רִאשׁוֹן
riʼshôwn · H7223 · Hebrew · 182 occurrences
Meanings
-
first, former, formost, previous
State in which a countable entity is the first or the previous in a range
ExamplesGenesis 8:13 Now it came about in the six hundred and first year, in the first month, on the first of the month, that the water was dried up from the earth. Then Noah removed the covering of the ark, and looked, and behold, the surface of the ground had dried up.
Genesis 13:4 to the place of the altar which he had made there previously; and there Abram called on the name of the LORD.
Genesis 25:25 Now the first came out red, all over like a hairy garment; and they named him Esau.
-
leading
State of authority within a group of people
Examples1 Chronicles 27:3 He was from the sons of Perez, and was chief of all the commanders of the army for the first month.
1 Chronicles 18:17 and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over the Cherethites and the Pelethites, and the sons of David were chiefs at the king’s side.
How it’s used In 8 roles
Every occurrence, grouped by the words it is grammatically related to.
the word studied the word it goes with
Words describing itAdjectives, demonstratives, participles
1 occurrences in 1 groups
- יָצָאto go out 1
What it doesIt is the subject
3 occurrences in 3 groups
- גָּבַלto form the boundary 1
- זָכַרto remember 1
- יָצָאto go out 1
What is done to itIt is the object
7 occurrences in 5 groups
- הָיָהto be, to become 2
- זָכַרto remember 2
- הָרַגto kill 1
- נָגַדto tell, to inform, to report 1
- צָוָהto give orders 1
Second object ofSecond object
1 occurrences in 1 groups
- שָׁמַעto hear, to listen, to obey 1
What it is said to bePredicate
1 occurrences in 1 groups
- צַדִּיקrighteous, just, right 1
What is said to be itIt is the predicate
6 occurrences in 4 groups
- אֲנִיI 3
- בֵּןson 1
- הוּאhe, she, it 1
- אֳנִיָּהship 1
After prepositionsPrepositional phrases
51 occurrences in 4 groups
- בin/on/with 55
- כlike/as 22
- מִןfrom 6
- לto/for 3
In phrases “… of it”It is the genitive
2 occurrences in 2 groups
- בְּרִיתcovenant, treaty 1
- מְרוּצָהrunning 1
When two words share a role, as in “Paul and Barnabas said”, the verse appears under each, so a section’s counts can add up to more than the number of occurrences.
MACULA Greek Linguistic Datasets, available at https://github.com/Clear-Bible/macula-greek/, licensed CC BY 4.0; MACULA Hebrew Linguistic Datasets © 2022-2024 by Biblica, Inc., CC BY 4.0. Westminster Leningrad Codex (tanach.us). OpenScriptures Hebrew Bible morphology (hb.openscriptures.org), CC BY 4.0.
Contrasting words 1 word
- אַחֲרוֹן ʼachărôwn · H314 · behind, last
- The direct lexical opposite of אַחֲרוֹן, denoting that which is first, former, or earliest in a sequence.
In the other Testament 5 words
- πρῶτος prōtos · G4413 · first, foremost
- Greek πρῶτος renders Hebrew רִאשׁוֹן as its direct translation equivalent across temporal, ordinal, and qualitative priority senses (first in time, first in sequence, foremost in importance).
- ἔμπροσθεν émprosthen · G1715 · in front of, before, in front
- Greek ἔμπροσθεν denotes spatial/temporal precedence ('in front of', 'before') as a locative adverb/preposition, while Hebrew רִאשׁוֹן denotes firstness/priority as an attributive adjective ('first', 'former'); the terms converge when temporal anteriority is expressed, particularly in LXX renderings where Hebrew's adjectival 'first/former' construction maps to Greek's 'before' (in time) prepositional phrase.
- πρότερον próteron · G4386 · before, former, formerly
- רִאשׁוֹן (riʼshôwn, H7223) רִאשׁוֹן denotes temporal or sequential primacy with a broad range (ancestor, beginning, first, former) while πρότερον (próteron, G4386) πρότερον functions adverbially to indicate 'previously' or 'formerly' with narrower scope, representing the Greek equivalent specifically in contexts of prior time reference.
