דְּהַב (de.hav)
de.hav
gold
A:N-MQuick Reference
- Language
- Biblical Hebrew
- Testament
- Old Testament
- Occurrences
- 23 verses
- Root
- —
- Part of speech
- A:N-M
Word Overview
The noun dehab is the Aramaic word for gold, functioning as the direct equivalent of the Hebrew zahav. It appears twenty-three times in the Old Testament, concentrated primarily in the books of Daniel and Ezra. These texts belong to a period when Aramaic served as the international language of diplomacy and administration across the Near East.
The sources highlight its use in describing the immense wealth of Babylonian kings and Persian officials. For instance, it names the material of Nebuchadnezzar’s great statue in Daniel 2:32 and lists the gold vessels returned from exile in Ezra 1:7. The term carries no metaphorical shift; it always refers to the physical metal itself.
Its presence in these specific books reflects the linguistic reality of the exilic community. While Hebrew remained the language of religious identity, Aramaic was the tongue of daily life and imperial record-keeping. This word anchors the biblical narrative in its historical context, showing how the people of God navigated a foreign cultural landscape while maintaining their distinct faith.
Based on public-domain lexicons (Strong's, Thayer, Gesenius, Brown-Driver-Briggs and others).
What This Word Means for Your Faith
The word dehab appears twenty-three times in the Old Testament, almost entirely within the books of Daniel and Ezra. These texts belong to a period when Aramaic served as the international language of diplomacy across the Near East. The term always refers to the physical metal itself, describing the immense wealth of Babylonian kings and Persian officials. It anchors the biblical narrative in its historical context, showing how the people of God navigated a foreign cultural landscape while maintaining their distinct faith.
In Daniel 2:38, Nebuchadnezzar is called the head of gold, representing earthly power that rules over all living creatures. Yet this same chapter shows that such power is temporary. The stone cut without hands breaks the image of gold, silver, and bronze, leaving no place for them (Daniel 2:35). This contrast invites us to consider what we build our lives upon. Earthly wealth and status are visible and impressive, but they do not last.
When we read about the golden vessels returned from exile or the statue set up in Babylon, we see a tension between human ambition and divine sovereignty. The text does not use gold as a metaphor for spiritual purity or moral value. It simply records the material reality of the time. This helps us understand that God works within history, using even the treasures of empires to fulfill His purposes. We can trust that our hope rests in something more enduring than any earthly treasure.
How it's translated
How this word is rendered word-by-word in the 23 verses where it appears, by frequency.
- <the>/ gold15×
- and/ gold/ the3×
- gold2×
- and/ gold1×
- and/ [the] gold1×
- and/ <the>/ gold1×
Forms in the text
The inflected forms of this word as they appear in Scripture, by frequency.
- דַּהֲבָ֛/א3×
- דַּהֲבָ֔/א2×
- דַהֲבָ֣/ה2×
- דַהֲבָ/א֙2×
- וּ/דְהַ֔ב1×
- וּ/דְהַ֑ב1×
- וְ֠/דַהֲבָ/א1×
- וְ/דַהֲבָ֗/א1×
- וְ/דַהֲבָ֖/ה1×
- וְ/דַהֲבָ֔/א1×
- דַּהֲבָֽ/א\׃1×
- דַּהֲבָ֧/א1×
Key Verses
-
Daniel 2:38
Wherever the children of men dwell, he has given the animals of the field and the birds of the sky into your hand, and has made you rule over them all. You are the head of gold.
This verse identifies Nebuchadnezzar as the head of gold, using the metal to symbolize the first stage of a sequence of earthly kingdoms.
-
Daniel 2:35
Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver, and the gold were broken in pieces together, and became like the chaff of the summer threshing floors. The wind carried them away, so that no place was found for them. The stone that struck the image became a great mountain and filled the whole earth.
The gold is broken in pieces with the other metals and becomes like chaff, showing that human empires cannot withstand God’s final judgment.
-
Ezra 5:14
The gold and silver vessels of God’s house, which Nebuchadnezzar took out of the temple that was in Jerusalem and brought into the temple of Babylon, those Cyrus the king also took out of the temple of Babylon, and they were delivered to one whose name was Sheshbazzar, whom he had made governor.
This verse records the return of the sacred vessels taken by Nebuchadnezzar, highlighting how God preserved His worship tools despite imperial theft.
-
Daniel 3:1
Nebuchadnezzar the king made an image of gold, whose height was sixty cubits and its width six cubits. He set it up in the plain of Dura, in the province of Babylon.
Nebuchadnezzar builds a massive image of gold to demand universal worship, illustrating how political power often seeks to replace divine authority.
-
Daniel 5:23
but have lifted up yourself against the Lord of heaven; and they have brought the vessels of his house before you, and you and your lords, your wives, and your concubines, have drunk wine from them. You have praised the gods of silver and gold, of bronze, iron, wood, and stone, which don’t see, or hear, or know; and you have not glorified the God in whose hand your breath is, and whose are all your ways.
Belshazzar’s use of the temple vessels to praise gods of gold and silver serves as the direct cause for his downfall and the writing on the wall.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does dehab mean?
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Where does this word appear most often?
Every Occurrence (23 verses across 2 books)
Ezra 5 verses
The gold and silver vessels of God’s house, which Nebuchadnezzar took out of the temple that was in Jerusalem and…
Ezra 6:5Also let the gold and silver vessels of God’s house, which Nebuchadnezzar took out of the temple which is at Jerusalem…
Ezra 7:15and to carry the silver and gold, which the king and his counselors have freely offered to the God of Israel, whose…
Ezra 7:16and all the silver and gold that you will find in all the province of Babylon, with the free will offering of the…
Ezra 7:18Whatever seems good to you and to your brothers to do with the rest of the silver and the gold, do that according to…