Bible Word Study
יָשׇׁבְעָם
Yâshobʻâm · Jashobam, the name of two or three Israelites
יָשׇׁבְעָם
Jashobam, the name of two or three Israelites
Definition
Yâshobʻâm (Jashobeam) is a proper name meaning 'the people will return' or 'may the people return.' It refers to two or three distinct individuals in the Old Testament, all associated with King David's military leadership. The most prominent is Jashobeam the Hachmonite, chief of David's mighty men, renowned for killing 300 men in a single encounter (1 Chronicles 11:11). Another Jashobeam is listed among the Korahite warriors who joined David at Ziklag (1 Chronicles 12:6). A third reference in 1 Chronicles 27:2 mentions a Jashobeam son of Zabdiel as commander of the first monthly division, possibly the same as the Hachmonite.
Biblical Usage
The name appears exclusively in the book of 1 Chronicles, specifically in contexts detailing David's military organization and heroic exploits. It is used for individuals within David's inner circle of warriors and commanders. The three occurrences are in 1 Chronicles 11:11 (listing of mighty men), 1 Chronicles 12:6 (warriors who joined David at Ziklag), and 1 Chronicles 27:2 (officials over the monthly divisions).
Etymology
The name is a compound of two Hebrew elements: the verb שׁוּב (shûv, H7725), meaning 'to turn back' or 'to return,' and the noun עַם (ʻam, H5971), meaning 'people.' It is a theophoric name expressing a hope or declaration, translating literally as 'the people will return' or 'may the people return.' This likely carries a theological connotation of God restoring or gathering His people.
Semantic Range
While a personal name, its meaning—'the people will return'—resonates with a key prophetic theme of restoration and repentance in Israel's relationship with God. It subtly points to the hope for national return from exile or spiritual turning back to God. For a Bible reader, recognizing this meaning adds depth to the character, suggesting his identity was tied to a communal hope for God's intervention and faithfulness to His covenant people. In ancient Israelite culture, names were often significant, conveying a message, a hope, or an attribute. Yâshobʻām is a 'sentence name,' a common practice where a name forms a complete statement about God or a hope for the child/family. Its use for military leaders during David's reign may reflect a national hope for stability and God's favor following a period of conflict under Saul. No direct synonyms as a proper name, but it shares the root שׁוּב (shûv, H7725) with words like: תְּשׁוּבָה (t'shuvah, H8666) — 'a turning back, answer, repentance,' focusing on the act of return. שָׁב (shav, H7725) — a form of the same root meaning 'to turn back, to bring back.'
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]