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אָוֶן

𐤀𐤅𐤍

ʼâven

H205 noun

SILEX Entry

Definition

State or quality of worthlessness, trouble, wickedness, or wrongdoing. 'Aven' is used for both the condition of moral evil or injustice, as well as the result of trouble, disaster, or misfortune brought about by such actions. In poetic and prophetic contexts, it commonly denotes iniquity or wickedness, especially as it manifests in social injustice or false worship.

Semantic Range

emptiness, worthlessness, trouble, disaster, iniquity, wickedness, injustice, mischief, falsehood, idol or idolatry (occ. in parodic usage), sorrow, calamity

Root / Etymology

Root: אָוֶן. The precise etymology is uncertain; it has been traditionally linked to a presumed root signifying 'nothingness' or 'emptiness,' but there is no securely attested verb form in biblical Hebrew. The word may originally denote 'emptiness' or 'pointlessness,' from which senses of 'trouble' and 'wickedness' develop as fruits of actions devoid of rightness or substance. Any connection with the root אוּן ('to exert oneself') is speculative.

Historical & Contextual Notes

In the Hebrew Bible, אָוֶן appears most often in poetic and prophetic passages to indicate both moral evil ('iniquity', 'wickedness') and the resultant suffering or disaster ('trouble', 'sorrow'). In some contexts, it is associated with practices of idolatry or false worship, for example, as an epithet in the place name 'Beth-aven' ('house of iniquity,' a prophetic parody for Bethel). The Septuagint sometimes translates אָוֶן as ἀνομία (anomia, lawlessness) or ταλαιπωρία (trouble), reflecting this semantic breadth. English translations vary between 'iniquity', 'wickedness', 'vanity', 'trouble', and 'disaster', sometimes obscuring the link between moral evil and its consequences that is central to the Hebrew term. While connected semantically to אַוְלָה (avlah, 'injustice') and רֶשַׁע (resha‘, 'wickedness'), אָוֶן can more broadly include both the abstract moral condition and its visible social or personal effects. Later periods and rabbinic literature also associate אָוֶן with idolatrous or false systems of worship, reinforcing the prophetic polemic uses.

Translation Consistency

primary "wickedness" 46 occurrences

SILEX emphasizes moral evil, injustice, and the results of wrongdoing; the most natural, broadly accurate English noun for that semantic range is “wickedness.” It covers iniquity, mischief, and social injustice better than “worthlessness,” and sounds more natural and accessible than the more formal/archaic “iniquity.” Using “wickedness” will be consistent across contexts while preserving the primary biblical sense.

Alternatives (4 occurrences):
"iniquity" (2x) "mourning" (1x) "sorrow" (1x)

Original Strong's Gloss (1890)

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 אַיִן.

Bantu Hebrew

No Bantu Hebrew comparisons have been recorded for this word yet.

Root Family

און (On) — strength, might, vigor, wealth

Root און to be worthless, nothingness, trouble, wickedness
Strong's Lemma SIBI-P1
H203 אוֹן and On
H206 אָוֶן worthless wickedness
H207 אוֹנוֹ his strength
H208 אוֹנָם Onam of them
H209 אוֹנָן to Onan

Word Forms

11 distinct forms

SIDANCE Surface Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 SIBI-P2 Occurrences
H205-01 אָ֛וֶן aven HNcmsa iniquity worthless wickedness worthless wickedness 66
H205-07 אוֹנִים֙ onim HNcmpa of mourners worthless things wickednesses 2
H205-09 וָ/אָֽוֶן vaaven HC/Ncmsa and iniquity and building-stone and sorrow 2
H205-10 וְ/אָ֥וֶן veaven HC/Ncmsa and iniquity and wickedness and wickedness 2
H205-02 הָ/אָ֑וֶן haaven HTd/Ncmsa iniquity the worthlessness iniquity 1
H205-03 לְ/אָֽוֶן leaven HR/Ncmsa iniquity worthless wickedness worthless wickedness 1
H205-04 מֵ/אָֽוֶן meaven HR/Ncmsa from iniquity from worthlessness from iniquity 1
H205-05 אוֹנָ֗/ם onam HNcmsc/Sp3mp their iniquity their wickedness their wickedness 1
H205-06 אוֹנֵֽ/ךְ onekhe HNcmsc/Sp2fs of wickedness your worthlessness your wickedness 1
H205-08 אוֹנ֑/וֹ ono HNcmsc/Sp3ms his iniquity his wickedness his iniquity 1

