What does חֵיל (ḥēyl) mean in the Bible?
חֵיל (ḥēyl): Denotes both military force and fortification—power through organized strength or protective barrier
Hebrew · H2426
חֵיל
An army ; also (by analogy,) an intrenchment
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חֵיל H2426
Pronunciation ḥēyl
What does חֵיל (ḥēyl) mean in the Bible?
חֵיל (ḥēyl): Denotes both military force and fortification—power through organized strength or protective barrier
Full entry for חֵיל (H2426) · Open the biblical lexicon
Questions this entry answers
How does the BSB render H2426?
The BSB source-word alignment has 8 aligned rows for this entry. Common renderings include against the outer rampart (1), and ramparts (1), by the wall (1), for his army (1), He made the ramparts (1).
Where does חֵיל (ḥēyl) appear in Scripture?
The source-word alignment first shows this entry at 2 Samuel 20:15. Its strongest book concentrations include 1 Kings (1), 2 Samuel (1), Ezekiel (1), Isaiah (1).
Source Word Evidence
BSB source-word alignment connects this entry to exact verse rows, English rendering, source form, transliteration, and parsing.
How English Renders It against the outer rampart 1× 2 Samuel 20:15
and ramparts 1× Isaiah 26:1
by the wall 1× 1 Kings 21:23
for his army 1× Ezekiel 29:19
He made the ramparts 1× Lamentations 2:8
host 1× Obadiah 1:20
rampart 1× Nahum 3:8
within your walls 1× Psalms 122:7
Show sample aligned rows
2 Samuel 20:15 בַּחֵ֑ל to against the outer rampart Preposition-b, Article | Noun - masculine singular 1 Kings 21:23 בְּחֵ֥ל to by the wall Preposition-b | Noun - masculine singular construct Psalms 122:7 בְּחֵילֵ֑ךְ to within your walls Preposition-b | Noun - masculine singular construct | second person feminine singular Isaiah 26:1 וָחֵֽל׃ to and ramparts Conjunctive waw | Noun - masculine singular Lamentations 2:8 חֵ֥ל to He made the ramparts Noun - masculine singular Ezekiel 29:19 לְחֵילֽוֹ׃ to for his army Preposition-l | Noun - masculine singular construct | third person masculine singular Obadiah 1:20 הַֽחֵל־ to host Article | Noun - masculine singular Nahum 3:8 חֵ֣יל to rampart Noun - masculine singular construct
Usage map
A compact distribution from source-word alignment before the full evidence tables.
First aligned row 2 Samuel 20:15
Aligned rows 8
Books represented 8
2 Samuel 1 1 Kings 1 Psalms 1 Isaiah 1 Lamentations 1 Ezekiel 1 Obadiah 1 Nahum 1
Source forms
בְּחֵילֵ֑ךְ 1x bə·ḥê·lêḵ Psalms 122:7
בְּחֵ֥ל 1x bə·ḥêl 1 Kings 21:23
בַּחֵ֑ל 1x ba·ḥêl 2 Samuel 20:15
הַֽחֵל־ 1x ha·ḥêl- Obadiah 1:20
וָחֵֽל׃ 1x wā·ḥêl Isaiah 26:1
חֵ֣יל 1x ḥêl Nahum 3:8
חֵ֥ל 1x ḥêl Lamentations 2:8
לְחֵילֽוֹ׃ 1x lə·ḥê·lōw Ezekiel 29:19
Parsing patterns
Article | Noun - masculine singular 1x Obadiah 1:20
Conjunctive waw | Noun - masculine singular 1x Isaiah 26:1
Noun - masculine singular 1x Lamentations 2:8
Noun - masculine singular construct 1x Nahum 3:8
Preposition-b | Noun - masculine singular construct 1x 1 Kings 21:23
Preposition-b | Noun - masculine singular construct | second person feminine singular 1x Psalms 122:7
Preposition-b, Article | Noun - masculine singular 1x 2 Samuel 20:15
Preposition-l | Noun - masculine singular construct | third person masculine singular 1x Ezekiel 29:19
Evidence Summary
Hebrew word. Denotes both military force and fortification—power through organized strength or protective barrier
Source Gloss
an army ; also (by analogy,) an intrenchment
Extended definition Source: Open Scriptures Hebrew Lexicon + Brown-Driver-Briggs
Denotes both military force and fortification—power through organized strength or protective barrier
an army; also (by analogy,) an intrenchment BDB: rampart Usage: army, bulwark, host, poor, rampart, trench, wall.
Grammatical Forms
How this word appears across different grammatical cases and numbers.
Word Origins
חֵיל is built from this root:
Sources
MorphGNT Strong's Dictionary XML — CC0 1.0 Public Domain
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible (morphhb/OSHB) — CC BY 4.0
Open Scriptures Hebrew Lexicon — CC BY 4.0
Berean Standard Bible (BSB) source-word alignment - CC0 Public Domain