Gibborim (biblical)

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Gibborim (Hebrew: גִּבֹּרִ֛ים, romanized: gībbōrīm, singular גִּבֹּר gībbor) is a Hebrew word that can be glossed "mightiest" and is an intensive form of the word for "man" (גֶּבֶר geḇer). In the Hebrew Bible, it is used to describe people who are valiant, mighty, or of great stature. There is some confusion about the gibborim as a class of beings because of its use in the Genesis flood narrative in Genesis 6:4, which describes the Nephilim as mighty (gibborim).

The word gibborim is used in the Tanakh over 150 times and applied to men as well as lions (Proverbs 30:30), hunters (Genesis 10:9), soldiers (Jeremiah 51:30) and leaders (Daniel 11:3). The word is also applied to David's Mighty Warriors, a group of 37 men who fought with King David in 2 Samuel 23:8–38.

In Modern Hebrew, the word gibbor (גִּבּוֹר) equates with the English word "hero" as a noun or brave as an adjective.