לִהְלֵהַּ
lih.le.ah
to amaze
Lexicon Entry
Lexicon data from STEPBible TIPNR, Tyndale House, Cambridge. Licensed under CC BY 4.0.
What Original Readers Understood
Supported# H3856B (לִהְלֵהַּ): A Rare Hebrew Word for Amazement The Hebrew word *lihlehah* carries the meaning "to amaze" or "to astound," describing a state of overwhelming surprise or wonder. Based on the lexical data provided, this term appears only once in the biblical text, making it an extremely rare word in Hebrew scripture. Its singular occurrence limits our ability to observe variations in usage or context that might reveal nuances in meaning. The rarity of this word—appearing just once in the entire biblical corpus—suggests it may have been either archaic, poetic, or simply uncommon in Hebrew usage. Single-occurrence words often present challenges for biblical interpreters, as their precise semantic range cannot be confirmed through comparative textual analysis. What can be said with certainty is that the lexicographers who compiled Strong's Dictionary identified its core semantic field as expressing amazement, a phenomenon that involves cognitive and emotional surprise. Without additional contextual data from its single biblical occurrence, the full significance of this term remains constrained. It represents one of many rare Hebrew expressions that scholars have preserved in lexicons despite minimal textual evidence, valuable primarily for comprehensive biblical word lists rather than for understanding common theological or narrative concepts in Scripture.
Source data & methodology
Occurrences in Scripture
1 total occurrence across the text