Bible Word Study
שׁוּעָא
Shûwʻâʼ · Shua, an Israelitess
שׁוּעָא
Shua, an Israelitess
Definition
Shua (שׁוּעָא) is a proper noun referring to a woman in the genealogical records of the tribe of Judah. In 1 Chronicles 2:3, she is identified as the Canaanite wife of Judah and the mother of Er, Onan, and Shelah. In 1 Chronicles 7:32, the name appears again, but here it refers to a man, Shua, who is listed as a son of Heber from the tribe of Asher. Therefore, the name is used for two distinct individuals in the biblical text: a Canaanite matriarch in Judah's lineage and an Asherite man.
Biblical Usage
The word is used exclusively in the genealogical lists of 1 Chronicles. Its two occurrences highlight its function as a personal name within the chronicler's record of Israel's tribal ancestry. In 1 Chronicles 2:3, it identifies a key maternal figure in the lineage of Judah, connecting the tribe to Canaanite roots. In 1 Chronicles 7:32, it simply denotes a male descendant in the tribe of Asher.
Etymology
Derived from the Hebrew root שָׁוַע (shavaʿ, H7768), meaning 'to cry out (for help)' or 'to be rich.' The name likely carries the connotation of 'wealth' or 'cry,' though its exact nuance as a personal name is uncertain. It is related to the name Shuah.
Semantic Range
The inclusion of Shua, the Canaanite wife of Judah (1 Chronicles 2:3), in the Messiah's lineage (Matthew 1:3 lists her as the mother of Judah's sons) is theologically significant. It demonstrates God's grace in incorporating Gentiles into the line of promise, foreshadowing the universal scope of redemption through Christ. Understanding this Hebrew name enriches the reading of Chronicles by highlighting the mixed, yet sovereignly directed, origins of God's people. As a Canaanite name, its use for Judah's wife reflects the intermarriage between the Israelites and the indigenous populations of Canaan, a practice often warned against but evident in the historical records. The name's presence in two different tribes (Judah and Asher) also illustrates how common personal names could be in ancient Israelite society.
Word Details
How this works
Definitions are from the Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew Lexicon (BDB, 1906, public domain). Concordance and morphology data are from the OSHB (Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible).
Full methodology & sources →References
- Abbott-Smith, G. (1921) A Manual Greek Lexicon of the New Testament. Edinburgh: T&T Clark. [Public Domain]
- Brown, F., Driver, S.R. and Briggs, C.A. (1906) A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament. Oxford: Clarendon Press. [Public Domain]
- Tyndale House, Cambridge (n.d.) Tyndale Brief lexicon of Extended Strongs for Greek (TBESG). STEPBible. Available at: https://www.stepbible.org. [CC BY 4.0]
- Tyndale House, Cambridge (n.d.) Translators Formatted full LSJ (TFLSJ). STEPBible. Available at: https://www.stepbible.org. [CC BY 4.0]
- Thayer, J.H. (1889) A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament. [Public Domain]
- Gesenius, W. (1846) Gesenius' Hebrew-Chaldee Lexicon to the Old Testament. [Public Domain]
- Dodson, J. (2010) Greek Lexicon. Biblical Humanities. [CC0]