Hebrew word · H7961

שָׁלֵו

shalev

at ease

At ease, quiet in the sense of undisturbed, prosperous. Used of a land at peace (1 Chr 4:40), of the prosperous wicked (Ps 73:12), and of Job's own former ease (Job 16:12, 'I was at ease, and he shattered me').

Appears 8 times in 8 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

1) quiet, at ease, prosperous

1a) at ease (of persons)

1b) quiet (of land)

1c) quiet, ease

1d) ease (subst)

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 Job 21:23

Range of meaning

At ease, quiet in the sense of undisturbed, prosperous. Used of a land at peace (1 Chr 4:40), of the prosperous wicked (Ps 73:12), and of Job's own former ease (Job 16:12, 'I was at ease, and he shattered me').

Against the English

KJV/WEB/YLT 'quiet'; BSB 'at ease'. 'Quiet' can suggest silence or a calm temperament. The Hebrew means untroubled circumstances: prosperity and security.

How it drifted

'Quiet' in older English often meant 'free from disturbance' (as in 'a quiet life'). Today's readers lean toward 'silent' or 'calm in temperament'.

Used elsewhere in the period

Job 16:12 is a striking parallel: Job himself was once shalev until God broke him. Ps 73:12 is the closest parallel in theme: the wicked are 'always at ease', which is the same scandal Job raises here.

From the study of Psalm 73:12

Range of meaning

Quiet, at ease, secure, undisturbed. It can be neutral or good: a land "quiet and peaceful" (1 Chr 4:40). Often, though, it describes a comfortable security that has grown complacent: a nation "at ease, dwelling securely" just before judgment (Jer 49:31), a "carefree crowd" (Ezek 23:42). The related noun shalwāh means ease or prosperity. This root (š-l-w) is different from shalom (š-l-m).

Against the English

BSB "carefree," WEB/ESV "at ease," NIV "free of care," NLT "a life of ease," KJV "prosper." "Carefree" can sound light-hearted and innocent. The Hebrew picture is of untroubled, insulated security. KJV's "prosper" is a reasonable sense of the root, but it loses the picture of being undisturbed.

Used elsewhere in the period

Psalm 30:6 (Heb. 30:7): "I said in my ease (bĕshalwî), 'I shall never (lĕʿôlām) be moved'". It pairs the same root with ʿôlām to describe a false sense of permanence. Proverbs 1:32: "the complacency (shalwat) of fools destroys them." Job 21:23: one dies "wholly at ease and quiet (shālēw)." Jeremiah 12:1 asks why the treacherous "are at ease" (verb from the same root).

From the study of Zechariah 7:7

Range of meaning

At ease, quiet, untroubled, secure, prosperous. The idea is undisturbed calm. It can be neutral or good ('quiet' living, 1 Chr 4:40: 'the land was wide, quiet [sh'qetah] and peaceful [sh'levah]'). It can also turn negative and mean careless complacency (Ps 73:12, the wicked 'always at ease'; Jer 49:31, a nation 'at ease, dwelling securely'; Job 21:23).

Against the English

KJV/WEB 'in prosperity', BSB/ESV/NASB 'prosperous' and NIV 'at rest and prosperous' all lean toward wealth. The Hebrew centres on security and calm, with prosperity as a result.

How it drifted

Modern 'prosperity' is mainly economic. Shalev is mainly about being undisturbed and safe.

Used elsewhere in the period

1 Chr 4:40 (quiet, peaceful land); Ps 122:6-7 (the related noun shalvah, 'security, ease', in Jerusalem's towers); Ezek 16:49 (shalvat hashqet, 'careless ease', as part of Sodom's sin of neglecting the poor).

Where it appears

1 Chronicles · 1

  1. 1 Chronicles 4:40 וּשְׁלֵוָ֑ה and at ease

    There they found rich, good pasture, and the land was spacious, peaceful, and quiet; for some Hamites had lived there formerly.

Job · 3

  1. Job 16:12 שָׁ֘לֵ֤ו at ease

    I was at ease, but He shattered me; He seized me by the neck and crushed me. He has set me up as His target;

  2. Job 20:20 שָׁלֵ֣ו quiet

    Because his appetite is never satisfied, he cannot escape with his treasure.

  3. Job 21:23 וְשָׁלֵֽיו׃ and at ease

    One man dies full of vigor, completely secure and at ease.

    Here: 'And at ease': prosperous and undisturbed. Psalm 73:12 uses it of the wicked who are 'always at ease' as their wealth grows. Paired with the previous word, it hammers home that his life was easy to the very end.

Psalms · 1

  1. Psalm 73:12 וְשַׁלְוֵ֥י and [people] at ease of

    Behold, these are the wicked—always carefree as they increase their wealth.

    Here: "And at-ease ones of…": people who are quiet, secure and untroubled. The "and" puts this right after "wicked," and that is the problem: guilty, and yet at ease. In context the ease is the settled comfort of people who suffer none of the troubles others suffer (v. 5).

Jeremiah · 1

  1. Jeremiah 49:31 שְׁלֵ֛יו at ease

    Rise up, advance against a nation at ease, one that dwells securely,” declares the LORD. “They have no gates or bars; they live alone.

Ezekiel · 1

  1. Ezekiel 23:42 שָׁלֵ֣ו at ease

    accompanied by the sound of a carefree crowd. Drunkards were brought in from the desert along with men from the rabble, who put bracelets on your wrists and beautiful crowns on your head.

Zechariah · 1

  1. Zechariah 7:7 וּשְׁלֵוָ֔ה and at ease

    Are these not the words that the LORD proclaimed through the earlier prophets, when Jerusalem and its surrounding towns were populous and prosperous, and the Negev and the foothills were inhabited?’”

    Here: Settled, peaceful and secure: life without enemy threat. Material well-being is part of the picture, but the main idea is calm security rather than wealth.

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