- πρῶτον prōton · G4412 · for the first time
- רִאשׁוֹן (riʼshôwn, H7223) denotes priority in time or position across a broad range of constructions (ancestor, former, beginning, eldest), while πρῶτον (prōton, G4412) is the adverbial form specifically meaning 'firstly' or 'first' in sequence, functioning as the Greek translation equivalent for temporal and ordinal priority expressed by the Hebrew adjective.
- ἀρχαῖος archaîos · G744 · for a long time, from the beginning, ancient
- Hebrew רִאשׁוֹן (first, former, ancient) and Greek ἀρχαῖος (original, primeval, ancient) share the semantic domain of temporal priority and antiquity, with both denoting things from earliest or former times.
Semantic domains 3 entries
- Quantity002001001046
- This domain is not independently illustrated by the sampled citations, which concern temporal priority or precedence rather than amount.
- Frequency002001003009
- The word means first or former, directly illustrated by the flood water drying up "on the first of the month" (Genesis 8:13), Abram returning to his previous altar (Genesis 13:4), the first twin born (Genesis 25:25), and "the previous famine" recalled in Isaac's day (Genesis 26:1).
- Control002003002007
- This domain reflects the word's "chief/foremost" rank sense; it is not independently illustrated by the sampled citations, which concern temporal precedence rather than authority.
Word family 8 words
Words formed from the same root. They share a form, not always a meaning.
Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew Lexicon H7223. rishon רִאשׁוֺן182 adjective former, first, chief (i heightened from original a,…
רִאשׁוֺן182 adjective former, first, chief (i heightened from original a, see √); — absolute ׳ר Hos 2:19 +, שֹׁן- - Exo 12:15 +, רִישׁוֺן Job 8:8, construct רִאשׁוֺן Job 15:7 Qr (Kt ראישון and so always Manuscript Sam. Pentateuch, see Köii. 1, 225 n); feminine רִאשֹׁנָה Jdg 20:37 + (Jos 21:10 Kt ראישנה see above); masculine plural רִאשֹׁנִים Exo 34:1 +, feminine plural רִאשֹׁנוֺת Isa 41:22 +, etc.; —
1 former:
a. in time, former of two Gen 25:25 (J), Gen 41:20 (E), Deu 10:1-2, Deu 10:3, Deu 10:4, Deu 10:10; Deu 24:4, compare Hos 2:9; Lev 4:21; Lev 9:15 (both P), Jdg 20:39; 2Ki 1:14; Hag 2:3, Hag 2:9; Ezr 3:12 +; more Generally former, previous, Num 21:26 (JE), Mic 4:8; 2Ki 17:34, 2Ki 17:40; Zec 1:4; Zec 7:7, Zec 7:12; Zec 8:11; Neh 5:15; Eccl 17:10; Psa 79:8 +; ר הָ ׳כָּעֵת Isaiah 8:23; ר הָ דויד ׳דִּבְרֵי 1Ch 29:29 the doings of David, the former and the latter (הָאַחֲדֹנִים), compare 2Ch 9:29; 2Ch 12:15; 2Ch 16:11; 2Ch 20:34; 2Ch 25:26; 2Ch 26:22; 2Ch 28:26; 2Ch 35:27; early days of harvest 2Sa 21:9; רִאשֹׁנִים as substantive, former persons, ancestors, men of old, Deu 19:14; Lev 26:45 (H), Ecc 1:11 (opposed to אַחֲרֹנִים); (תָ)רִאשֹׁנוֺת as substantive the former things, i.e. past events Isa 41:22; Isa 43:9, Isa 43:18; Isa 46:9; Isa 48:3, earlier predictions Isa 42:9.
b. location, foremost, of two 2Sa 18:27.
