H935 — בּוֹא (bôʾ)¶

Core Data¶

Strong's: H935
Original: בּוֹא
Transliteration: bôʾ (bow)
Pronunciation: bo
Part of Speech: Verb (primitive root)
Occurrences: 2,306 unique verses (3,042 tokens) across 39 books
First Occurrence: Gen 2:19 — "...and brought [them] unto Adam to see what he would call them..."
Hapax Legomenon: No — one of the most common verbs in the Hebrew Bible

Lexicon Definition¶

A primitive root; to go or come (in a wide variety of applications):— abide, apply, attain, be, befall, besiege, bring (forth, in, into, to pass), call, carry, certainly, (cause, let, thing for) to come (against, in, out, upon, to pass), depart, doubtless again, eat, employ, (cause to) enter (in, into, -tering, -trance, -try), be fallen, fetch, follow, get, give, go (down, in, to war), grant, have, indeed, (in-) vade, lead, lift (up), mention, pull in, put, resort, run (down), send, set, (well) stricken (in age), surely, take (in), way.

Verb Stem Distribution¶

Stem	Count	Typical Meaning
Qal	1,997	come, go, enter (subject moves)
Hiphil	549	bring, cause to come, lead in (causative)
Hophal	24	be brought, be led in (passive causative)

The Qal/Hiphil split maps the two basic senses: the subject arrives (Qal), or the subject makes someone/something else arrive (Hiphil). No Niphal, Piel, or Pual forms attested.

Translation Distribution (KJV)¶

Because the verb is so common, the KJV distributes it across hundreds of phrases. Grouped by sense:

Sense Group	Approx. %	Representative KJV Renderings
came / cometh / has come	~30%	came (264), come (146), cometh (48), is come, are come, came in
shall come / will come (future)	~15%	shall come (71), shall (40), is come, will come, shall enter
brought / bring (causative)	~15%	brought (39), and brought (30), to bring (22), will bring (20), bring (19), and bring, shall bring, I will bring
go / went / enter	~12%	go (24), went in (22), went (21), enter (16), entered (9), go in (10)
narrative connectors	~10%	And (106), and came (88), and, And when (28), So (27), when (26)
idioms	~3%	come to pass, stricken (in age), besieged, apply, fetch

Total 2,306 unique verses. Full breakdown (~450 distinct translation phrases) is in the lookup table.

Distribution by Book¶

Sorted by density (per 100 verses):

Book	Count	Total Vv	Per 100
1 Samuel	153	810	18.9
Esther	31	167	18.6
Haggai	7	38	18.4
2 Kings	129	719	17.9
2 Samuel	124	695	17.8
2 Chronicles	139	822	16.9
Jeremiah	196	1364	14.4
Obadiah	3	21	14.3
Judges	88	618	14.2
Genesis	198	1533	12.9
Ezekiel	164	1273	12.9
Malachi	7	55	12.7
1 Kings	103	816	12.6
Joel	8	73	11.0
Nehemiah	44	406	10.8
Deuteronomy	99	959	10.3
Daniel	35	357	9.8
Micah	10	105	9.5
Exodus	114	1213	9.4
Zechariah	19	211	9.0
Habakkuk	5	56	8.9
Isaiah	112	1292	8.7
Leviticus	74	859	8.6
Joshua	55	658	8.4
Jonah	4	48	8.3
Amos	12	146	8.2
Ecclesiastes	15	222	6.8
Numbers	85	1288	6.6
1 Chronicles	58	942	6.2
Lamentations	9	154	5.8
Ezra	16	280	5.7
Hosea	10	197	5.1
Job	46	1070	4.3
Zephaniah	2	53	3.8
Proverbs	31	915	3.4
Psalms	75	2461	3.0
Nahum	1	47	2.1

Patterns: Density is highest in historical narrative (1–2 Sam, 1–2 Ki, Ch) where physical motion dominates storytelling, and in Esther/Haggai (short books, dense usage). Prophetic books cluster in the 8–14 range where "shall come" threats and promises are frequent. Psalms sits low (3.0) because its lyric genre prefers static verbs; Proverbs is even sparser. Aramaic chapters of Daniel use the Aramaic cognate אֲתָה (H858/H857), so the Hebrew H935 count is concentrated in Dan 1, 8–12.

