sometimes complacency. The related adjective shalev means at ease or secure.

Against the English

KJV, BSB, WEB and NASB use 'prosper.' ESV and NIV have 'be secure,' and YLT has 'at rest.' 'Prosper' in older English meant to fare well or thrive in general. Today it leans heavily toward money and material success.

How it drifted

Two things pushed the line toward 'prosperity.' The Greek and Latin versions put 'abundance' here (euthēnia, abundantia), and the King James Version's 'prosper' fixed the wording in English memory. Later, modern English narrowed 'prosper' toward financial gain.

Used elsewhere in the period

Job 3:26: 'I am not at ease (shalawti), nor am I quiet.' Jer 12:1: 'Why are all who deal treacherously at ease (shalu)?' Job 12:6: 'the tents of robbers are at peace (yishlayu)', the same form as here. Lam 1:5: 'her enemies are at ease.' Ps 122:7: shalvah, 'security,' in the citadels.

Where it appears

Job · 2

  1. Job 3:26 שָׁלַ֨וְתִּי׀ I am at ease

    I am not at ease or quiet; I have no rest, for trouble has come.”

  2. Job 12:6 יִשְׁלָ֤יוּ they are at peace

    The tents of robbers are safe, and those who provoke God are secure—those who carry their god in their hands.

    Here: They are untroubled and settled, living in quiet ease. It comes first in the sentence for emphasis: 'At ease!' This is the very condition Job says he has lost (3:26).

Psalms · 1

  1. Psalm 122:6 יִ֝שְׁלָ֗יוּ may they be at ease

    Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: “May those who love you prosper.

    Here: 'May they be at ease / secure.' The verb is about untroubled security and quiet well-being, not wealth. It is a third pun on the sh-l sound. The form can be read as a wish or a statement, and the wishes in verse 7 favour a wish.

Jeremiah · 1

  1. Jeremiah 12:1 שָׁל֖וּ are they at ease?

    Righteous are You, O LORD, when I plead before You. Yet about Your judgments I wish to contend with You: Why does the way of the wicked prosper? Why do all the faithless live at ease?

    Here: "They are at ease": secure, carefree, untouched by trouble. It describes a safe and settled life, not a feeling of happiness.

Lamentations · 1

  1. Lamentations 1:5 שָׁל֔וּ they are at ease

    Her foes have become her masters; her enemies are at ease. For the LORD has brought her grief because of her many transgressions. Her children have gone away as captives before the enemy.

    Here: "They are at ease": the enemies are relaxed, safe, carefree. Zion has no rest (v.3), and her enemies have nothing but rest.

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