Lexical Summary Shoa: Wealth, opulence, noble Original Word: שׁוֹעַ Strong's Exhaustive Concordance Shoa The same as showa'; rich; Shoa, an Oriental people -- Shoa. see HEBREW showa' NAS Exhaustive Concordance Word Originfrom shava Definition probably nomads E. of the Tigris and in the Syrian desert NASB Translation Shoa (1). Brown-Driver-Briggs III. שׁוֺעַ proper name, of a people Ezekiel 23:23 usually identified with Assyrian Sutû, Sutî, nomads of Mesop. and (later) east of Tigris, DlPa 234 ff. COTon the passage WklKAT 3. 22 DtHast. DB KOA. Topical Lexicon ShoaHistorical background Shoa appears once in the Old Testament (Ezekiel 23:23) as the name of a nation or tribal group enlisted in the Babylonian coalition that marched against Jerusalem. Outside the Bible the name is almost certainly identical with the Aramean tribe Šutu (or Šuʾu) mentioned in Neo-Assyrian inscriptions from the ninth to seventh centuries B.C. These texts place the tribe along the middle Euphrates and in the eastern deserts of Babylonia—territory that later came firmly under Babylonian control. Assyrian monarchs such as Tiglath-Pileser III and Sennacherib list Šutu among peoples they subdued, and Babylonian records show the same group serving in Babylon’s armies. Ezekiel’s single reference therefore matches the known political landscape of the early sixth century B.C., when Aramean tribes had been absorbed into the Babylonian military machine. Geographical setting Ancient Suhu/Šutu lay east of the Euphrates, from approximately the modern Iraqi-Syrian border down toward central Babylonia. Its location explains why Ezekiel names Shoa immediately after “the Chaldeans” and before “the Assyrians,” for all three peoples occupied adjoining Mesopotamian regions that together comprised the forces of Nebuchadnezzar II in 597‒586 B.C. Scriptural occurrence Ezekiel 23:22-24 forms part of the extended parable of Oholah (Samaria) and Oholibah (Jerusalem). Having likened Judah to an unfaithful wife, the prophet declares that the same foreign lovers Judah once courted will become her executioners: “Therefore, Oholibah, this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘Behold, I will stir up your lovers against you… the Babylonians and all the Chaldeans, Pekod, Shoa, and Koa, and all the Assyrians with them—handsome young men, governors and commanders, all of them officers and men of renown.’” (Ezekiel 23:22-23) Shoa’s role is thus strictly martial: it contributes troops to the multinational force God appoints to discipline His covenant people. Prophetic significance 1. Authenticity of Ezekiel’s message. The prophet, writing in exile, lists minor tribal names—Pekod, Shoa, and Koa—that only a contemporary observer would know. Their presence supports the historical reliability of Scripture and the accuracy of Ezekiel’s firsthand testimony. Theological and ministry insights • God’s memory is perfect; He remembers every covenant breach and addresses it in His time, sometimes through unexpected instruments such as Shoa. Key related references Ezekiel 23 (full context of the parable) 2 Kings 20:12-18; Isaiah 39 (Hezekiah’s Babylonian alliance) Jeremiah 25:8-14 (Babylon as the servant of God’s wrath) Habakkuk 1:5-11 (foreign armies raised up for judgment) Forms and Transliterations וְשׁ֙וֹעַ֙ ושוע veShoaLinks Interlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel TextsEnglishman's Concordance Ezekiel 23:23 HEB: כַּשְׂדִּ֗ים פְּק֤וֹד וְשׁ֙וֹעַ֙ וְק֔וֹעַ כָּל־ NAS: Pekod and Shoa and Koa, KJV: Pekod, and Shoa, and Koa, INT: the Chaldeans Pekod and Shoa and Koa all 1 Occurrence |
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