H7931 — שָׁכַן (shākan)¶

Core Data¶

Strong's: H7931
Original: שָׁכַן
Transliteration: shākan
Pronunciation: shaw-kan
Part of Speech: Verb
Root: Primitive root (akin to H7934 through the idea of lodging)
Occurrences: 123 unique verses (150 tokens) in OT
Books: 23
First Occurrence: Gen 3:24 — "he placed at the east of the garden of Eden Cherubims"
Hapax Legomenon: No

Lexicon Definition¶

A primitive root (apparently akin by transmission to H7934 through the idea of lodging); to reside or permanently stay (literally or figuratively): abide, continue, (cause to, make to) dwell(-er), have habitation, inhabit, lay, place, (cause to) remain, rest, set (up).

Verb Stem Distribution¶

Stem	Indicators	Notes
Qal	"dwell," "abode," "reside," "rest"	Basic form: to dwell, take up residence
Hiphil	"cause to dwell," "place," "set"	Causative: to settle someone/something in a place

Note: Full stem tally from text-fabric unavailable (memory constraint). Stems inferred from lexicon, KJV renderings, and context. Deut 12:11 "cause his name to dwell" and Jer 7:7 "I will cause you to dwell" are clear Hiphil forms; Exod 24:16 "abode" and Exod 25:8 "that I may dwell" are Qal.

Translation Distribution (KJV)¶

The KJV renders this word overwhelmingly with dwell/dwelling vocabulary. The 150 tokens yield 86 unique translation phrases (including full clause fragments), reflecting the verb's wide syntactic contexts.

Translation Group	Approx. Verses	Notes
dwell / shall dwell / dwelt / dwelleth / dwelling	~70	Core rendering, all tenses
abode / abide / abiding	~7	Extended sojourn
place / placed / set (up) / lay	~7	Hiphil forms — causative placement
remain / rest / continue / inhabit	~10	Secondary renderings
Other / particles / clauses	~26	Misc. contextual renderings

Distribution by Book¶

Book	Count	Per 100 Verses
Psalms	23	0.9
Jeremiah	13	1.0
Job	11	1.0
Deuteronomy	10	1.0
Isaiah	12	0.9
Numbers	9	0.7
Genesis	8	0.5
Proverbs	5	0.5
Ezekiel	5	0.4
Exodus	5	0.4
Zechariah	4	1.9
Joel	2	2.7
Obadiah	1	4.8
Micah	2	1.9
Nahum	1	2.1
Judges	2	0.3
Joshua	2	0.3
1 Kings	2	0.2
1 Chronicles	2	0.2
2 Samuel	1	0.1
2 Chronicles	1	0.1
Nehemiah	1	0.2
Leviticus	1	0.1

Density is highest in the Minor Prophets (Obadiah, Joel, Zechariah) where the eschatological "I will dwell" formula is concentrated. Psalms and the narrative books (Deuteronomy, Numbers) together account for the bulk of occurrences. Notably absent from most historical and wisdom books — concentrated in texts dealing explicitly with divine presence, covenant land, or sanctuary.

Semantic Categories¶

1. God's Presence Dwelling in the Sanctuary¶

The foundational theological use: YHWH choosing to shakan (encamp, settle) in the midst of his people via the tabernacle/temple. The verb carries the sense of divine condescension — the transcendent God taking up tent-dwelling among mortals.

Exod 25:8 — "And let them make me a sanctuary; that I may dwell among them."
Exod 29:45 — "And I will dwell among the children of Israel, and will be their God."
Num 35:34 — "Defile not therefore the land...wherein I dwell: for I the LORD dwell among the children of Israel."
1 Ki 6:13 — "And I will dwell among the children of Israel, and will not forsake my people Israel."

2. The Divine Cloud Settling¶

The shekinah glory-cloud (כָּבוֹד, H3519) rests (shakan) on specific locations — Sinai, the tabernacle. The verb captures the dynamic of the divine presence descending and remaining, directing Israel's movements.

Exod 24:16 — "And the glory of the LORD abode upon mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it six days."
Num 9:17 — "And when the cloud was taken up from the tabernacle...and in the place where the cloud abode, there the children of Israel pitched their tents."
Psa 68:16 — "Why leap ye, ye high hills? this is the hill which God desireth to dwell in; yea, the LORD will dwell in it for ever."

3. Deuteronomic: God's Name Dwelling in a Chosen Place¶

Deuteronomy develops a distinctive theology of the divine name (שֵׁם, H8034) being caused to dwell in the chosen sanctuary. The Hiphil form is concentrated here. Rather than YHWH dwelling bodily, his "name" is the presence that settles.

Deut 12:11 — "Then there shall be a place which the LORD your God shall choose to cause his name to dwell there."
Deut 14:23 — "And thou shalt eat before the LORD thy God, in the place which he shall choose to place his name there."
Psa 15:1 — "LORD, who shall abide in thy tabernacle? who shall dwell in thy holy hill?"
Psa 65:4 — "Blessed is the man whom thou choosest...that he may dwell in thy courts."

4. Prophetic / Eschatological: "I Will Dwell"¶

The Prophets project shakan forward as an eschatological promise: YHWH will return to Zion and take up permanent residence. This future-tense "I will dwell" marks the climax of covenant restoration.

