3173. yachid

Lexical Summary

yachid: Only, solitary, unique, beloved

Original Word: יָחִיד
Part of Speech: Adjective; substantive
Transliteration: yachiyd
Pronunciation: yah-kheed'
Phonetic Spelling: (yaw-kheed')
KJV: darling, desolate, only (child, son), solitary
NASB: only, only son, lonely, one and child
Word Origin: [from H3161 (יָחַד - united)]

1. (properly) united, i.e. sole
2. (by implication) beloved
3. (also) lonely
4. (feminine) the life (as not to be replaced)

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance

darling, desolate, only child, son, solitary

From yachad; properly, united, i.e. Sole; by implication, beloved; also lonely; (feminine) the life (as not to be replaced) -- darling, desolate, only (child, son), solitary.

see HEBREW yachad

NAS Exhaustive Concordance

Word Origin
from yachad
Definition
only, only one, solitary
NASB Translation
lonely (2), one and child (1), only (5), only son (4).

Brown-Driver-Briggs

יָחִיד adjective and substantive only, only one, solitary (Late Hebrew id.; Aramaic יָחִיד, יְחִידַי, , , id.; Arabic solitary) —

1 only one, especially of an only son, Genesis 22:2,12,16 את בנך את יְחִידְךָ thy son, thine only one, אֵבֶל יָחִיד Amos 8:10; Jeremiah 6:26 mourning for an only son, כמספד על היחיד Zechariah 12:10; Proverbs 4:3 רַךְ וְיָחִיד לפני אמי; so feminine יְחִידָה Judges 11:34.

2 feminine יְחִידָה as substantive Psalm 22:21; Psalm 35:17 יְחִידָתִי my only one, poetic for my life, as the one unique and priceless possession which can never be replaced (in each "" נַפְשִׁי).

3 solitary, Psalm 25:16 כי יחיד ועני אני; Psalm 68:7 מוֺשִׁיב יְחִידִים בַּיְתָה causing solitary, isolated ones (i.e. friendless wanderers or exiles; "" אֲסִירִים) to dwell at home (Lag Ch and others מֵשִׁיב bringing back home).

Topical Lexicon

Meaning and Nuances

יָחִיד conveys the idea of absolute uniqueness—an “only one” whose value is heightened by being without equal or substitute. The noun may describe an only child (Genesis 22:2), a solitary soul in danger (Psalm 35:17), or a lone figure left in grief (Jeremiah 6:26). It therefore carries emotional weight: preciousness, vulnerability, and irreplaceability.

Occurrences and Contexts

• Genesis 22:2, 12, 16 – Isaac is repeatedly called Abraham’s יָחִיד, underscoring the costliness of the commanded sacrifice and the faith required to entrust an irreplaceable son to God.
• Judges 11:34 – Jephthah’s daughter, his “only child,” highlights the tragic consequences of rash vows and intensifies the pathos of the narrative.
• Psalm 22:20; 35:17 – David pleads, “Deliver my soul from the sword, my precious life (יָחִיד) from the power of the dog” (Psalm 22:20). The psalmist equates his lone life with something uniquely treasured, foreshadowing the Messiah’s suffering.
• Psalm 68:6 – God “settles the lonely in families,” showing His compassion toward the יָחִיד by giving covenant community.
• Proverbs 4:3 – Solomon remembers being “the only son in the sight of my mother,” framing parental instruction as a treasure entrusted to a single heir.
• Jeremiah 6:26; Amos 8:10; Zechariah 12:10 – Prophetic laments compare national grief to mourning for an only son, signaling the depth of sorrow tied to the loss of an irreplaceable life.

Theological Significance

1. Covenant Fulfillment. Isaac, the יָחִיד of Abraham, is the child through whom covenant promises flow (Genesis 17:19). His near-sacrifice foreshadows God’s provision of substitutionary atonement (Genesis 22:13-14).
2. Divine Ownership. By calling for Abraham’s יָחִיד, God asserts ultimate ownership over what humans deem most precious, teaching that covenant loyalty surpasses familial bonds.
3. Redemptive Pattern. The repeated plea for the protection of the יָחִיד (Psalms) anticipates the Father’s preservation of His Beloved until the appointed hour (John 10:17-18).

Messianic Foreshadowing

Zechariah 12:10 looks ahead: “They will look on Me, the One they have pierced, and they will mourn for Him as one mourns for an only son,” blending Yahweh’s voice with the image of a pierced יָחִיד. The verse prepares the way for the New Testament revelation of Jesus Christ as the μονογενής, “only begotten” (John 3:16), the ultimate fulfillment of the יָחִיד motif.

Pastoral and Devotional Applications

• Assurance of God’s Care. Psalm 68:6 comforts those who feel isolated; God places the יָחִיד into family, offering church fellowship to spiritual orphans.
• Costly Obedience. Genesis 22 challenges believers to surrender their “Isaacs”—whatever is most treasured—trusting that God provides.
• Hope in Grief. Prophetic laments validate profound mourning while pointing to the resurrection hope found in the One who conquered death on behalf of every יָחִיד who trusts Him.

Connections in the New Testament

The semantic bridge from יָחִיד to Greek μονογενής highlights continuity between Old and New Covenants. Jesus is the Father’s unique, beloved Son, the irreplaceable sacrifice anticipated in Isaac, lamented in the Psalms, and pierced in Zechariah. Believers, united to Christ, become “beloved children” (Ephesians 5:1), no longer solitary but incorporated into the household of God.

