חָגָב (cha.gav)
cha.gav
locust
H:N-MQuick Reference
- Language
- Biblical Hebrew
- Testament
- Old Testament
- Occurrences
- 5 verses
- Root
- —
- Part of speech
- H:N-M
Word Overview
The Hebrew noun chagav refers to the locust or grasshopper, an insect known for its powerful hind legs and swarming behavior. In the Old Testament, it appears in five verses, primarily within the legal codes of Leviticus and Numbers, as well as in the prophetic imagery of Isaiah.
Levitical law classifies chagav as a clean animal, permissible for consumption (Leviticus 11:22). This distinction highlights a specific category of winged insects that were allowed to be eaten, contrasting with other creeping things deemed unclean. The text specifies certain types of locusts by their jointed legs, indicating a practical knowledge of entomology among the ancient Israelites.
In prophetic literature, such as Isaiah 33:4, the word evokes images of overwhelming destruction or abundance, depending on the context. These swarms were a common agricultural threat in the ancient Near East, capable of stripping fields bare. The term carries no inherent symbolic weight beyond its literal identity as a pestilence or a food source, grounding its meaning in the daily realities of life in Israel.
Based on public-domain lexicons (Strong's, Thayer, Gesenius, Brown-Driver-Briggs and others).
What This Word Means for Your Faith
The word chagav describes the locust or grasshopper, an insect familiar to ancient Israelites for its powerful legs and swarming habits. In Leviticus 11:22, God specifically permits certain types of these insects as clean food. This detail shows that even creatures often seen as pests have a place in God’s created order when approached with gratitude.
Yet the same creature also appears as a symbol of overwhelming force or human fragility. In Numbers 13:33, spies describe themselves as grasshoppers compared to giants, highlighting how small we feel against large challenges. Isaiah 40:22 uses the image to show how tiny people are before God’s vast majesty. These contrasts remind us that our perspective shifts depending on who or what we are looking at.
Whether viewed as a permitted meal or a sign of divine judgment, chagav grounds us in the reality of creation. It invites reflection on how we view our own strength and God’s ultimate sovereignty over all things, including the smallest parts of nature.
How it's translated
How this word is rendered word-by-word in the 5 verses where it appears, by frequency.
- the/ grasshopper2×
- like/ grasshoppers1×
- [the] grasshopper1×
- [are] like/ grasshoppers1×
Forms in the text
The inflected forms of this word as they appear in Scripture, by frequency.
- כַּֽ/חֲגָבִ֔ים1×
- כַּ/חֲגָבִ֑ים1×
- חָגָ֖ב1×
- הֶֽ/חָגָ֔ב1×
- הֶ/חָגָ֖ב1×
Key Verses
-
Leviticus 11:22
Even of these you may eat: any kind of locust, any kind of katydid, any kind of cricket, and any kind of grasshopper.
This verse explicitly classifies locusts as clean food, distinguishing them from other creeping insects forbidden by Mosaic law.
-
Numbers 13:33
There we saw the Nephilim, the sons of Anak, who come from the Nephilim. We were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight.”
Here the spies use the image of grasshoppers to express their feeling of insignificance and fear when facing the giants in Canaan.
-
Isaiah 40:22
It is he who sits above the circle of the earth, and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers; who stretches out the heavens like a curtain, and spreads them out like a tent to dwell in,
The prophet uses the comparison to illustrate the vastness of God’s throne relative to the smallness of human inhabitants on earth.