Biblical Lexicon

H7585 H7585

Prep-k | N-cs | 66× in 2 senses

Sheol, the underworld realm of the dead in Hebrew cosmology; once possibly a verbal form meaning 'to ask.'

Refers almost exclusively to the subterranean abode of the dead, the shadowy destination of all who die. Hebrew speakers did not conceive of Sheol as a place of punishment alone; both the righteous and the wicked descend there. Jacob mourns that he will go down to Sheol grieving for Joseph (Gen 37:35), and the Psalmist thanks God for rescuing his soul from its lowest depths (Ps 86:13). The etymology may connect to sha'al ('to ask, inquire'), possibly referencing necromancy. In one disputed passage (Isa 7:11), the form may actually be the imperative of the verb 'to ask' rather than the noun Sheol, as Ahaz is told to ask a sign from the Lord.

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Senses

1. Sheol, realm of the dead — The underworld or abode of the dead. Occurring 65 times, Sheol is the great leveler of Hebrew anthropology: the place to which all the dead descend. Translations consistently render it with underworld-specific vocabulary -- Spanish Seol, French sejour-des-morts ('dwelling of the dead'), German Totenreich ('realm of the dead') -- confirming its identity as a cosmological location rather than a mere grave. Key passages include Jacob's grief (Gen 37:35), Korah's company swallowed alive (Num 16:30), and Jonah's prayer from the belly of the fish (Jonah 2:2). 65×

BODY_HEALTH › Physiological Processes and States › Death and Dying

AR["الهاويَة","الهاوِيَة","الهاوِيَةَ","الهاوِيَةُ","الهَاوِيَةَ","الهَاوِيَةِ","الْهاوِيَةُ","الْهَاوِيَةَ","الْهَاوِيَةُ","الْهَاوِيَةِ","شِئولٌ"]·ben["ও-যন্ত্রণা","কবর","পাতাল","পাতালে","পাতালে,","পাতালের","পাতালের।"]·DE["Scheol","Totenreich","fragte"]·EN["She'ol","Sheol","to-Sheol"]·FR["shéol","séjour-des-morts"]·heb["שאול"]·HI["अधोलोक","अधोलोक-की","अधोलोक-के","अधोलोक-को","शेओल","शेओल-की","शेओल-के"]·ID["Alam-maut","Sheol","Syeol","dunia-orang-mati"]·IT["Sceol","soggiorno-dei-morti"]·jav["Siyéul","alam-kubur","alam-pati","kubur","kuburan","neraka","pejah"]·KO["스올","스올-로","스올-에서","스올-의","스올과","스올에","스올을","스올의","스올이","스올이니","음부","음부-의","음부로"]·PT["Seol","Sheol","do-Sheol","no-Sheol","o-Seol","o-Sheol","sheol","é-o-Sheol"]·RU["Шеол","Шеола","в-Шеол","в-шеол","преисподней","преисподняя","шеол","шеола","шеола -"]·ES["Seol","Sheol","al-Seol","al-Sheol","así-el-Seol","el-Seol"]·SW["Sheol","Sheoli","kuzimu"]·TR["Ölüler-diyarı","ölüler-diyarını","ölüler-diyarının","Şe'ol'a","Şeol","Şeol'a","Şeol'dan","Şeol'un","şeol"]·urd["پاتال","پاتال-میں","پاتال-کی","پاتال-کے"]

Gen 37:35, Gen 42:38, Gen 44:29, Gen 44:31, Num 16:30, Job 7:9, Job 11:8, Job 17:13, Job 17:16, Job 21:13, Job 24:19, Job 26:6 (+38 more)

2. to ask, request (verb) — A verbal imperative meaning 'ask' or 'request,' likely a homographic overlap with the verb sha'al. In Isaiah 7:11, Ahaz is commanded to ask (she'ol) for a sign from the LORD. Spanish la-peticion ('the request') and English 'asking' treat this as the verb rather than the noun, though French and German translations collapse it into their standard Sheol rendering, suggesting the ambiguity was not always resolved by translators. 1×

COMMUNICATION › Communication › Petitions and Requests

AR["طَلَبَهَا"]·ben["চাওয়া"]·DE["Totenreich"]·EN["asking"]·FR["séjour-des-morts"]·heb["שאלה"]·HI["मांग"]·ID["ke-dunia-orang-mati"]·IT["Sheol"]·jav["panyuwunan"]·KO["청함을"]·PT["pedindo"]·RU["прошение"]·ES["la-petición"]·SW["omba"]·TR["istek"]·urd["مانگ"]

Isa 7:11

BDB / Lexicon Reference

† שְׁאוֹל, שְׁאֹל n.f. ψ 86:13 (appar. m. Jb 26:6 cf. Is 14:9, v. AlbrZAW xvi (1896), 51) Sheʾôl, underworld (√ dub.; שׁאל, i.e. place of inquiry (ref. to necromancy) JastrAm. J. Sem. Lang. xiv. 170, cf. JBL xix (1900), 88 ff. (JeremLeben n. d. Tode 109 ‘Ort der Entscheidung’); Thes BöDe Inf. § 158 Di al. cp. √ שׁעל, whence שֹׁעַל hollow hand, etc.; שׁ׳ then = hollow place, ‘Hölle’, hell; other…