2 first:
a. in time, ר הָ ׳הַמַּכָּה 1Sa 14:14 the first slaughter (preliminary to General carnage); ר דְּבָרִי ׳וְלֹאהָֿיָה 2 Samuel 19:44 was not my word first? ׳ר in apposition with person subject 2Sa 19:21 I am come as first, compare perhaps Isa 41:27 (insert אָמַרְתִּי Ges De < read הִגַּדְתִּים for הִנָּם הִנֵּה CheHpt Kit Di), and ר ׳הָ Jer 50:17 (opposed to הָאַחֲרוֺן), Isa 43:27; ׳ר absolute, first of mankind Job 15:17; absolute of ׳י, I (an the) first Isa 41:4 (+אַחֲדֹנִים אֶתֿ), + אַחְרוֺן Isa 44:6; Isa 48:12; absolute of time, מֵרִאשׁוֺן Jer 17:12 from the beginning; especially first of a def. series (sometimes opposed to אַחֲרוֺן). first day of feast Deu 16:4; Exo 12:15 (twice in verse); Exo 12:16 Exo 12:5t. P (H), Neh 8:18, usually first month (חֹרֶשׁ) Exo 40:2, Exo 40:17; Lev 23:5-6t. P, 1Ch 12:16 (van d. H. v.1Ch 12:15) + 10 t. Chronicles, Ezra, Est 3:7; Dan 10:4, חֹדֶשׁ omitted Gen 8:13; Exo 12:2, Exo 12:18; Num 9:5 (all P) Eze 29:17; Eze 30:20; Eze 45:18, Eze 45:21, so Joe 2:23, but read כָּרִאשׁוֺנָה (3a) ᵑ6 ᵐ5 We Now and Dr.
b. first in degree, chief: הַשָּׂרִיםרִ֗֗֗אשׁוֺנָה יַד Ezr 9:2 the hand of the princes ... has been first in this trespass; 1Ch 18:17; Dan 10:13 (Chronicles, Est 1:14 below).
3. a. feminine with preposition as adverb phrase: (1) of time, בָּרִאשֹׁנָה Gen 13:4 (J), = before, formerly, so Jos 8:5-6, (JE), 2Sa 7:10; 2Sa 20:18; Jer 7:12; Isa 52:4, ׳לָר = before, formerly, Gen 28:19 (J), Jdg 18:29; so ׳כְּבָר as formerly Jdg 20:32; 1Ki 13:6; Isa 1:26; Jer 33:7, Jer 33:11, = ר ׳כָּ Deu 9:15; Dan 11:29 (opposed to כָּאַחֲרוֺנָה); בָּר = at first, first of all, Deu 13:10; Deu 17:7; Num 10:13 (P) Jos 8:33 (D), 1Ki 17:13; 1Ki 20:9; Zec 12:7; Pro 20:21 (opposed to אַחֲרִיתָהּ), 1Ch 11:6 (twice in verse); 1Ch 17:9; Neh 7:5; לְמַבָּרִאשׁוֺנָה 1Ch 15:13 (= ׳לְמַהבָּֿר) for what was at first, etc. (מָךְ 1e); (2) location, ׳בָּר i.e. at the head of an army 1Ki 20:17, a procession Num 10:14 (P), compare Isa 60:9.
b. רִאשֹׁנָה alone as adverb: (1) of time first Gen 38:28 (J), 1Ki 18:25; Jer 16:18; Lev 5:8; Num 2:9; Jos 21:10 (all P), Isa 65:7 (Ew De Che Di Du Skinner, >adjective Ges Hi Kn); (2) of place Gen 33:2 (J); (3) of degree, rank, Est 1:14.
Brown, Driver and Briggs, A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament (1906), public domain
Topical studies with this word 2 entries
Meanings adapted from the UBS Dictionary of the Greek New Testament, © United Bible Societies, CC BY-SA 4.0 and the UBS Dictionary of Biblical Hebrew (from the Semantic Dictionary of Biblical Hebrew), © United Bible Societies, CC BY-SA 4.0; MACULA Greek Linguistic Datasets, available at https://github.com/Clear-Bible/macula-greek/, licensed CC BY 4.0; MACULA Hebrew Linguistic Datasets © 2022-2024 by Biblica, Inc., CC BY 4.0. Westminster Leningrad Codex (tanach.us). OpenScriptures Hebrew Bible morphology (hb.openscriptures.org), CC BY 4.0.
Sources
eRhema lexical overview, based on the UBS Dictionary of Biblical Hebrew and the UBS Dictionary of the Greek New Testament (© United Bible Societies, CC BY-SA 4.0) and Macula Hebrew and Greek (Clear Bible, CC BY 4.0); released under CC BY-SA 4.0
New American Standard Bible Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, Calif. All rights reserved. For Permission to Quote Information visit http://www.lockman.org.