H2320 — חֹדֶשׁ (chodesh)¶

Core Data¶

Strong's: H2320
Original: חֹדֶשׁ
Transliteration: chôdesh
Pronunciation: kho'-desh
Part of Speech: Masculine noun
Root: חָדַשׁ (chadash, H2318) — to be new, renew
Occurrences: 224 unique verses (391 tokens) across 26 books
First Occurrence: Gen 7:11 — "In the six hundredth year of Noah's life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month..."
Hapax Legomenon: No

Lexicon Definition¶

From H2318 chadash "to be new"; the new moon; by implication, a month. KJV: month(-ly), new moon.

Translation Distribution (KJV)¶

Translation	Verses	%
month	120	53.6%
of the month	52	23.2%
months	27	12.1%
a month	13	5.8%
the month	8	3.6%
the new moon / new moon(s)	20	8.9%
monthly	1	0.4%

Note: Many translations above are phrase-level renderings of the same Hebrew word. The two core semantic values are "month" (calendar unit, ~90%) and "new moon" (astronomical/cultic event, ~10%).

Distribution by Book¶

Book	Count	Per 100 Verses
Haggai	4	10.5
Esther	13	7.8
Ezra	11	3.9
Numbers	31	2.4
1 Chronicles	19	2.0
Ezekiel	25	2.0
2 Chronicles	16	1.9
Zechariah	4	1.9
Nehemiah	7	1.7
Amos	2	1.4
Leviticus	11	1.3
2 Kings	9	1.3
1 Kings	9	1.1
Exodus	12	1.0
Jeremiah	13	1.0
Hosea	2	1.0
1 Samuel	7	0.9
Judges	5	0.8
2 Samuel	5	0.7
Genesis	7	0.5
Joshua	2	0.3
Daniel	1	0.3
Isaiah	4	0.3
Deuteronomy	2	0.2
Job	2	0.2
Psalms	1	0.0

Patterns: Highest density in Haggai (prophetic date formulas) and Esther (Persian-calendar narrative). Heavy concentration in historical/priestly books (Numbers, 1-2 Chronicles, Ezra) that use date formulas. Prophetic books (Ezekiel, Jeremiah, Haggai, Zechariah) use it primarily for prophetic date stamps. Near-absent from Wisdom literature (Job 2v, Psalms 1v). The word appears in every major section of the OT canon.

Semantic Categories¶

1. Calendar Month (Date Formulas)¶

The dominant usage (~80%) — specifying a month as part of a date, typically with ordinal numbers and day-of-month. - Gen 7:11 — "in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month" (Flood chronology) - Exo 40:17 — "in the first month in the second year, on the first day of the month, the tabernacle was reared up" - Eze 1:1 — "in the fourth month, in the fifth day of the month" (prophetic date formula) - Est 3:7 — "In the first month, that is, the month Nisan" (Persian-era month name paired with ordinal)

2. Named Month (Calendar Names)¶

Chodesh paired with a proper month name — connecting Israelite ordinal months to named calendars. - Exo 13:4 — "This day came ye out in the month Abib" (pre-exilic Canaanite month name) - 1Ki 6:38 — "in the month Bul, which is the eighth month" (Phoenician month name) - 1Ki 8:2 — "at the feast in the month Ethanim, which is the seventh month" - Neh 1:1 — "in the month Chisleu" (post-exilic Babylonian month name)

3. New Moon (Cultic/Festival Observance)¶

The astronomical sense — the appearance of the new moon marking the beginning of a month, observed with sacrifices and assemblies. - Num 28:11 — "in the beginnings of your months ye shall offer a burnt offering unto the LORD" - 1Sa 20:5 — "Behold, to morrow is the new moon, and I should not fail to sit with the king at meat" - 2Ki 4:23 — "it is neither new moon, nor sabbath" (new moon as a recognized rest/worship day) - Eze 46:1,6 — "in the day of the new moon it shall be a young bullock without blemish" (new moon offering)

4. New Moon in Prophetic Critique and Eschatology¶

Prophetic use of new moon observances — either in judgment against empty ritual or in eschatological restoration. - Isa 1:13-14 — "the new moons and sabbaths, the calling of assemblies, I cannot away with... Your new moons and your appointed feasts my soul hateth" - Hos 2:11 — "I will also cause all her mirth to cease, her feast days, her new moons, and her sabbaths" - Amos 8:5 — "When will the new moon be gone, that we may sell corn?" (impatient merchants) - Isa 66:23 — "from one new moon to another... shall all flesh come to worship before me" (eschatological worship)