Zech 2:10 — "Sing and rejoice, O daughter of Zion: for, lo, I come, and I will dwell in the midst of thee, saith the LORD."
Zech 8:3 — "Thus saith the LORD; I am returned unto Zion, and will dwell in the midst of Jerusalem."
Joel 3:17 — "So shall ye know that I am the LORD your God dwelling in Zion, my holy mountain."
Jer 23:6 — "In his days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely: and this is his name whereby he shall be called, THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS."

5. Human Settlement in the Land¶

The covenant promise that Israel will dwell (shakan) securely in the land given to the fathers. Here the word carries its mundane sense of permanent, settled habitation — but the theological context of land-grant covenant is always near.

Psa 37:3 — "Trust in the LORD, and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed."
Psa 37:29 — "The righteous shall inherit the land, and dwell therein for ever."
Pro 2:21 — "For the upright shall dwell in the land, and the perfect shall remain in it."
Deut 33:12 — "The beloved of the LORD shall dwell in safety by him."

6. Desolation — Creatures Inhabiting Ruins¶

Judgment oracles invert the dwelling promise: where Israel once shakan in the land, desolate creatures will shakan in the ruins. The same word used for divine indwelling is used for birds and beasts colonizing devastated cities.

Isa 13:20–21 — "It shall never be inhabited...but wild beasts of the desert shall lie there; and their houses shall be full of doleful creatures; and owls shall dwell there."
Isa 34:11 — Similar desolation: cormorant and bittern dwell where God once acted.
Nah 3:18 — "Thy nobles shall dwell in the dust."
Job 3:5 — "Let darkness and the shadow of death stain it; let a cloud dwell upon it."

Common Collocations¶

Word	Strong's	Co-occurrences	Typical Pattern
יְהֹוָה (Yᵉhôvâh)	H3068	36x (29%)	"the LORD will dwell" or "dwell before the LORD"
אֶרֶץ (ʼerets)	H776	22x (18%)	"dwell in the land / earth"
יִשְׂרָאֵל (Yisrâʼêl)	H3478	22x (18%)	"dwell among / with Israel"
תָּוֶךְ (tâvek)	H8432	16x (13%)	"dwell in the midst of"
מָקוֹם (mâqôwm)	H4725	15x (12%)	"the place...to cause his name to dwell there"
אֹהֶל (ʼôhel)	H168	12x (10%)	"dwell in tents" — pastoral and tabernacle contexts
שֵׁם (shêm)	H8034	12x (10%)	"cause his name to dwell" — Deuteronomic formula
הַר (har)	H2022	11x (9%)	"dwell in the mountain / holy hill" — Zion theology
עַם (ʻam)	H5971	10x (8%)	"dwell among the people" or people as subject

Word Family / Cognates¶

H7932 שְׁכַן (shᵉkan) — Aramaic cognate; "cause to dwell, have habitation" (Ezra/Dan context)
H7934 שָׁכֵן (shâkên) — neighbor, inhabitant; the one who dwells nearby (derived adjective/substantive from this root)
H4908 מִשְׁכָּן (mishkân) — tabernacle, dwelling-place; the primary derived noun (139x); the portable sanctuary where YHWH chose to shakan
H4907 מִשְׁכַּן (mishkan) — Aramaic cognate noun; "habitation/residence"

Synonyms¶

H5123 נום — the only direct synonym returned by search_relationships.py, linking shākan with the "rest/settle" field.

Antonyms¶

No antonyms were returned by search_relationships.py for H7931.

Easily Confused Words¶

Word	Strong's	Shared Translation	Key Difference
יָשַׁב (yâshab)	H3427	both = "dwell/dwelt" (dominant overlap)	yashab = sit, settle with established permanence; shakan = encamp, rest like a bird or cloud — implies a choosing to settle, often divine condescension
גּוּר (gûwr)	H1481	both = "dwell/abide" occasionally	gur = to sojourn as an outsider, temporary foreigner; shakan = to establish a settled presence, permanent or semi-permanent

UBS Semantic Domains¶

[002002001005] Dwell — primary residence field; search_relationships.py groups shākan with H166/H168 אֹהֶל and H1481 גּוּר.
[002001001019] Dead — a secondary broader bucket returned by the relationship tool.
[002003003011] Engage — broader occupancy/encounter field in the UBS relationship data.
[002002001017] Space — spatial-location vocabulary linked with dwelling and place.
[002001001057] Stance — settled/resting posture bucket adjacent to shākan's "abide" nuance.
[002001001064] Weak — another secondary relationship bucket returned by the tool.

LXX Mapping¶

Greek Equivalent	Strong's	Co-occ	PMI	Score	Notes
κατασκηνόω (kataskēnóō)	G2681	46x	7.37	28.37	Primary — "to camp down"; inherits the tent-dwelling nuance directly
κατοικέω (katoikéō)	G2730	25x	3.17	10.33	Secondary — "to house permanently, reside"
ἀναπαύω (anapaúō)	G373	8x	4.72	10.36	Occasional — "to repose, rest"; used when shakan = the cloud resting

The LXX's dominant choice, G2681 κατασκηνόω (kata + skēnē, "to camp down in a tent"), is a theologically significant translation: it preserves the tent/tabernacle imagery by deriving directly from σκηνή (skēnē, "tent"). This choice carries the entire shakan theology — God's encamping presence — into the Greek OT.