Lexical Summary
Yebusi: Jebusite
Original Word:יְבוּסִי
Part of Speech:Noun Masculine
Transliteration:Yebuwciy
Pronunciation:yeh-boo-SEE
Phonetic Spelling:(yeb-oo-see')
KJV: Jebusite(-s)
NASB:Jebusite, Jebusites
Word Origin:[patrial fromH2982 (יְבוּס - Jebus)]
1. a Jebusite or inhabitant of Jebus
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
Jebusites
Patrial fromYbuwc; a Jebusite or inhabitant of Jebus -- Jebusite(-s).
see HEBREWYbuwc
NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Originfrom
YebusDefinitioninhab. of Jebus
NASB TranslationJebusite (25), Jebusites (16).
Brown-Driver-Briggs
, , singular
2 Samuel 24:16,18 compare
1 Chronicles 21:15,18,28; 2Chronicles 3:1; as substantive
a JebusiteZechariah 9:7; usually with article collective
the Jebusites, in historical statement
Genesis 10:16 (J) =
1 Chronicles 1:14;
Numbers 13:29 (E)
Joshua 9:1;
Joshua 11:3;
Joshua 12:8;
Joshua 24:11 (all D)
Judges 3:5;
Nehemiah 9:8, all in list of Canaanitish peoples; so also
1 Kings 9:20 2Chronicles 8:7, where remnant of these peoples referred to; also
Ezra 9:1, which seems to shew that this list had become a standing expression for early inhabitants; compare further in promises (J E D)
Genesis 15:21;
Exodus 3:8,17;
Exodus 13:5;
Exodus 23:23;
Exodus 33:2;
Exodus 34:11;
Deuteronomy 7:1;
Deuteronomy 20:17;
Joshua 3:10; specifically defined as inhabitants of Jebus-Jerusalem
Joshua 15:63 (twice in verse) (J)
Judges 1:21 (twice in verse);
2 Samuel 5:6,8 (on which compare Dr)
1 Chronicles 11:4 (called also
2 Samuel 5:6 &
1 Chronicles 11:4); see also
Judges 19:11; whence
Jerusalem, Hexateuch only P,Joshua 15:8 , compareJoshua 18:16,28 . — compare .
Topical Lexicon
Identity and LineageThe Jebusites appear in the Table of Nations as one of the clans descended from Canaan (Genesis 10:15–16;1 Chronicles 1:13–14). They therefore belong to the larger Canaanite family that occupied the land promised to Abraham’s seed (Genesis 15:21). Throughout the Old Testament they are treated as a distinct but representative example of the nations Israel was commanded to dispossess.
Geographical Association
Their principal city was Jebus, the hill-fort that later became Jerusalem (Judges 19:10–11;1 Chronicles 11:4). Scripture links them repeatedly with “the hill country” (Joshua 11:3) and with the southern boundary of Benjamin and Judah (Joshua 15:8; 18:16, 28). The rocky topography of the site, together with its water supply, rendered it difficult to conquer and set the stage for its strategic significance in Israel’s later history.
Role in the Conquest under Joshua
When Israel crossed the Jordan, the Jebusites joined a northern coalition against Joshua (Joshua 10:1–5; 11:3). Yet the book of Joshua records both partial victories and lingering resistance. “But the people of Judah could not drive out the Jebusites who lived in Jerusalem” (Joshua 15:63). Their survival, in spite of divine command (Deuteronomy 7:1–2; 20:17), foreshadows the spiritual compromises that would trouble Israel during the Judges period.
Survival during the Judges Era
Judges 1:21 echoes Joshua’s assessment: “The Benjamites, however, failed to drive out the Jebusites who lived in Jerusalem, so to this day the Jebusites live there with the Benjamites.” The episode of the Levite and his concubine (Judges 19) reinforces the city’s non-Israelite identity at that time (“the city of the Jebusites, that is, Jerusalem,”Judges 19:11). Their continued presence illustrates Israel’s incomplete obedience and the ensuing cultural entanglements (Judges 3:5–6).
