7627. Shebat
Lexical Summary
Shebat: Shebat

Original Word: שְׁבָט
Part of Speech: Noun
Transliteration: Shbat
Pronunciation: sheh-BAHT
Phonetic Spelling: (sheb-awt')
KJV: Sebat
NASB: Shebat
Word Origin: [of foreign origin]

1. Shebat, a Jewish month

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
Sebat

Of foreign origin; Shebat, a Jewish month -- Sebat.

NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Origin
of foreign origin
Definition
eleventh month in the Jewish calendar
NASB Translation
Shebat (1).

Brown-Driver-Briggs
שְׁבָט proper name, month Shebat, 11th month (post-exilic) = Feb.-March; loan-word from Babylonian Šabâ‰u (COTNehemiah 1:1 DlWB), Zechariah 1:7 (derived from šabâ‰u, strike, kill destroy (DlProl 38; WB), LyonBib Sacr Apr. (1884), 384 JenZA iv (1889), 273 Muss-ArnJBL xi (1892) 171 f. and others, as month of destroying rain; another conjecture in ZimKAT 3. 594 n; this month called שבט also in Nabataean, Palmyrene, see Lzb SAC111)

שְׁבִי, שִׁבְיָה, שְׁבִית see שׁבה.

שׁבל (√ of following; compare Arabic IV. cause to hang down, flowing dress; Assyrian šubultu, sunbultu (Meissn), Arabic , (BaNB 207), Ethiopic Aramaic שֻׁבַלְתָּא , all ear of grain).

Topical Lexicon
Meaning and Calendar Placement

Shebat is the eleventh month of the biblical sacred calendar that begins with Nisan (Exodus 12:2). On the civil calendar that starts with Tishri, it is the fifth month. Falling in the heart of winter, Shebat aligns with the latter part of January and the first part of February on the Gregorian calendar. Its position after Tevet and before Adar places it in the season of the latter rains, with the land beginning to show the earliest signs of new life through sprouting almond blossoms.

Scriptural Setting in Zechariah 1:7

Zechariah 1:7 offers the only canonical occurrence of the name: “On the twenty-fourth day of the eleventh month, the month of Shebat, in the second year of Darius, the word of the Lord came to the prophet Zechariah … ”. The dating anchors the prophet’s night visions in January-February 519 BC during the early years of the return from exile. The context emphasizes divine initiative—the “word of the Lord came”—reminding the post-exilic community that the covenant God continues to speak with precision in time and history.

Historical Background

By the second year of Darius I, the first wave of Judean exiles had been back in the land for nearly two decades, yet the temple remained unfinished (Ezra 4:24–5:2). Economic hardship, external opposition, and internal discouragement marked the era. Haggai had stirred the people to resume building in the sixth month of that same year (Haggai 1:1). Five months later, in Shebat, Zechariah received a series of visions to sustain that momentum. Thus Shebat became a pivotal moment in the rebuilding process and in the prophetic call to covenant faithfulness.

Prophetic Significance

1. Timing of Vision: Recording the exact date underscores the reliability of prophetic revelation. Just as God ordered creation by days and seasons (Genesis 1), He marks redemptive history by specific moments such as “the twenty-fourth day of Shebat.”
2. Content of Visions (Zechariah 1:8–6:15): The night visions include the rider among the myrtle trees, the measuring line, the cleansing of Joshua the high priest, and the golden lampstand—messages assuring Judah of divine watchfulness, purification, and future glory. The month of Shebat thereby stands as a memorial to God’s comforting assurance amid rebuilding.
3. Alignment with Agricultural Imagery: The almond tree, first to bloom in Israel’s winter, symbolizes wakefulness (Jeremiah 1:11–12). Its blossoming in Shebat parallels the prophetic theme of God watching over His word to perform it—a truth graphically conveyed in Zechariah’s oracles.

Theological Implications

• Covenant Continuity: Even in the low ebb of Jewish national life, God’s word arrives on schedule, confirming His unbroken covenant commitment.
• Sovereign Control of History: By rooting prophecy in a Persian regnal year and a specific month, Scripture shows divine sovereignty working through and above pagan empires.
• Hope in Winter: Shebat’s position in the coldest season testifies that new beginnings often emerge in times that appear dormant. The visions assure the remnant that barren conditions do not hinder God’s purposes.

Liturgical and Ministry Application

• Annual Reflection: In Jewish tradition, the fifteenth of Shebat (Tu BiShevat) highlights trees’ first fruits, prompting thanksgiving for God’s provision. Christians may similarly use the month to celebrate spiritual fruitfulness that God brings after seasons of waiting.
• Preaching Calendar: Zechariah’s messages on repentance (Zechariah 1:3–4) and future restoration suit church emphases leading into Lent, when many believers search their hearts and renew commitment to God’s work.
• Leadership Lessons: Temple reconstruction stalled until prophetic encouragement arrived. Modern ministry leaders can draw from Shebat’s narrative the principle that vision sustains labor and that God often revives stagnant projects through timely proclamation of His word.

Lessons for Believers

1. God speaks precisely and purposefully; every date He records carries meaning.
2. Seasons of apparent dormancy can become seasons of divine revelation and renewed mission.
3. Faithfulness in difficult climates—both literal and spiritual—prepares the ground for future flourishing.
4. The same Lord who directed Zechariah in Shebat remains the One who directs His people today, calling them to repent, rebuild, and rejoice in His unfailing promises.

Forms and Transliterations
שְׁבָ֔ט שבט šə·ḇāṭ šəḇāṭ sheVat
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Interlinear GreekInterlinear HebrewStrong's NumbersEnglishman's Greek ConcordanceEnglishman's Hebrew ConcordanceParallel Texts
Englishman's Concordance
Zechariah 1:7
HEB: הוּא־ חֹ֣דֶשׁ שְׁבָ֔ט בִּשְׁנַ֥ת שְׁתַּ֖יִם
NAS: is the month Shebat, in the second
KJV: which [is] the month Sebat, in the second
INT: which is the month Shebat year the second

1 Occurrence

Strong's Hebrew 7627
1 Occurrence


šə·ḇāṭ — 1 Occ.

7626
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