Chai is a short word with an enormous reach. In Hebrew it simply means life, or living.
The word sits at the root of some of the most important names and phrases in Scripture. God is described as El Chai, the living God, distinguishing Him from lifeless idols. Eve, the first woman, is named for this word, described in Genesis 3 as “the mother of all the living.” Be’er Lachai Ro’i, the place where Hagar meets an angel in the wilderness, carries the same word inside it too, “the well of the Living One who sees me.”
There is also a beautiful tradition connected to this word. In Hebrew, letters carry numerical values, and the two letters that spell chai add up to eighteen. For generations, this has made eighteen a number associated with life and blessing, often chosen for gifts and donations given with the hope of a long and full life.
The root also hides in phrases we all know:
– “L’chaim,” to life, the toast raised over every celebratory glass
– “Uvacharta bachaim,” “choose life,” the call in Deuteronomy 30:19
– “Ba’al chaim,” “ba’alei chaim,” any living, breathing creature
– “Am Yisrael Chai,” one of the most famous phrases ever said about the Jewish people, which became a song of its own
A single short word, and inside it, a whole way of blessing someone: not just to exist, but to truly live.
