Hebrew word · H8227

שָׁפָן

shafan

Shaphan

The rock hyrax (Procavia capensis, in Israel the subspecies syriaca). It is a herbivore about the size of a large guinea pig or a rabbit, with short ears and no tail, and it lives in colonies among rocks. In the Hebrew Bible the word appears only four times: Lev 11:5, Deut 14:7, Ps 104:18 and here.

Appears 34 times in 28 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

A man living at the time of Divided Monarchy, first mentioned at 2Ki.22.3;

son of: Azaliah (H0683);

father of: Ahikam (H0296), Elasah (H0501J), Gemariah (H1587H)

§ Shaphan = "coney"

1) secretary or scribe of king Josiah of Judah

2) father of Ahikam in the time of king Josiah of Judah

2a) improbably the same as 2

3) father of Elasah in the time of the prophet Jeremiah

3a) perhaps the same as 3

4) a scribe and father of Gemariah

4a) perhaps the same as 2

5) father of Jaazaniah in the time of Ezekiel

5a) perhaps the same as 2

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 Proverbs 30:26

Range of meaning

The rock hyrax (Procavia capensis, in Israel the subspecies syriaca). It is a herbivore about the size of a large guinea pig or a rabbit, with short ears and no tail, and it lives in colonies among rocks. In the Hebrew Bible the word appears only four times: Lev 11:5, Deut 14:7, Ps 104:18 and here. It was also a personal name: Shaphan, the scribe under King Josiah (2 Kgs 22). Some have linked the word to a root meaning "hide", but that origin is uncertain.

Against the English

KJV and YLT say "conies". BSB and ESV say "rock badgers". WEB and NIV say "hyraxes". NASB 1995 just transliterates it as "shephanim". Only "hyrax" names the actual animal.

How it drifted

"Coney" was the normal English word for the European rabbit in Tudor times, and it came into English Bibles by way of the Latin Vulgate's lepusculus ("little hare"). Rabbits are not native to Israel. "Rock badger" comes from the Afrikaans name dassie ("little badger"), which Dutch settlers gave the African hyrax. The hyrax is not related to badgers at all.

Used elsewhere in the period

Ps 104:18 has the same picture: "the crags are a refuge for the shephannim." Lev 11:5 and Deut 14:7 list it as an unclean animal. The Septuagint (the ancient Greek translation) renders it choirogryllios, a rare word possibly meaning a porcupine-like or pig-like little animal, which shows Greek translators were unsure of it too. Hyraxes are still common today around En Gedi, the Dead Sea cliffs and Galilee.

Where it appears

Leviticus · 1

  1. Leviticus 11:5 הַשָּׁפָ֗ן the rock badger

    The rock badger, though it chews the cud, does not have a divided hoof; it is unclean for you.

Deuteronomy · 1

  1. Deuteronomy 14:7 הַשָּׁפָ֜ן the rock badger

    But of those that chew the cud or have a completely divided hoof, you are not to eat the following: the camel, the rabbit, or the rock badger. Although they chew the cud, they do not have a divided hoof. They are unclean for you,

2 Kings · 10

  1. 2 Kings 22:3 שָׁפָ֨ן Shaphan

    Now in the eighteenth year of his reign, King Josiah sent the scribe, Shaphan son of Azaliah, the son of Meshullam, to the house of the LORD, saying,

  2. 2 Kings 22:8 שָׁפָ֣ן שָׁפָ֖ן Shaphan

    Then Hilkiah the high priest said to Shaphan the scribe, “I have found the Book of the Law in the house of the LORD!” And he gave it to Shaphan, who read it.

  3. 2 Kings 22:9 שָׁפָ֤ן Shaphan

    And Shaphan the scribe went to the king and reported, “Your servants have paid out the money that was found in the temple and have put it into the hands of the workers and supervisors of the house of the LORD.”

  4. 2 Kings 22:10 שָׁפָ֤ן שָׁפָ֖ן Shaphan

    Moreover, Shaphan the scribe told the king, “Hilkiah the priest has given me a book.” And Shaphan read it in the presence of the king.

  5. 2 Kings 22:12 שָׁ֠פָן שָׁפָ֣ן Shaphan

    and commanded Hilkiah the priest, Ahikam son of Shaphan, Achbor son of Micaiah, Shaphan the scribe, and Asaiah the servant of the king:

  6. 2 Kings 22:14 וְשָׁפָ֣ן and Shaphan

    So Hilkiah the priest, Ahikam, Achbor, Shaphan, and Asaiah went and spoke to Huldah the prophetess, the wife of Shallum son of Tikvah, the son of Harhas, the keeper of the wardrobe. She lived in Jerusalem, in the Second District.

  7. 2 Kings 25:22 שָׁפָֽן׃ פ Shaphan

    Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon appointed Gedaliah son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, over the people he had left behind in the land of Judah.

2 Chronicles · 8

  1. 2 Chronicles 34:8 שָׁפָ֨ן Shaphan

    Now in the eighteenth year of his reign, in order to cleanse the land and the temple, Josiah sent Shaphan son of Azaliah, Maaseiah the governor of the city, and Joah son of Joahaz, the recorder, to repair the house of the LORD his God.