Semantic Categories¶

1. Simple Physical Motion — come / go / enter¶

The base sense, covering ordinary arrival, departure, and entering a location. - Gen 7:1 — "Come (bôʾ) thou and all thy house into the ark" - Exo 3:11 — "Who am I, that I should go (bôʾ) unto Pharaoh" - Ruth 1:22 — "they came (bôʾ) to Bethlehem in the beginning of barley harvest" - 1 Sam 1:19 — "came (bôʾ) to their house to Ramah"

2. Causative — bring, lead in, carry in (Hiphil)¶

Used for transporting people, goods, sacrifices, or news into a place. - Gen 4:3 — "Cain brought (bôʾ Hiphil) of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the LORD" - Lev 2:2 — "he shall bring (bôʾ) it to Aaron's sons the priests" - Exo 26:33 — "thou shalt bring in (bôʾ) thither within the vail the ark" - Dan 1:2 — "he brought (bôʾ) the vessels into the treasure house of his god"

3. Angelic or Divine Approach / Appearance¶

A person, messenger, or supernatural being arrives on the scene — often freighted with revelation. - Gen 32:6 — "the messengers returned to Jacob, saying, We came (bôʾ) to thy brother Esau" - Job 1:6 — "the sons of God came (bôʾ) to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan came (bôʾ) also" - Dan 8:17 — "So he came near (wayyāḇōʾ) where I stood" (Gabriel's approach to Daniel) - Dan 9:22 — "he informed me, and talked with me, and said, O Daniel, I am now come forth (bôʾ) to give thee skill" - Dan 10:12 — "thy words were heard, and I am come (bôʾ) for thy words" - Ezek 1:4 — "a whirlwind came (bôʾ) out of the north"

4. The Coming of a Day, Time, or Event¶

bôʾ is the verb of choice for time-events arriving, especially eschatological or judgment days. - Joel 1:15 — "the day of the LORD [is] at hand, and as a destruction from the Almighty shall it come (bôʾ)" - Joel 2:1 — "for the day of the LORD cometh (bôʾ), for it is nigh at hand" - Amos 4:2 — "the days shall come (bôʾ) upon you, that he will take you away with hooks" - Mal 3:1 — "the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come (bôʾ) to his temple... behold, he shall come (bôʾ)" - Mal 4:5 — "before the coming (bôʾ) of the great and dreadful day of the LORD" - Isa 13:9 — "the day of the LORD cometh (bôʾ), cruel both with wrath and fierce anger"

5. Prophetic Fulfillment — "come to pass"¶

Used for the actualization of a word, sign, promise, or threat. - Deu 13:2 — "the sign or the wonder come to pass (bôʾ)" - Jos 23:14 — "not one thing hath failed of all the good things which the LORD... spake concerning you; all are come to pass (bôʾ)" - 1 Sam 9:6 — "all that he saith cometh surely to pass (bôʾ)" - Isa 42:9 — "new things do I declare: before they spring forth I tell you of them" — fulfillment language in Isaiah often pairs with bôʾ for what "is come to pass" - Jer 32:24 — "that which thou hast spoken is come to pass (bôʾ); and, behold, thou seest it"

6. The Word of the LORD Coming¶

A prophetic formula: divine speech "arrives" at the prophet. - Jer 1:2 — "The word of the LORD came (bôʾ) unto him in the days of Josiah" (construction varies; hāyâh also common) - Ezek 1:3 — formula for prophetic call - 1 Sam 3:7 — "neither was the word of the LORD yet revealed unto him" (related formula) - Hag 1:1 — "came (bôʾ) the word of the LORD by Haggai the prophet"

7. Idiomatic — Besiege / Invade / Attain / Be Stricken in Age¶

Lexicon reflects specialized idioms produced by bôʾ + preposition or object. - Gen 24:1 — "Abraham was old, [and] well stricken in age (bôʾ bayyāmîm, lit. 'coming into the days')" - Deu 20:19 — "when thou shalt besiege (bôʾ) a city a long time" - 2 Ki 24:10 — "Nebuchadnezzar... came up (bôʾ) against Jerusalem, and the city was besieged" - 1 Ki 13:33 — "he consecrated him... and he became (bôʾ) [one of] the priests"

8. Sexual Euphemism — "go in unto"¶

A euphemism for sexual intercourse when bôʾ takes an animate object with ʼel. - Gen 6:4 — "the sons of God came in (bôʾ) unto the daughters of men" - Gen 16:2 — "go in (bôʾ), I pray thee, unto my maid" - Gen 38:18 — "he gave [it] her, and came in (bôʾ) unto her"

Common Collocations¶

Word	Strong's	Co-occurrences	Typical Pattern
אָמַר ʼâmar (say)	H559	615x (27%)	"came and said" — speech follows arrival
אֲשֶׁר ʼăsher (which/who)	H834	615x (27%)	relative clauses modifying the one(s) coming
יְהֹוָה YHWH	H3068	577x (25%)	"the LORD came/brought", "come before the LORD"
עַל ʻal (upon, against)	H5921	515x (22%)	"come upon" — judgment/invasion formula
כֹּל kôl (all)	H3605	502x (22%)	"all... came", "all shall come" — universal scope
לֹא lôʼ (not)	H3808	409x (18%)	negated coming — "shall not come" (prohibition/threat)
בֵּן bên (son)	H1121	341x (15%)	"sons of [Israel/Jacob] came"
אֶרֶץ ʼerets (land)	H776	340x (15%)	"come into the land" — exodus/conquest formula
בַּיִת bayith (house)	H1004	320x (14%)	"come into the house", "brought to the house of the LORD"
מֶלֶךְ melek (king)	H4428	319x (14%)	royal comings — "the king came/brought"
פָּנִים pânîym (face, before)	H6440	260x (11%)	"come before" — audience/cultic approach
יוֹם yôwm (day)	H3117	284x (12%)	"the day is come", "days shall come" — eschatology
הִנֵּה hinnêh (behold)	H2009	207x (9%)	"behold, [he/it/days] cometh" — prophetic announcement
עַם ʻam (people)	H5971	203x (9%)	"a people cometh" — invasion/pilgrimage

