7933. sheken

Lexical Summary

sheken: Neighbor, inhabitant

Original Word: שֶׁכֶן
Part of Speech: Noun Masculine
Transliteration: sheken
Pronunciation: SHEH-ken
Phonetic Spelling: (sheh'-ken)
KJV: habitation
Word Origin: [from H7931 (שָׁכַן - dwell)]

1. a residence

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance

habitation

From shakan; a residence -- habitation.

see HEBREW shakan

NAS Exhaustive Concordance

Word Origin
another reading for shakan, q.v.

Brown-Driver-Briggs

[שֵׁ֫כֶן?] noun masculine dwelling; — suffix שִׁכְנוֺ Deuteronomy 12:5 (compare שכן dwelling Ecclus 14:25), but see v

Pi`el above

Topical Lexicon

Canonical Setting

The word שֶׁכֶן (Strong’s 7933) appears once, in Deuteronomy 12:5, where Moses commands Israel, “Instead, you must seek the place the LORD your God will choose from among all your tribes to put His Name there; you are to go there, to His dwelling”. The context is the call to abandon the local high places of Canaan and to centralize worship at the single site Yahweh would choose. The noun names that divinely chosen “dwelling,” emphasizing not merely a building but the sacred reality of God’s settled presence among His covenant people.

Historical Development of the Divine Dwelling

1. Wilderness: Until the land was possessed, the portable tabernacle symbolized the same truth encapsulated by שֶׁכֶן—Yahweh dwelling in the midst of His people (Exodus 25:8–9).
2. Conquest and Judges: The ark rested at Gilgal, Shiloh, Nob, and Gibeon, yet these interim sites anticipated the permanent שֶׁכֶן to be revealed.
3. Monarchy: The promise reached provisional fulfillment when Solomon built the first temple in Jerusalem (1 Kings 8:10–13). The cloud of glory filling the house showed that the שֶׁכֶן motif was realized there.
4. Exile and Return: Ezekiel’s vision of a future temple (Ezekiel 43:7) re-affirmed God’s intent to restore His dwelling among a purified people.
5. Messianic Fulfillment: John writes that “the Word became flesh and dwelt [literally ‘tabernacled’] among us” (John 1:14), linking Jesus Christ to the Old Testament idea of שֶׁכֶן.
6. Consummation: Revelation 21:3 echoes the same hope—“Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man”—promising an eternal, perfected שֶׁכֶן in the new creation.

Covenantal and Theological Significance

• Exclusive Worship: By locating His Name at one dwelling, God eradicated syncretism and localized pagan worship (Deuteronomy 12:2–4).
• National Unity: A single sanctuary gathered all tribes before one altar, reinforcing Israel’s unity under the covenant (Psalm 122:3–4).
• Holiness and Access: Approach to the שֶׁכֶן required sacrifice, mediating priesthood, and personal consecration, foreshadowing Christ’s once-for-all offering (Hebrews 9:11–14).
• Revelation of Character: The indwelling God is both transcendent—choosing the place—and immanent—living among His people (Isaiah 57:15).

Ministry Implications

• Worship Centers on God’s Presence: Biblical ministry—whether temple liturgy, synagogue reading, or church gathering—finds its validity in hosting and honoring the divine presence, not in architectural grandeur.
• Guarding Purity: Just as the Israelites were commanded to “seek” and “go” to the designated dwelling, believers pursue holiness that God’s Spirit may freely reside among them (1 Corinthians 3:16–17).
• Mission and Witness: The concentrated presence at a single location in the Old Testament expands in the New Testament to a global witness, the church becoming a “holy temple in the Lord” (Ephesians 2:21).

Typology and Christology

• Tabernacle/Temple → Christ: Every feature of the Old Testament dwelling foreshadows the incarnation—veil, altar, bread, lampstand—fulfilled in the person and work of Jesus.
• Christ → Church: As the indwelling Spirit unites believers to Christ, they collectively become God’s present-day שֶׁכֶן.
• Eschatological Hope: The faith community now lives between two certainties—the accomplished dwelling in Christ and the coming eternal dwelling where no temple is needed (Revelation 21:22).

Practical Application

1. Seek His Presence: Like Israel commanded to “seek” the dwelling, disciples actively pursue communion with God through Word, prayer, and obedience.
2. Maintain Corporate Unity: Respect for the one dwelling place translates into New Covenant unity around the gospel (Philippians 2:2).
3. Cultivate Holiness: The sanctity of the שֶׁכֶן calls believers to personal and congregational purity (1 Peter 1:15–16).
4. Hope Steadfastly: Assurance that God desires to dwell with His people sustains perseverance amid trials (2 Corinthians 6:16–18).

Summary

Although שֶׁכֶן occurs only once, it condenses a sweeping biblical theme: the God who chooses to reside with His redeemed people. From Sinai to Zion, from manger to millennial kingdom, and finally in the new Jerusalem, the storyline of Scripture moves toward ever-deepening fellowship between Creator and creatures. The single occurrence in Deuteronomy 12:5 thus serves as a vital hinge, pointing backward to the tabernacle, forward to the temple, and ultimately to Christ and the consummated kingdom where “the LORD will be their everlasting light” (Isaiah 60:19).

Forms and Transliterations

לְשִׁכְנ֥וֹ לשכנו lə·šiḵ·nōw leshichNo ləšiḵnōw

Englishman's Concordance

Deuteronomy 12:5
HEB: שְׁמ֖וֹ שָׁ֑ם לְשִׁכְנ֥וֹ תִדְרְשׁ֖וּ וּבָ֥אתָ
KJV: his name there, [even] unto his habitation shall ye seek,
INT: his name there his habitation shall seek shall come

1 Occurrence

Strong's Hebrew 7933
1 Occurrence

lə·šiḵ·nōw — 1 Occ.