Davidic Conquest and Integration
The turning point arrives with David:
“Now the king and his men marched to Jerusalem against the Jebusites who inhabited the land… But David captured the stronghold of Zion (that is, the City of David)” (2 Samuel 5:6–7).
Though the stronghold fell, Jebusites were not exterminated. Araunah (Ornan) the Jebusite owned the threshing floor that David bought for altar and sacrifice (2 Samuel 24:16–25;1 Chronicles 21:15–28). That site became the location of Solomon’s temple (2 Chronicles 3:1), turning former pagan ground into the liturgical heart of Israel. The narrative testifies to God’s sovereign ability to redeem even the remnants of Canaanite presence for His worship.
Post-Conquest Status under Solomon
Non-Israelite groups who remained—including the Jebusites—were subjected to conscripted labor for Solomon’s building projects (1 Kings 9:20–21;2 Chronicles 8:7–8). While Israel herself was to serve the Lord voluntarily, the surviving Canaanites performed compulsory service, reminding the nation of the cost of earlier disobedience.
Prophetic and Post-Exilic Echoes
Zechariah 9:7 anticipates a day when foreign peoples “will become like a clan in Judah, and Ekron will be like the Jebusites”, implying eventual assimilation and purification. After the exile, Ezra laments renewed intermarriage with “the peoples of the land—the Canaanites, Hittites… and the Jebusites” (Ezra 9:1–2).Nehemiah 9:8 retrospectively celebrates God’s faithfulness in giving Israel “the land of the Canaanites, Hittites… and Jebusites,” despite Israel’s checkered obedience.
Theological Themes
1. Covenant faithfulness: The promise of land (Genesis 15) is fulfilled despite centuries-long resistance.
2. Holiness vs. syncretism: Israel’s failure to expel the Jebusites illustrates the danger of partial obedience (Deuteronomy 7:2–4;Judges 3:5–6).
3. Redemption of place: The transformation of Araunah’s threshing floor into the temple site pictures grace reclaiming defiled territory.
4. Inclusion of the nations: Zechariah’s oracle points forward to the incorporation of former enemies into God’s people, a pattern consummated in the gospel (Ephesians 2:11–22).
Ministry Significance
• Unfinished obedience leaves pockets of resistance that can later dominate life and ministry.
• God can reclaim what human compromise has surrendered; no territory or person is beyond redemption.
• The account of the Jebusites moves from hostility to hopeful assimilation, encouraging gospel workers to expect transformation among all peoples.
• Leadership, like David’s decisive action, matters for breaking entrenched strongholds and establishing patterns of worship that bless future generations.
Forms and Transliterations
הַיְבֻסִ֖י הַיְבֻסִֽי׃ הַיְבוּסִ֑י הַיְבוּסִ֔י הַיְבוּסִ֗י הַיְבוּסִ֜י הַיְבוּסִ֥י הַיְבוּסִֽי׃ הַיְבוּסִי֙ היבוסי היבוסי׃ היבסי היבסי׃ וְהַיְבוּסִ֑י וְהַיְבוּסִ֔י וְהַיְבוּסִ֖י וְהַיְבוּסִ֗י וְהַיְבוּסִ֤י וְהַיְבוּסִ֥י וְהַיְבוּסִ֨י וְהַיְבוּסִֽי׃ והיבוסי והיבוסי׃ יְבֻסִי֙ יְבוּסִי֙ יבוסי יבסי כִּיבוּסִֽי׃ כיבוסי׃ hay·ḇu·sî hay·ḇū·sî hayḇusî hayḇūsî hayvuSi kî·ḇū·sî kîḇūsî kivuSi vehayvuSi wə·hay·ḇū·sî wəhayḇūsî yə·ḇu·sî yə·ḇū·sî yəḇusî yəḇūsî yevuSi
Links
Interlinear Greek •
Interlinear Hebrew •
Strong's Numbers •
Englishman's Greek Concordance •
Englishman's Hebrew Concordance •
Parallel Texts
