Lexical Summary
shesh: Six
Original Word:שֵׁשׁ
Part of Speech:Noun
Transliteration:shesh
Pronunciation:shaysh
Phonetic Spelling:(shaysh)
KJV: six((-teen, -teenth)), sixth
Word Origin:[a primitive number]
1. six (as an overplus (see H7797) beyond five or the fingers of the hand)
2. (as ordinal) sixth
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
sixteen sixth
Masculine shishshah {shish-shaw'}; a primitive number; six (as an overplus (seesuws) beyond five or the fingers of the hand); as ord. Sixth -- six((-teen, -teenth)), sixth.
see HEBREWsuws
Brown-Driver-Briggs
,
216 and ; — (c. )Genesis 31:41 120t.; (with
)Genesis 30:20 39t.; constructExodus 23:12 30t. (6 1016are additional); —six (Hexateuch chiefly P):
no other number:
before plural noun 75 t.:e.g.Exodus 21:2 (E) + 11 t.,1 Samuel 17:4 8t.;1 Kings 6:6;Genesis 30:20 (E) + 2 t.;Exodus 23:12 (E) + 14 t.; after noun (late)Exodus 28:2;Joshua 15:59,62 (all P),1 Chronicles 4:27;1 Chronicles 26:17;Nehemiah 5:18; rarely noun omittedLeviticus 24:6 (P) + (distributive2 Samuel 21:20 =1 Chronicles 20:6).
= ordinal2 Kings 18:10 (Ges§ 134o).
16, c
: , beforeGenesis 46:18 (P),2 Kings 13:10 9t., 2Chronicles 13:21; afterJoshua 15:41;Joshua 19:22 (P); with
, beforeExodus 26:25;Exodus 36:30 (P), also , 1000,Numbers 31:40 + (P); after1 Chronicles 4:27, etc.; = ordinal 16th1 Chronicles 24:14;1 Chronicles 25:23 +, 2Chronicles 29:27.
600= ,Genesis 7:6 (P) + 63 t.; 6000 =Numbers 3:34 (P) + 8 t.;Judges 20:15 2t.
, followingGenesis 46:26 13t., precedesNumbers 31:44 (P).
as round number,2 Kings 13:19, compareJob 5:19;Proverbs 6:16.
(√ of following; Biblical Hebrew , ).
Topical Lexicon
Frequency and Distributionשֵׁשׁ appears roughly 215 times across the Hebrew Scriptures, from Genesis to Zechariah. It is found in narrative, legal, poetic, and prophetic texts, most commonly in combination with other numbers (sixty, six-hundred, etc.) or with nouns such as “days,” “years,” “wings,” “branches,” and “steps.”
The Pattern of Six and Sabbath Rest
The most prominent theological use of six is its place in the rhythm of labor followed by sanctified rest.
•Exodus 20:9 – “Six days you shall labor and do all your work.”
•Exodus 16:26 – The gathering of manna for six days prepares the people for the seventh-day provision by God.
•Exodus 21:2;Leviticus 25:3 – Hebrew servants and the land itself may be worked for six years, but the seventh belongs to release and renewal.
By recurring in this pattern, שֵׁשׁ underscores human responsibility to work diligently under God’s mandate while pointing ahead to a divinely provided rest (Hebrews 4:9-10).
Six Within Israel’s Calendar and Covenant Law
Beyond weekly and sabbatical structures, six surfaces in festival and cultic legislation:
• Six lambs were a common daily sacrificial number (Numbers 28:11;Ezekiel 46:4).
• Six days framed the construction of the tabernacle furnishings, after which Moses awaited the voice of God on the seventh (Exodus 24:16).
• The Feast of Unleavened Bread begins after six normal workdays, signaling the transition from common to consecrated time (Exodus 12).
Architectural and Liturgical Instances
•Exodus 25:32 – “Six branches are to extend from the sides of the lampstand.” The menorah’s six outer branches, crowned by the central shaft, visually illustrate incompleteness fulfilled only in the seventh central light that represents divine presence.
•1 Kings 10:19 – Solomon’s ivory throne was elevated by “six steps,” and each step was guarded by lions, evoking royal authority that nevertheless stops short of God’s perfect supremacy.
•Isaiah 6:2 – Each seraph has “six wings,” instruments of reverence and service in the heavenly court.
•Ezekiel 9:2 – Six executioners carry out divine judgment, while the seventh figure seals the righteous, preserving the principle of six leading to a climactic, divine seventh.
Quantities of Provision and Blessing
•Ruth 3:15 – Boaz heaps “six measures of barley” into Ruth’s shawl. The gift whispers that Naomi and Ruth’s needs will be completely met when the greater “seventh” act—full redemption—arrives.