5. Duration of Time (Elapsed Months)¶

Chodesh used to express a period or span of time, rather than a specific calendar date. - Gen 29:14 — "he abode with him the space of a month" - Num 11:20-21 — "even a whole month, until it come out at your nostrils" - 2Sa 24:13 — "or wilt thou flee three months before thine enemies?" - 1Ki 5:14 — "ten thousand a month by courses: a month they were in Lebanon, and two months at home"

6. Age Reckoning (From a Month Old)¶

Used with age thresholds, especially in census and valuation contexts. - Num 3:15 — "every male from a month old and upward" - Num 18:16 — "those that are to be redeemed from a month old shalt thou redeem" - Lev 27:6 — "if it be from a month old even unto five years old, then thy estimation shall be..."

7. Allotted Time / Appointed Months¶

The months of a person's life as measured by God. - Job 14:5 — "the number of his months are with thee, thou hast appointed his bounds" - Job 21:21 — "when the number of his months is cut off in the midst"

Common Collocations¶

Word	Strong's	Co-occurrences	Typical Pattern
יוֹם (yom)	H3117	75x (33%)	"the Nth day of the month" — day-within-month dating
שָׁנֶה (shaneh)	H8141	71x (32%)	"in the Nth year... in the Nth month" — year-month dating
יְהֹוָה (YHWH)	H3068	61x (27%)	"the word of the LORD came... in the Nth month"
בֵּן (ben)	H1121	59x (26%)	"children of Israel" in census/date contexts
עָשָׂר (asar)	H6240	58x (26%)	Ordinal teens: "fourteenth/fifteenth day of the month"
אַרְבַּע (arba)	H702	41x (18%)	"fourth month" or "fourteenth"
עֶשְׂרִים (esriym)	H6242	40x (18%)	"twentieth day" in date formulas
מֶלֶךְ (melek)	H4428	37x (17%)	"in the Nth year of king X, in the Nth month" — regnal dating
רִאשׁוֹן (rishon)	H7223	30x (13%)	"in the first month"
שֶׁבַע (sheba)	H7651	30x (13%)	"seventh month" — Tishri, month of major festivals

Word Family / Cognates¶

H2318 חָדַשׁ (chadash) — root verb: to be new, make new, renew (10v)
H2319 חָדָשׁ (chadash) — adjective: new, fresh (53v)

The root sense is "newness" — chodesh is literally "the new (thing)," referring to the new moon that reappears after the dark moon period.

Easily Confused Words¶

Word	Strong's	Shared Translation	Key Difference
יֶרַח (yerach)	H3391	"month" (3v), "in the month" (3v)	yerach = lunar cycle as astronomical period (from root "to wander/journey"); rare, poetic; chodesh = the new moon and its resulting calendar month — dominant, cultic
יְרַח (yerach)	H3393	"of the month" (1v), "months" (1v)	Aramaic form of H3391; only in Daniel and Ezra Aramaic sections
μήν (mēn)	G3376	"month/months"	Greek equivalent in LXX and NT; simple temporal unit without the "new moon" cultic layer

Semantic Domain¶

Time: H268 achor, H3117 yom, H8141 shaneh, H5769 olam
Festivals: H2282 chag, H4150 moed, H7676 shabbath, H7677 shabbathon

LXX Mapping¶

Greek Equivalent	Co-occurrences	PMI Score	Notes
μήν (mēn) G3376	107	30.73	Primary — used when chodesh = "month" (calendar unit)
νουμηνία (noumēnia) G3561	22	20.71	Used when chodesh = "new moon" (festival/cultic sense)
ἑορτή (heortē) G1859	24	15.70	"feast" — contextual rendering in festival lists
πρῶτος (prōtos) G4413	33	15.61	"first" — when "first month" is rendered adjectivally

The LXX translation split is significant: μήν captures the calendar-month meaning while νουμηνία captures the new-moon festival meaning. This shows the LXX translators recognized chodesh as carrying two distinct senses that required different Greek words.