שִׁשִּׁי (shish.shi)
shish.shi
sixth
H:NQuick Reference
- Language
- Biblical Hebrew
- Testament
- Old Testament
- Occurrences
- 21 verses
- Root
- —
- Part of speech
- H:N
Word Overview
The Hebrew word shishshi functions as an ordinal number meaning "sixth." It appears twenty-one times in the Old Testament, primarily within historical and prophetic texts such as Chronicles, Exodus, and Ezekiel. The term is straightforward in its basic usage, marking a specific position in a sequence or order.
A key nuance lies in its feminine form, shishshith, which can denote either the ordinal "sixth" or the fractional part "one-sixth." This dual meaning is evident in Ezekiel, where the word describes both a timeline and a precise measurement of grain. In Exodus 16, for instance, it marks the sixth day of the week, setting the stage for the Sabbath rest.
Its root connects to the number six (shesh), but shishshi specifically adds the grammatical structure required for counting or measuring. This precision is vital in passages detailing temple duties or ritual offerings, where exact numbers matter. The word anchors abstract concepts of time and quantity in concrete reality, helping readers track the rhythm of Israel’s religious and civic life.
Based on public-domain lexicons (Strong's, Thayer, Gesenius, Brown-Driver-Briggs and others).
What This Word Means for Your Faith
Ordinary numbers often feel like background noise in our daily lives, yet Scripture uses them to frame sacred rhythms. When you encounter the word for "sixth," it is rarely just a random count. It marks specific moments of preparation and provision. In Exodus, the sixth day arrives not as an endpoint, but as a setup for rest. The people gathered extra manna on this day, trusting that God would sustain them through the seventh without their labor.
This pattern offers a gentle reminder for your own life. Before every season of stillness, there is often a time of faithful preparation. Whether you are counting days in a calendar or measuring out resources for a project, these small acts of order reflect a God who cares about details. The rhythm of work followed by rest is built into the fabric of creation, inviting you to trust that your efforts are seen and sustained.
Even when life feels chaotic, the precision of time keeps us anchored. The sixth day points forward to the peace that follows. It suggests that our busy seasons have purpose and that rest is a gift prepared for those who wait. You can find comfort in knowing that your daily routines are part of a larger, orderly design.
How it's translated
How this word is rendered word-by-word in the 21 verses where it appears, by frequency.
- <the>/ sixth12×
- the/ sixth6×
- sixth1×
- in the/ sixth [month]1×
- and/ [was] the/ sixth1×
- [was] the/ sixth1×
Forms in the text
The inflected forms of this word as they appear in Scripture, by frequency.
- הַ/שִּׁשִּׁ֔י6×
- הַ/שִּׁשִּׁי֙2×
- הַ/שִּׁשִּׁ֖י2×
- שִׁשִּׁ֖י1×
- וְ/הַ/שִּׁשִּׁ֣י1×
- הַ/שִּׁשִּֽׁי\׃\ \פ1×
- הַ/שִּׁשִּֽׁי\׃1×
- הַ/שִּׁשִּׁ֥י1×
- הַ/שִּׁשִּׁ֣י1×
- הַ/שִּׁשִּׁ֛י1×
- הַ/שִּׁשִּׁ֗י1×
- הַ/שִּׁשִּׁ֔ית1×
Key Verses
-
Exodus 16:5
It shall come to pass on the sixth day, that they shall prepare that which they bring in, and it shall be twice as much as they gather daily.”
This verse establishes the sixth day as a time of doubled preparation, directly linking the number to the upcoming Sabbath rest.
-
Genesis 1:31
God saw everything that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. There was evening and there was morning, a sixth day.
Here the sixth day marks the completion of creation, showing that God's work reaches a fullness before He rests.
-
Haggai 1:1
In the second year of Darius the king, in the sixth month, in the first day of the month, Yahweh’s word came by Haggai the prophet, to Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, saying,
The prophet dates his message to the sixth month, using this specific time marker to call the people back to rebuilding the temple.
-
Leviticus 25:21
then I will command my blessing on you in the sixth year, and it shall bear fruit for the three years.
This occurrence highlights a miraculous provision where the sixth year's harvest sustains the community through the following sabbatical years.