Word Family / Cognates¶

H935 is a primitive root with no verbal cognates in BDB; nominal derivatives include: - מָבוֹא mabôʾ (H3996) — "entrance, going in, setting (of sun)" - בִּיאָה bîʾâh (H872) — "entrance, coming in" (rare) - תְּבוּאָה tᵉbûʼâh (H8393) — "produce, increase" (what is brought in — agricultural harvest)

Synonyms¶

נָטָה אֹזֶן — idiomatic overlap surfaced by search_relationships.py.
H8085 שָׁמַע (shâmaʻ) — hear, heed, obey; surfaced by search_relationships.py as a secondary overlap rather than a direct motion synonym.

Antonyms¶

No antonyms returned by search_relationships.py for H935.

Easily Confused Words (KJV translation overlap)¶

Word	Strong's	Shared KJV	Key Difference
הָיָה hâyâh	H1961	"came" (125 shared verses)	hâyâh = "became, happened"; bôʾ = spatial/temporal arrival of a subject
יָלַךְ yâlak	H3212	"come", "went" (50+ shared)	yâlak = walk, go away; bôʾ = arrive, go toward/into
יָצָא yâtsâʼ	H3318	"came", "cometh"	yâtsâʼ = go out, proceed from; bôʾ = go in, arrive at (mirror verb)
עָלָה ʻâlâh	H5927	"shall come", "come up"	ʻâlâh = ascend, go up; bôʾ = come/enter without elevation sense
הָלַךְ hâlak	H1980	"shall come"	hâlak = walk, travel; bôʾ = arrive at destination
שׁוּב shûwb	H7725	"cometh"	shûwb = return, turn back; bôʾ = come (first arrival)
אָתָה ʼâthâh	H857	"cometh"	poetic/Aramaic cognate of bôʾ, same sense but rare (21x)

Easily Confused Words (LXX bridge overlap)¶

Through G2064 ἔρχομαι and G1525 εἰσέρχομαι, the LXX conflates bôʾ with several other motion verbs: - hâlak (H1980), yâlak (H3212) — both also rendered ἔρχομαι in some contexts - hâyâh (H1961) — rendered γίνομαι/ἔρχομαι in "come to pass" contexts - ʻâlâh (H5927) — rendered ἀναβαίνω mainly but also ἔρχομαι - yâtsâʼ (H3318) — rendered ἐξέρχομαι (inverse pair: "go out" vs "come in")

UBS Semantic Domains¶

Code	Domain Label	Notes
002002001012	Move	Core motion domain: come, go, enter, arrive.
002003003003	Bear	Matches the Hiphil causative sense "bring, carry in, lead in."
002002003003	Happen	Matches temporal/event-arrival uses such as "the day cometh" and "come to pass."
002003002006	Conflict	Fits invasion and siege uses where people or armies "come against."
002001001047	Sex	Covers the euphemistic "go in unto" usage.

search_relationships.py surfaced a broader UBS cluster for H935 because the verb spans motion, causation, event-arrival, invasion, and euphemism; the rows above are the clearest matches to the established categories already documented in this study.

LXX Mapping¶

Greek Equivalent	Strong's	Co-occ	PMI	Notes
ἔρχομαι érchomai	G2064	654	3.14	Primary bridge — general "come"
εἰσέρχομαι eisérchomai	G1525	522	3.23	Compound — "enter into", highest PMI
ἥκω hḗkō	G2240	185	3.16	"arrive, be present" — eschatological/emphatic
εἰσπορεύομαι eisporeúomai	G1531	121	3.19	"enter" — synonymous with eisérchomai
παραγίνομαι paragínomai	G3854	106	3.18	"approach, become present"
εἰσάγω eiságō	G1521	112	3.10	Hiphil-causative — "bring in"
φέρω phérō	G5342	144	2.77	Hiphil-causative — "carry, bring"
εἰσφέρω eisphérō	G1533	69	3.17	"carry in" (Hiphil compound)
ἐπάγω epágō	G1863	66	2.59	"bring upon" (judgment)
ἄγω ágō	G71	84	2.44	"lead" (Hiphil)

Total top-10 coverage: >2,060 alignments. The LXX overwhelmingly splits bôʾ into érchomai (Qal "come") and eisérchomai/eisporeúomai (Qal "enter"), with eiságō/phérō/eisphérō carrying the Hiphil "bring" sense.