Lexical Summary hovah: Ruin, disaster, mischief Original Word: הָוה Strong's Exhaustive Concordance mischief Another form for havvah; ruin -- mischief. see HEBREW havvah NAS Exhaustive Concordance Word Originfrom havah Definition a ruin, disaster NASB Translation disaster (3). Brown-Driver-Briggs הֹוָה noun feminine ruin, disaster (compare below הַוָּה) Ezekiel 7:26 הֹוָה עַל הֹוָה תָבוֺא disaster shall come upon disaster, Isaiah 47:11 וְתִמֹּל עָלַיִךְ הֹוָה disaster shall fall upon thee ("" רָעָה, שֹׁאָה). Topical Lexicon Root Meaning and Imagery The noun conveys an overwhelming calamity that “befalls” and “falls upon” its target. The imagery suggests something collapsing in upon itself—ruin that is both sudden and inescapable. The term is never used of ordinary hardship; it signals a divinely ordained catastrophe breaking through every human defense. Occurrences in Scripture • Isaiah 47:11 portrays the collapse of imperial Babylon: “Disaster will befall you; you will not know how to charm it away. A calamity will strike you that you cannot ward off. Devastation you cannot anticipate will suddenly come upon you.” The double use in Ezekiel intensifies the certainty and cumulative nature of the judgment. Prophetic Usage and Theological Emphases 1. Divine Initiative. In every occurrence the calamity is not random but the deliberate outworking of God’s righteous judgment. Historical Setting Isaiah 47 addresses Babylon near the close of the Exile, foretelling the empire’s downfall to the Persians. Ezekiel 7 speaks in 592–591 B.C., a few years before Jerusalem’s destruction by Babylon in 586 B.C. Thus the term bookends the Exilic period: first on Jerusalem, then on her captor, reinforcing that no nation is exempt from divine justice. Relationship to Other Hebrew Terms for Judgment Unlike שֶׁבֶר (sheber, “breakage”) or חָרֶב (charev, “sword”), this word stresses the event’s internal collapse rather than the external instrument. It is conceptually close to אֵיד (eid, “calamity”) but with greater emphasis on the moment of impact. Echoes in New Testament Revelation The sudden, inescapable ruin envisioned here anticipates descriptions of final judgment: “While people are saying, ‘Peace and security,’ destruction will come upon them suddenly” (1 Thessalonians 5:3). The collapse of “Babylon the great” in Revelation 18 draws vocabulary and imagery from Isaiah 47, underscoring continuity between prophetic and apostolic warnings. Ministry and Devotional Applications • Call to Repentance. The term warns individuals and societies that delayed repentance invites compounded judgment. Homiletical and Worship Insights Preaching this word can expose false securities—political power, religious formalism, economic wealth—while directing hearers to the refuge offered in Jesus Christ. In corporate worship, lament over national sins finds biblical precedent, and adoration rises for a God whose judgments are true and whose mercy spares all who humble themselves. Forms and Transliterations הֹוָ֔ה הֹוָ֤ה הֹוָה֙ הוה hō·wāh hoVah hōwāhLinks Interlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel TextsEnglishman's Concordance Isaiah 47:11 HEB: וְתִפֹּ֤ל עָלַ֙יִךְ֙ הֹוָ֔ה לֹ֥א תוּכְלִ֖י NAS: how to charm away; And disaster will fall KJV: from whence it riseth: and mischief shall fall INT: will fall and and disaster not not be able Ezekiel 7:26 Ezekiel 7:26 3 Occurrences |
    |