Occurrences in Scripture

79 occurrences

SIDANCE Reference Word Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 SIBI-P2
H205-01 Numbers 23:21 אָ֨וֶן֙ aven HNcmsa iniquity worthless wickedness worthless wickedness
H205-11 Deuteronomy 26:14 בְ/אֹנִ֜י veoni HR/Ncmsa in my mourning in wickedness in my mourning
H205-10 1 Samuel 15:23 וְ/אָ֥וֶן veaven HC/Ncmsa and iniquity and wickedness and wickedness
H205-01 Isaiah 1:13 אָ֖וֶן aven HNcmsa iniquity worthless wickedness worthless wickedness
H205-01 Isaiah 10:1 אָ֑וֶן aven HNcmsa of iniquity worthless wickedness worthless wickedness
H205-01 Isaiah 29:20 אָֽוֶן aven HNcmsa for iniquity worthless wickedness worthless wickedness
H205-01 Isaiah 31:2 אָֽוֶן aven HNcmsa iniquity worthless wickedness worthless wickedness
H205-01 Isaiah 32:6 אָ֑וֶן aven HNcmsa iniquity worthless wickedness worthless wickedness
H205-01 Isaiah 41:29 אָ֥וֶן aven HNcmsa nothingness worthless wickedness worthless wickedness
H205-01 Isaiah 55:7 אָ֖וֶן aven HNcmsa of iniquity worthless wickedness of iniquity
H205-01 Isaiah 58:9 אָֽוֶן aven HNcmsa wickedness worthless wickedness wickedness
H205-01 Isaiah 59:4 אָֽוֶן aven HNcmsa iniquity worthless wickedness worthless wickedness
H205-01 Isaiah 59:6 אָ֔וֶן aven HNcmsa of iniquity worthless wickedness wickedness
H205-01 Isaiah 59:7 אָ֔וֶן aven HNcmsa of iniquity worthless wickedness of iniquity
H205-01 Isaiah 66:3 אָ֑וֶן aven HNcmsa an idol worthless wickedness worthless wickedness
H205-06 Jeremiah 4:14 אוֹנֵֽ/ךְ onekhe HNcmsc/Sp2fs of wickedness your worthlessness your wickedness
H205-01 Jeremiah 4:15 אָ֖וֶן aven HNcmsa wickedness worthless wickedness worthless wickedness
H205-01 Ezekiel 11:2 אָ֛וֶן aven HNcmsa evil worthless wickedness worthless wickedness
H205-01 Hosea 6:8 אָ֑וֶן aven HNcmsa iniquity worthless wickedness worthless wickedness
H205-07 Hosea 9:4 אוֹנִים֙ onim HNcmpa of mourners worthless things wickednesses
H205-01 Hosea 10:8 אָ֗וֶן aven HNcmsa of Aven worthless wickedness worthless wickedness
H205-01 Hosea 12:12 אָ֨וֶן֙ aven HNcmsa wickedness worthless wickedness worthless wickedness
H205-03 Amos 5:5 לְ/אָֽוֶן leaven HR/Ncmsa iniquity worthless wickedness worthless wickedness
H205-01 Micah 2:1 אָ֛וֶן aven HNcmsa iniquity worthless wickedness worthless wickedness
H205-01 Habakkuk 1:3 אָ֨וֶן֙ aven HNcmsa iniquity worthless wickedness worthless wickedness
H205-01 Habakkuk 3:7 אָ֔וֶן aven HNcmsa affliction worthless wickedness wickedness
H205-01 Zechariah 10:2 אָ֗וֶן aven HNcmsa iniquity worthless wickedness worthless wickedness
H205-01 Psalms 5:6 אָֽוֶן aven HNcmsa iniquity worthless wickedness worthless wickedness
H205-01 Psalms 6:9 אָ֑וֶן aven HNcmsa of evil worthless wickedness wickedness
H205-01 Psalms 7:15 אָ֑וֶן aven HNcmsa iniquity worthless wickedness worthless wickedness
H205-09 Psalms 10:7 וָ/אָֽוֶן vaaven HC/Ncmsa and iniquity and building-stone and wickedness
H205-01 Psalms 14:4 אָ֥וֶן aven HNcmsa iniquity worthless wickedness worthless wickedness
H205-01 Psalms 28:3 אָ֥וֶן aven HNcmsa iniquity worthless wickedness worthless wickedness
H205-01 Psalms 36:4 אָ֣וֶן aven HNcmsa iniquity worthless wickedness wickedness
H205-01 Psalms 36:5 אָ֤וֶן aven HNcmsa iniquity worthless wickedness wickedness
H205-01 Psalms 36:13 אָ֑וֶן aven HNcmsa iniquity worthless wickedness wickedness
H205-01 Psalms 41:7 אָ֥וֶן aven HNcmsa iniquity worthless wickedness wickedness
H205-01 Psalms 53:5 אָ֥וֶן aven HNcmsa iniquity worthless wickedness wickedness
H205-01 Psalms 55:4 אָ֝֗וֶן aven HNcmsa iniquity worthless wickedness worthless wickedness
H205-10 Psalms 55:11 וְ/אָ֖וֶן veaven HC/Ncmsa and-wickedness and wickedness and wickedness
H205-01 Psalms 56:8 אָ֥וֶן aven HNcmsa my wanderings worthless wickedness worthless wickedness
H205-01 Psalms 59:3 אָ֑וֶן aven HNcmsa iniquity worthless wickedness worthless wickedness
H205-01 Psalms 59:6 אָ֣וֶן aven HNcmsa in iniquity worthless wickedness worthless wickedness
H205-01 Psalms 64:3 אָֽוֶן aven HNcmsa of iniquity worthless wickedness worthless wickedness
H205-01 Psalms 66:18 אָ֭וֶן aven HNcmsa iniquity worthless wickedness wickedness
H205-09 Psalms 90:10 וָ/אָ֑וֶן vaaven HC/Ncmsa and sorrow and building-stone and sorrow
H205-01 Psalms 92:8 אָ֑וֶן aven HNcmsa iniquity worthless wickedness worthless wickedness
H205-01 Psalms 92:10 אָֽוֶן aven HNcmsa iniquity worthless wickedness worthless wickedness
H205-01 Psalms 94:4 אָֽוֶן aven HNcmsa iniquity worthless wickedness worthless wickedness
H205-01 Psalms 94:16 אָֽוֶן aven HNcmsa iniquity worthless wickedness worthless wickedness
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