גֵּרָא
ge.ra
Gera
Lexicon Entry
Lexicon data from STEPBible TIPNR, Tyndale House, Cambridge. Licensed under CC BY 4.0.
What Original Readers Understood
Explored# Gera (H1617): A Hebrew Proper Name Based on the lexical data provided, Gera (גֵּרָא) is a proper noun—a personal name—that appears four times in the biblical text. The designation "proper name" indicates this word functions exclusively as an identifier for specific individuals rather than as a common noun with semantic meaning that would translate into English. The limited frequency of occurrence (four instances) and its classification purely as a name suggest Gera was not a common designation in ancient Hebrew usage. Without additional lexical data specifying which individuals bore this name or their biographical significance, the analysis remains restricted to its function as a proper noun used to identify particular persons in biblical narrative or genealogy. For readers encountering this word, it is important to recognize that its significance lies entirely in its role as a name marker within biblical texts rather than in any inherent meaning derived from root etymology or semantic range. Understanding its context requires consulting the specific biblical passages where it appears rather than deriving meaning from the word itself.
Source data & methodology
Occurrences in Scripture
4 total occurrences across the text
When king David came to Bahurim, behold, a man of the family of Saul’s house came out, whose name was Shimei, the son of Gera. He came out and cursed as he came.
2 Samuel 19:16Shimei the son of Gera, the Benjamite, who was of Bahurim, hurried and came down with the men of Judah to meet king David.
2 Samuel 19:18A ferry boat went to bring over the king’s household, and to do what he thought good. Shimei the son of Gera fell down before the king, when he had come over the Jordan.
1 Kings 2:8“Behold, there is with you Shimei the son of Gera, the Benjamite, of Bahurim, who cursed me with a grievous curse in the day when I went to Mahanaim; but he came down to meet me at the Jordan, and I swore to him by Yahweh, saying, ‘I will not put you to death with the sword.’