•Joshua 6:3 – Israel circles Jericho for six days; only on the seventh day does the wall fall. The six days emphasize obedient persistence anticipating God’s definitive intervention.
Six in Warfare and Human Might
•1 Samuel 17:4 – Goliath’s height is “six cubits and a span,” highlighting formidable but finite strength that falls before the LORD.
•Exodus 12:37 – “About six hundred thousand men on foot” depart Egypt, a staggering number that magnifies God’s capability to shepherd a multitude.
•2 Samuel 21:20 – A giant with “six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot” accentuates abnormal power yet remains subject to covenant victory.
Genealogies and Chronology
Numerous patriarchal ages incorporate six (Genesis 5;Genesis 7:6;Genesis 11). These figures anchor redemptive history in real time while hinting that human lifespan, no matter how extended, is incomplete without God’s eternal seventh-day rest.
Prophetic and Symbolic Dimensions
Because six consistently precedes seven, it often symbolizes that which is substantial yet unfinished. This anticipatory character explains why prophetic literature may employ six to describe judgment (Ezekiel 40:5;Amos 1) or preparatory purification (Zechariah 3:9’s “stone with seven eyes” follows six preceding visions). While Revelation’s “666” is Greek, its imagery is rooted in the Hebrew concept of six as the apex of human effort that still falls short of divine completeness.
Ministry Applications
1. Labor-Rest Rhythm: שֵׁשׁ instructs believers to value diligent work while joyfully submitting to God’s ordained rest, a pattern ultimately fulfilled in Christ.
2. Anticipation of Completion: Whether in liturgy, architecture, or narrative, six invites worshipers to look beyond human strength to the perfecting action of God.
3. Teaching Numeracy in Scripture: Highlighting occurrences of six offers a practical way to demonstrate the coherence of biblical theology, showing how numerical patterns reinforce doctrinal truths.
Forms and Transliterations
בְּשֵׁ֣שׁ בשש הַשִּׁשָּׁ֧ה הששה וְשִׁשָּֽׁה׃ וְשִׁשָּׁ֑ה וְשִׁשָּׁ֖ה וְשִׁשָּׁ֗ה וְשִׁשָּׁ֣ה וְשִׁשָּׁ֤ה וְשִׁשָּׁ֥ה וְשִׁשָּׁה֙ וְשֵֽׁשֶׁת־ וְשֵׁ֣שֶׁת וְשֵׁ֣שׁ וְשֵׁ֤שֶׁת וְשֵׁ֥שׁ וְשֵׁ֧שֶׁת וְשֵׁשׁ־ וָשֵֽׁשׁ׃ וָשֵׁ֖שׁ וָשֵׁ֗שׁ וָשֵׁשׁ֙ ושש ושש־ ושש׃ וששה וששה׃ וששת וששת־ כְּשֵׁ֥שׁ כְּשֵׁשׁ־ כשש כשש־ לְשִׁשָּׁ֤ה לְשֵׁ֙שֶׁת֙ לְשֵׁ֣שֶׁת לְשֵׁשׁ־ לשש־ לששה לששת שִׁשָּֽׁה׃ שִׁשָּׁ֗ה שִׁשָּׁ֣ה שִׁשָּׁ֤ה שִׁשָּׁ֥ה שִׁשָּׁ֧ה שִׁשָּׁ֨ה שִׁשָּׁה֒ שִׁשָּׁה֙ שֵֽׁשֶׁת־ שֵֽׁשׁ־ שֵׁ֔שׁ שֵׁ֖שֶׁת שֵׁ֖שׁ שֵׁ֣שֶׁת שֵׁ֣שׁ שֵׁ֤֣שֶׁת שֵׁ֤שֶׁת שֵׁ֤שׁ שֵׁ֥שֶׁת שֵׁ֥שׁ שֵׁ֧שֶׁת שֵׁ֧שׁ שֵׁ֨שׁ שֵׁשׁ֙ שֵׁשׁ־ שֶׁשׁ־ שש שש־ ששה ששה׃ ששת ששת־ bə·šêš bəšêš beShesh haš·šiš·šāh hashshishShah haššiššāh kə·šêš kə·šêš- kəšêš kəšêš- keshesh lə·šê·šeṯ lə·šêš- lə·šiš·šāh ləšêš- ləšêšeṯ leshesh leSheshet leshishShah ləšiššāh šê·šeṯ šê·šeṯ- šêš šeš- šêš- šêšeṯ šêšeṯ- shesh Sheshet shishShah šiš·šāh šiššāh vaShesh veshesh veSheshet veshishShah wā·šêš wāšêš wə·šê·šeṯ wə·šê·šeṯ- wə·šêš wə·šêš- wə·šiš·šāh wəšêš wəšêš- wəšêšeṯ wəšêšeṯ- wəšiššāh
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