Thus the thread of יָחִיד weaves through Scripture, from the lonely patriarchal heights of Moriah to the communal joy of redeemed saints, displaying the unwavering faithfulness of the God who gives, spares, and restores the “only one.”

Forms and Transliterations

הַיָּחִ֔יד היחיד וְ֝יָחִ֗יד ויחיד יְחִֽידְךָ֤ יְחִידְךָ֖ יְחִידִ֨ים ׀ יְחִידֶֽךָ׃ יְחִידָ֔ה יְחִידָתִֽי׃ יָחִ֔יד יָחִ֖יד יָחִיד֙ יחיד יחידה יחידים יחידך יחידך׃ יחידתי׃ haiyaChid hay·yā·ḥîḏ hayyāḥîḏ veyaChid wə·yā·ḥîḏ wəyāḥîḏ yā·ḥîḏ yaChid yāḥîḏ yə·ḥî·ḏā·ṯî yə·ḥî·ḏāh yə·ḥî·ḏe·ḵā yə·ḥî·ḏə·ḵā yə·ḥî·ḏîm yechiDah yechidaTi yechideCha yechiDim yəḥîḏāh yəḥîḏāṯî yəḥîḏeḵā yəḥîḏəḵā yəḥîḏîm

Englishman's Concordance

Genesis 22:2
HEB: בִּנְךָ֨ אֶת־ יְחִֽידְךָ֤ אֲשֶׁר־ אָהַ֙בְתָּ֙
NAS: your son, your only son, whom
KJV: thy son, thine only [son] Isaac,
INT: now your son your only whom love

Genesis 22:12
HEB: בִּנְךָ֥ אֶת־ יְחִידְךָ֖ מִמֶּֽנִּי׃
NAS: your son, your only son, from Me.
KJV: thy son, thine only [son] from me.
INT: withheld your son your only at

Genesis 22:16
HEB: בִּנְךָ֥ אֶת־ יְחִידֶֽךָ׃
NAS: your son, your only son,
KJV: withheld thy son, thine only [son]:
INT: withheld your son your only

Judges 11:34
HEB: וְרַק֙ הִ֣יא יְחִידָ֔ה אֵֽין־ ל֥וֹ
NAS: and with dancing. Now she was his one [and] only
KJV: and with dances: and she [was his] only child; beside her he had neither son
INT: but now she was his one had besides

Psalm 22:20
HEB: מִיַּד־ כֶּ֝֗לֶב יְחִידָתִֽי׃
NAS: from the sword, My only [life] from the power
KJV: from the sword; my darling from the power
INT: the power of the dog my only

Psalm 25:16
HEB: וְחָנֵּ֑נִי כִּֽי־ יָחִ֖יד וְעָנִ֣י אָֽנִי׃
NAS: to me and be gracious to me, For I am lonely and afflicted.
KJV: thee unto me, and have mercy upon me; for I [am] desolate and afflicted.
INT: be gracious For I am lonely and afflicted I

Psalm 35:17
HEB: מִשֹּׁאֵיהֶ֑ם מִ֝כְּפִירִ֗ים יְחִידָתִֽי׃
NAS: from their ravages, My only [life] from the lions.
KJV: from their destructions, my darling from the lions.
INT: their ravages the lions my only

Psalm 68:6
HEB: אֱלֹהִ֤ים ׀ מ֘וֹשִׁ֤יב יְחִידִ֨ים ׀ בַּ֗יְתָה מוֹצִ֣יא
NAS: a home for the lonely; He leads
KJV: setteth the solitary in families:
INT: God makes the lonely A home leads

Proverbs 4:3
HEB: לְאָבִ֑י רַ֥ךְ וְ֝יָחִ֗יד לִפְנֵ֥י אִמִּֽי׃
NAS: Tender and the only son in the sight
KJV: tender and only [beloved] in the sight
INT: to my father Tender and the only the sight of my mother

Jeremiah 6:26
HEB: בָאֵ֔פֶר אֵ֤בֶל יָחִיד֙ עֲשִׂ֣י לָ֔ךְ
NAS: Mourn as for an only son, A lamentation
KJV: thee mourning, [as for] an only son, most bitter
INT: ashes Mourn an only make A lamentation

Amos 8:10
HEB: וְשַׂמְתִּ֙יהָ֙ כְּאֵ֣בֶל יָחִ֔יד וְאַחֲרִיתָ֖הּ כְּי֥וֹם
NAS: it like [a time of] mourning for an only son, And the end
KJV: it as the mourning of an only [son], and the end
INT: will make mourning an only and the end day

Zechariah 12:10
HEB: כְּמִסְפֵּד֙ עַל־ הַיָּחִ֔יד וְהָמֵ֥ר עָלָ֖יו
NAS: for Him, as one mourns for an only son, and they will weep
KJV: for him, as one mourneth for [his] only [son], and shall be in bitterness
INT: mourns over an only will weep over

12 Occurrences

Strong's Hebrew 3173
12 Occurrences

hay·yā·ḥîḏ — 1 Occ.
wə·yā·ḥîḏ — 1 Occ.
yā·ḥîḏ — 3 Occ.
yə·ḥî·ḏāh — 1 Occ.
yə·ḥî·ḏā·ṯî — 2 Occ.
yə·ḥî·ḏə·ḵā — 3 Occ.
yə·ḥî·ḏîm — 1 Occ.