The Hebrew word זֶה (zeh, Strong's H2088) in the biblical context is a demonstrative pronoun meaning "this," "that," or "such." A primitive word; the masculine demonstrative pronoun, this or that: - he, X hence, X here, it (-self), X now, X of him, the one . . . the other, X than the other, (X out of) the (self) same, such (an one) that, these, this (hath, man), on this side . . . on that side, X thus, very, which. Compare H2063, H2090, H2097, H2098. It is an extremely common grammatical term in biblical Hebrew that appears with great frequency throughout the text. Its main uses include:
- As a demonstrative pronoun to point to something nearby:
- As a demonstrative adjective:
- "This man" (הָאִישׁ הַזֶּה)
- "This generation" (הַדּוֹר הַזֶּה)
- For identification or emphasis:
- "This is my God" (זֶה אֵלִי) in Exodus 15:2
- "Who is this King of glory?" (מִי זֶה מֶלֶךְ הַכָּבוֹד) in Psalm 24:8
- In temporal or spatial constructions:
- "In this place" (בַּמָּקוֹם הַזֶּה)
- "Until this day" (עַד הַיּוֹם הַזֶּה)
- Sometimes used in an emphatic or repetitive manner for emphasis:
- "This to this" (זֶה אֶל־זֶה) as in Isaiah 6:3 where the seraphim call "one to another"
In its feminine form זֹאת (zot), it is used to refer to feminine objects or concepts.
Although זֶה is primarily a grammatical term, in certain contexts it can acquire important theological meanings when used specifically to point to God or His works, as in the song of Moses: "This is my God, and I will praise Him" (Exodus 15:2). |