Lexical Summary aven: Iniquity, trouble, wickedness, sorrow, idolatry, vanity Original Word: אָוֶן Strong's Exhaustive Concordance affliction, evil, false, idol, iniquity, mischief, mourner, naught, From an unused root perhaps meaning properly, to pant (hence, to exert oneself, usually in vain; to come to naught); strictly nothingness; also trouble. Vanity, wickedness; specifically an idol -- affliction, evil, false, idol, iniquity, mischief, mourners(-ing), naught, sorrow, unjust, unrighteous, vain,vanity, wicked(-ness). Compare 'ayin. see HEBREW 'ayin NAS Exhaustive Concordance Word Originfrom an unused word Definition trouble, sorrow, wickedness NASB Translation affliction (1), distress (1), evil (4), false (1), harm (1), idol (1), iniquity (37), misfortune (1), mourners' (1), mourning (1), sorrow (1), trouble (2), unrighteous (1), vanity (1), wicked (6), wickedness (15), wrong (1), wrongdoers (1). Brown-Driver-Briggs אָ֫וֶן85 noun masculineJob 5:6 trouble, sorrow, wickedness — absolute Numbers 23:21 +; suffix אוֺנִי Genesis 35:18 etc.; plural אוֺנִים Hosea 9:4 — 1 trouble, sorrow בֶּןאֿוֺנִי son of my trouble or sorrow Genesis 35:18 (E); לֹא הִבִּיט אָוֶן בְּיַעֲקֹב Numbers 23:21 (song of Balaam), he doth not behold trouble in Jacob ("" he doth not see misery — עָמָל — in Isr); often "" עָמָל Psalm 7:15 (הִנֵּה יְחַבֶּלאָֿוֶן lo he travaileth with trouble "" וְהָרָה עָמָל וְיָלַד שָׁ֑קֶר, yea he hath conceived misery & brought forth a lie), probably thence Job 15:35 (הָרהֹ עָמָל וְיָלֹד אָוֶן) = Isaiah 59:4; compare עָמָל וָאָוֶן Psalm 10:7; Psalm 55:11; Psalm 90:10; Job 4:8; Job 5:6; Isaiah 10:1 (see עָמָל); also זוֺרֵעַ עַוְלָה יִקְצָראָֿוֶן Proverbs 22:8 the sower of iniquity shall reap trouble; in this sense elsewhere only Deuteronomy 26:14; Proverbs 12:21; Jeremiah 4:15; Habakkuk 3:7; Amos 5:5, plural intensive לֶחֶם אוֺנִים bread of trouble, sorrow, or mourning Hosea 9:4. 2 idolatry Hosea 12:12; Isaiah 41:29; אָוֶן וּתְרָפִים הַפְצַ֑ר stubbornness is idolatry & (the use of) teraphim 1 Samuel 15:23 (poetry source); אָוֶן בֵּית Hosea 4:15 (for בֵּית אֵלbecause Bethel, house of God, is given over to idolatry) so also Hosea 5:8; Hosea 10:5 compare ׳בָּמוֺת א Hosea 10:8; ׳בִּקְעַת א Amos 1:5 (Baalbek); ׳בַּחוּרֵי א read אוֺן, אֹן = On, Heliopolis Ezekiel 30:17; — abstract for concrete = idols Isaiah 66:3. 3 trouble of iniquity, wickedness, מְתֵי אָוֶן Job 22:15; ׳אַנְשֵׁי א Job 34:36 = men of trouble, troublers, wicked men; compare ׳אִישׁ א Proverbs 6:12; Isaiah 55:17; מֹּעֲלֵי אָוֶן workers of trouble, evil-doers, workers of iniquity Job 31:3; Job 34:8,22; Psalm 5:6; + (16 t. chiefly late Psalms) Proverbs 10:29; Proverbs 21:15; Isaiah 31:2; Hosea 6:8; מַחְשְׁבוֺת אָוֶן thoughts of trouble, wicked imaginations Proverbs 6:18; Isaiah 59:7; Jeremiah 4:14; often of words & thoughts Job 11:11 + (5 t.) Psalm 36:5 + (9 t.) Proverbs 17:4; Proverbs 19:28; Proverbs 30:20; Isaiah 29:20; Isaiah 32:6; Isaiah 58:9; Isaiah 59:6; Ezekiel 11:2; Micah 2:1; Habakkuk 1:3; Zechariah 10:2; לֹא אוּכַל אָוֶן וַעֲצָרָה Isaiah 1:13 I cannot bear iniquity with the solemn meeting (RV & most modern; AV it is iniquity, even the solemn meeting). אֹן sorrow, see אָוֶן. Topical Lexicon Scope of the Term in Scripture אָמֶן appears seventy-eight times across the Old Testament. It functions as a blanket term for moral perversity, interior deceit, outward oppression, ritual idolatry, and