  2. 2 Chronicles 34:15 שָׁפָ֣ן שָׁפָֽן׃ Shaphan

    And Hilkiah said to Shaphan the scribe, “I have found the Book of the Law in the house of the LORD!” And he gave it to Shaphan.

  3. 2 Chronicles 34:16 שָׁפָ֤ן Shaphan

    Then Shaphan brought the book to the king and reported, “Your servants are doing all that has been placed in their hands.

  4. 2 Chronicles 34:18 שָׁפָ֤ן שָׁפָ֖ן Shaphan

    Moreover, Shaphan the scribe told the king, “Hilkiah the priest has given me a book.” And Shaphan read it in the presence of the king.

  5. 2 Chronicles 34:20 שָׁ֠פָן שָׁפָ֣ן Shaphan

    and commanded Hilkiah, Ahikam son of Shaphan, Abdon son of Micah, Shaphan the scribe, and Asaiah the servant of the king:

Psalms · 1

  1. Psalm 104:18 לַֽשְׁפַנִּֽים׃ for the rock badgers

    The high mountains are for the wild goats, the cliffs a refuge for the rock badgers.

Proverbs · 1

  1. Proverbs 30:26 שְׁ֭פַנִּים rock badgers

    the rock badgers are creatures of little power, yet they make their homes in the rocks;

    Here: The rock hyrax, a small, rabbit-sized, tailless animal that lives in colonies on the rocky cliffs of Israel. It stands first in the sentence with no verb, like a heading: "Hyraxes!" Then the description follows.

Jeremiah · 11

  1. Jeremiah 26:24 שָׁפָ֔ן Shaphan

    Nevertheless, Ahikam son of Shaphan supported Jeremiah, so he was not handed over to the people to be put to death.

  2. Jeremiah 29:3 שָׁפָ֔ן Shaphan

    The letter was entrusted to Elasah son of Shaphan and Gemariah son of Hilkiah, whom Zedekiah king of Judah sent to King Nebuchadnezzar in Babylon. It stated:

  3. Jeremiah 36:10 שָׁפָ֨ן Shaphan

    From the chamber of Gemariah son of Shaphan the scribe, which was in the upper courtyard at the opening of the New Gate of the house of the LORD, Baruch read from the scroll the words of Jeremiah in the hearing of all the people.

  4. Jeremiah 36:11 שָׁפָ֛ן Shaphan

    When Micaiah son of Gemariah, the son of Shaphan, heard all the words of the LORD from the scroll,

  5. Jeremiah 36:12 שָׁפָ֛ן Shaphan

    he went down to the scribe’s chamber in the king’s palace, where all the officials were sitting: Elishama the scribe, Delaiah son of Shemaiah, Elnathan son of Achbor, Gemariah son of Shaphan, Zedekiah son of Hananiah, and all the other officials.

  6. Jeremiah 39:14 שָׁפָ֔ן Shaphan

    had Jeremiah brought from the courtyard of the guard, and they turned him over to Gedaliah son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, to take him home. So Jeremiah remained among his own people.

  7. Jeremiah 40:5 שָׁפָ֡ן Shaphan

    But before Jeremiah turned to go, Nebuzaradan added, “Return to Gedaliah son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, whom the king of Babylon has appointed over the cities of Judah, and stay with him among the people, or go anywhere else that seems right.” Then the captain of the guard gave him a ration and a gift and released him.

  8. Jeremiah 40:9 שָׁפָן֙ Shaphan

    Gedaliah son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, swore an oath to them and their men, assuring them, “Do not be afraid to serve the Chaldeans. Live in the land and serve the king of Babylon, and it will go well with you.

  9. Jeremiah 40:11 שָׁפָֽן׃ Shaphan

    When all the Jews in Moab, Ammon, Edom, and all the other lands heard that the king of Babylon had left a remnant in Judah and had appointed Gedaliah son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, over them,

  10. Jeremiah 41:2 שָׁפָ֛ן Shaphan

    Then Ishmael son of Nethaniah and the ten men who were with him got up and struck down Gedaliah son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, with the sword, killing the one whom the king of Babylon had appointed to govern the land.

  11. Jeremiah 43:6 שָׁפָ֑ן Shaphan

    the men, the women, the children, the king’s daughters, and everyone whom Nebuzaradan captain of the guard had allowed to remain with Gedaliah son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, as well as Jeremiah the prophet and Baruch son of Neriah.

    Here: King Josiah's royal scribe (2 Kgs 22). His family supported Jeremiah again and again (26:24; 29:3; 36:10–12).

Ezekiel · 1

  1. Ezekiel 8:11 שָׁפָ֜ן Shaphan

    Before them stood seventy elders of the house of Israel, with Jaazaniah son of Shaphan standing among them. Each had a censer in his hand, and a fragrant cloud of incense was rising.

    Here: Probably the royal scribe who read the rediscovered law book to King Josiah (2 Kings 22). His other sons protected Jeremiah. A son of the reform family is now leading the idol rite.

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