שֶׂה

“Lamb” in Hebrew is Seh (שֶׂה), pronounced “SEH.” Seh (שֶׂה) is a general term for a young animal of the flock — either a lamb or a kid (goat). The related word 'taleh' (טָלֶה) specifically means a young lamb. 'Kebes' (כֶּבֶשׂ) refers to a male lamb used in sacrifice. The simplicity of the word seh — just two letters — mirrors the innocence and vulnerability of the animal it describes.

Seh (שֶׂה) means “Lamb, sheep, young animal of the flock” in Biblical Hebrew. Seh appears 47 times in the Hebrew Bible. Key passages include Abraham's prophetic declaration on Moriah (Genesis 22:8), the Passover lamb instructions (Exodus 12:3-5), and the Suffering Servant compared to a lamb led to slaughter (Isaiah 53:7). The daily Temple service required two lambs — one in the morning and one at twilight (Exodus 29:38-39) — a perpetual offering that never ceased until the Temple's destruction.

Seh is pronounced “SEH.” The word comes from the Hebrew root שׂ-ה.

Exodus 12:5 specifies that the Passover seh must be 'without blemish' (tamim) — perfect, whole, without defect. This requirement pointed to the costliness of redemption: you could not offer God your leftovers or your damaged goods. The unblemished lamb foreshadowed Jesus, whom Peter describes as 'a lamb without blemish or spot' (1 Peter 1:19) — the sinless One who could bear the sins of the world precisely because He had none of His own.

Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem on the tenth of Nisan (Palm Sunday) coincided exactly with the day each family selected their Passover lamb (Exodus 12:3). For four days, the lamb was inspected for blemishes; during the same four days, Jesus was tested and questioned by Pharisees, Sadducees, and Herodians — and found 'without fault' (Luke 23:4). He was crucified at the ninth hour (3 PM), the exact time the Passover lambs were slaughtered in the Temple. The timing was not coincidental — it was fulfillment.

When John the Baptist declared 'Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world,' he was making an explosive theological statement. He was identifying Jesus as the fulfillment of every lamb ever sacrificed: the Passover lamb of Exodus 12, the daily Temple lamb of Exodus 29, the lamb of Isaiah 53:7, and the lamb God would 'provide for Himself' that Abraham prophesied in Genesis 22:8. One Lamb to end all lambs — one sacrifice to accomplish what millions of sacrificed animals could never do.