the emptiness that attends each. Whether describing an individual heart, a societal pattern, or a physical shrine, the word signals a condition diametrically opposed to covenant faithfulness. Categories of Usage 1. Moral perversity in personal conduct 2. Social oppression and legal injustice 3. Religious futility and idolatry 4. Consequences that rebound upon the perpetrator Occurrences in the Pentateuch The root idea surfaces in relation to false accusation—Exodus 20:16 warns against bearing “false witness” (conceptually tied to אָוֶן), while Deuteronomy 19:16-20 prescribes discipline for malicious testimony, establishing the principle that deceit ruptures covenant society. In the Historical Books 2 Samuel 22:22 records David’s testimony that he kept himself from iniquity, highlighting the ideal king’s responsibility to shun אָוֶן. Conversely, the Northern Kingdom’s shrine at Bethel deteriorates into Beth-aven (House of Iniquity) in 1 Kings 12:29-33, marking the national slide into idolatry. Poetic and Wisdom Literature Job, Psalms, and Proverbs concentrate over half of the occurrences, exposing אָוֶן as a folly that begins in the heart and flowers into societal chaos. Prophetic Literature Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Hosea, Amos, Micah, Habakkuk, and Zechariah employ אָוֶן to unmask national apostasy. Toponymic Significance Beth-aven (near Bethel) and Aven (On/Heliopolis in Egypt) preserve the word in geographic memory. Both sites once boasted religious or political importance, yet prophecy labels them with a term meaning futile wickedness, warning that even celebrated centers can devolve into spiritual nullity. Theological Highlights 1. Sin is never merely private; it destabilizes families, cities, and nations (Psalm 55:10; Isaiah 59:14-15). Christological Foreshadowing Isaiah 53:9 declares of the Suffering Servant, “He had done no violence, nor was any deceit in His mouth.” The absence of אָוֶן in Messiah qualifies Him to bear the iniquity of many (Isaiah 53:6), fulfilling the law’s demand for a flawless substitute. Practical Ministry Implications • Preaching: expose the layered nature of sin—personal, corporate, and idolatrous—and announce the remedy secured in Christ’s atonement. Forms and Transliterations אָ֑וֶן אָ֔וֶן אָ֖וֶן אָ֗וֶן אָ֙וֶן֙ אָ֛וֶן אָ֝֗וֶן אָ֣וֶן אָ֤וֶן ׀ אָ֥וֶן אָ֭וֶן אָֽוֶן׃ אוֹנ֑וֹ אוֹנִ֣ים אוֹנִים֙ אוֹנֵֽךְ׃ אוֹנָ֗ם און און׃ אונו אונים אונך׃ אונם בְאֹנִ֜י באני הָאָ֑וֶן האון וְאָ֖וֶן וְאָ֥וֶן וָאָ֑וֶן וָאָֽוֶן׃ ואון ואון׃ לְאָֽוֶן׃ לאון׃ מֵאָֽוֶן׃ מאון׃ ’ā·wen ’āwen ’ō·w·nām ’ō·w·nêḵ ’ō·w·nîm ’ō·w·nōw ’ōwnām ’ōwnêḵ ’ōwnîm ’ōwnōw aven ḇə’ōnî ḇə·’ō·nî hā’āwen hā·’ā·wen haAven lə’āwen lə·’ā·wen leAven mê’āwen mê·’ā·wen meAven oNam oNech oNim oNo vaAven veAven veoNi wā’āwen wā·’ā·wen wə’āwen wə·’ā·wenLinks Interlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel TextsEnglishman's Concordance Numbers 23:21 HEB: לֹֽא־ הִבִּ֥יט אָ֙וֶן֙ בְּיַעֲקֹ֔ב וְלֹא־ NAS: He has not observed misfortune in Jacob; KJV: He hath not beheld iniquity in Jacob, INT: Nor observed misfortune Jacob Nor Deuteronomy 26:14 1 Samuel 15:23 Job 4:8 Job 5:6 Job 11:11 Job 11:14 Job 15:35 Job 21:19 Job 22:15 Job 31:3 Job 34:8 Job 34:22 Job 34:36 Job 36:10 Job 36:21 Psalm 5:5 Psalm 6:8 Psalm 7:14 Psalm 10:7 Psalm 14:4 Psalm 28:3 Psalm 36:3 Psalm 36:4 Psalm 36:12 78 Occurrences |
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