זְאֵב
ze.ev (H2061)
wolf
AI Word Study
# Ze'ev (Wolf) in Biblical Hebrew The Hebrew word *ze'ev* designates the wolf, appearing seven times throughout the biblical text. As a straightforward zoological term, it refers to the actual animal rather than serving primarily as an abstract concept. The word's limited frequency—only seven occurrences—suggests it was not a dominant metaphorical term in Hebrew Scripture, despite the wolf's presence in the ancient Near Eastern landscape. The rarity of this word in the biblical corpus is noteworthy. With just seven attestations across the entire Hebrew Bible, *ze'ev* appears far less often than one might expect for an animal so symbolically significant in other ancient literatures. This scarcity indicates that when biblical authors wished to reference wolves, they employed this specific, concrete term, but they did so infrequently enough that the animal itself—whether literal or figurative—did not figure prominently in the theological or narrative concerns of the texts that survived to form the biblical canon.
AI synthesis uses only provided lexicon data -- never training knowledge.
“Benjamin is a ravenous wolf. In the morning he will devour the prey. At evening he will divide the plunder.”
The wolf will live with the lamb, and the leopard will lie down with the young goat, the calf, the young lion, and the fattened calf together; and a little child will lead them.
The wolf and the lamb will feed together. The lion will eat straw like the ox. Dust will be the serpent’s food. They will not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain,” says Yahweh.
Therefore a lion out of the forest will kill them. A wolf of the evenings will destroy them. A leopard will watch against their cities. Everyone who goes out there will be torn in pieces, because their transgressions are many and their backsliding has increased.
Her princes within it are like wolves ravening the prey, to shed blood, and to destroy souls, that they may get dishonest gain.
Their horses also are swifter than leopards, and are more fierce than the evening wolves. Their horsemen press proudly on. Yes, their horsemen come from afar. They fly as an eagle that hurries to devour.
Her princes within her are roaring lions. Her judges are evening wolves. They leave nothing until the next day.