שֶׁמֶשׁ

Sun

SHEH-mesh

About “Sun” in Hebrew

The sun plays a crucial role in Jewish law, as Shabbat and holidays begin and end at sunset (shkiah). The blessing over the sun (Birkat HaChamah) is recited only once every 28 years when the sun returns to its position at creation. In Israel, abundant sunshine has made the country a global leader in solar energy technology and solar water heating, found on nearly every rooftop.

Example

הַשֶּׁמֶשׁ זוֹרַחַת בַּבֹּקֶר.
The sun rises in the morning.

Gematria of “Sun” (שמש)

In Hebrew numerology (gematria), each letter has a numerical value. The word שמש (SHEH-mesh) has a gematria value of 640.

300ש+
40מ+
300ש
 =
total640

Sun” in the Bible

Verses from the Torah and Hebrew Bible (Tanakh) mentioning “sun”.

Amos 8:9עמוס 8:9

והיה ביום ההוא נאם אדני יהוה והבאתי השמש בצהרים והחשכתי לארץ ביום אור

And in that day —declares the Sovereign GOD — I will make the sun set at noon, I will darken the earth on a sunny day.

Daniel 6:15דניאל 6:15

אדין מלכא כדי מלתא שמע שגיא באש עלוהי ועל דניאל שם בל לשיזבותה ועד מעלי שמשא הוא משתדר להצלותה

Upon hearing that, the king was very disturbed, and he set his heart upon saving Daniel, and until the sun set made every effort to rescue him.

Deuteronomy 4:19דברים 4:19

ופן תשא עיניך השמימה וראית את השמש ואת הירח ואת הכוכבים כל צבא השמים ונדחת והשתחוית להם ועבדתם אשר חלק יהוה אלהיך אתם לכל העמים תחת כל השמים

And when you look up to the sky and behold the sun and the moon and the stars, the whole heavenly host, you must not be lured into bowing down to them or serving them. These the ETERNAL your God allotted to other peoples everywhere under heaven—

English translation: THE JPS TANAKH, Revised Edition (2023) © Jewish Publication Society, via Sefaria. CC BY-NC 4.0

This word starts with the Hebrew letter shin.

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