Hebrew word · H162

אֲהָהּ

'ahah

alas!

An interjection of alarm, grief or protest: 'Ah!', 'Alas!', 'Oh no!'. It is not a sigh. It is a sharp cry at something terrible about to happen or already happening.

Appears 15 times in 15 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

alas!, oh!, ah!

Abridged from Brown, Driver and Briggs, A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament (1906), via STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0).

In depth

From the study of Ezekiel 11:13

Range of meaning

An interjection of alarm, grief or protest: 'Ah!', 'Alas!', 'Oh no!'. It is not a sigh. It is a sharp cry at something terrible about to happen or already happening.

Against the English

KJV, WEB and ESV have 'Ah'. BSB has 'Oh'. NIV has 'Alas'. 'Ah' can sound mild or even satisfied to a modern ear. The Hebrew is closer to an anguished 'Oh no!'.

How it drifted

The archaic 'Ah' has weakened in English. It has not shifted in meaning so much as lost its force.

Used elsewhere in the period

Nearly all its uses come before 'Adonai YHWH' when a speaker is aghast at God's action or command: Joshua after Ai (Joshua 7:7), Gideon after seeing the angel (Judges 6:22), Jeremiah at his call (Jeremiah 1:6) and at false prophecy (4:10; 14:13), Ezekiel at the command to eat unclean food (4:14) and at the slaughter in Jerusalem (9:8; also 21:5 [20:49 English]).

From the study of Ezekiel 4:14

Range of meaning

An interjection of alarm, grief or protest: 'Ah!', 'Alas!', 'Oh no!' It almost always comes in direct speech to God, usually as 'Ahah, Adonai YHWH', when a person faces something from God that seems unbearable or wrong.

Against the English

KJV, BSB and WEB have 'Ah', which sounds mild and old-fashioned to modern ears. NIV's 'Not so' and the Greek 'By no means!' bring out the element of protest. NLT turns it into a question.

How it drifted

'Ah' has faded into a mild sigh in modern English. In Hebrew it is a startled cry.

Used elsewhere in the period

Joshua 7:7 (after the defeat at Ai); Judges 6:22 (Gideon after seeing the angel); Jeremiah 1:6 ('I do not know how to speak'); Jeremiah 4:10; 14:13; Ezekiel 9:8 and 11:13 (Ezekiel crying out as Jerusalem's people are struck down). The Greek Old Testament (Septuagint) here renders it with Mēdamōs, 'By no means!'

From the study of 2 Kings 6:15

Range of meaning

An exclamation of dismay, fear or grief, often in a crisis that seems hopeless and often addressed to God or a superior.

Against the English

KJV, WEB and ESV say “Alas,” which is accurate but sounds stiff and old-fashioned. NIV's “Oh no” and BSB's “Oh” are closer to how it sounded, a real cry.

Used elsewhere in the period

Joshua after the defeat at Ai (Joshua 7:7), Gideon on seeing the angel (Judges 6:22), Jephthah on seeing his daughter (Judges 11:35), the king of Israel facing thirst (2 Kings 3:10), and the man who lost the borrowed axe head (2 Kings 6:5, “Ah, my lord!”).

Where it appears

Joshua · 1

  1. Joshua 7:7 אֲהָ֣הּ׀ alas!

    “O, Lord GOD,” Joshua said, “why did You ever bring this people across the Jordan to deliver us into the hand of the Amorites to be destroyed? If only we had been content to stay on the other side of the Jordan!

    Here: A raw cry of dismay or alarm, used when something has gone terribly wrong. It is not a polite 'O' that opens a prayer. It is a groan.

Judges · 2

  1. Judges 6:22 אֲהָהּ֙ alas!

    When Gideon realized that it was the angel of the LORD, he said, “Oh no, Lord GOD! I have seen the angel of the LORD face to face!”

  2. Judges 11:35 אֲהָ֤הּ alas!

    As soon as Jephthah saw her, he tore his clothes and said, “No! Not my daughter! You have brought me to my knees! You have brought great misery upon me, for I have given my word to the LORD and cannot take it back.”

2 Kings · 3

  1. 2 Kings 3:10 אֲהָ֕הּ alas!

    “Alas,” said the king of Israel, “for the LORD has summoned these three kings to deliver them into the hand of Moab!”

  2. 2 Kings 6:5 אֲהָ֥הּ alas!

    As one of them was cutting down a tree, the iron axe head fell into the water. “Oh, my master,” he cried out, “it was borrowed!”

  3. 2 Kings 6:15 אֲהָ֥הּ alas!

    When the servant of the man of God got up and went out early in the morning, behold, an army with horses and chariots had surrounded the city. So he asked Elisha, “Oh, my master, what are we to do?”

    Here: A cry of alarm or dismay, close to “Oh no!” Earlier in this chapter a prophet who loses a borrowed axe head says the same words, “Ah, my lord!” (6:5).

Jeremiah · 4

  1. Jeremiah 1:6 אֲהָהּ֙ alas!

    “Ah, Lord GOD,” I said, “I surely do not know how to speak, for I am only a child!”

    Here: A cry of alarm or distress, not a gentle sigh. In the Bible it is almost always spoken to God when someone is shaken by what God has just said or done (Joshua 7:7; Judges 6:22; Ezekiel 9:8). Jeremiah's first word back to God is a protest.

  2. Jeremiah 4:10 אֲהָ֣הּ׀ alas!

    Then I said, “Ah, Lord GOD, how completely You have deceived this people and Jerusalem by saying, ‘You will have peace,’ while a sword is at our throats.”

    Here: A cry of alarm or horror, used when someone is faced with disaster or something unthinkable (Joshua 7:7; Ezekiel 9:8). It is far stronger than the mild English 'Ah'.

  3. Jeremiah 14:13 אֲהָ֣הּ׀ alas!

    “Ah, Lord GOD!” I replied, “Look, the prophets are telling them, ‘You will not see the sword or suffer famine, but I will give you lasting peace in this place.’”

    Here: A cry of dismay or protest addressed to God when disaster is coming. Jeremiah uses it at his call (1:6) and when he protests about the 'peace' message (4:10). This is anguish, not a polite 'Ah'.

  4. Jeremiah 32:17 אֲהָהּ֮ alas!

    “Oh, Lord GOD! You have made the heavens and the earth by Your great power and outstretched arm. Nothing is too difficult for You!

    Here: A cry of distress or dismay, not of admiration. Every time it appears in the Hebrew Bible someone is alarmed, at a loss or protesting (Josh 7:7; Judg 6:22; Jer 1:6; 4:10; 14:13; Ezek 9:8). Jeremiah opens his prayer with a groan.

Ezekiel · 4

  1. Ezekiel 4:14 אֲהָהּ֙ alas!

    “Ah, Lord GOD,” I said, “I have never defiled myself. From my youth until now I have not eaten anything found dead or mauled by wild beasts. No unclean meat has ever entered my mouth.”

    Here: A cry of shock and dismay that also works as a protest: something like 'Oh no!' Ezekiel uses it again when he pleads for the people (9:8; 11:13).

  2. Ezekiel 9:8 אֲהָהּ֙ alas!

    While they were killing, I was left alone. And I fell facedown and cried out, “Oh, Lord GOD, when You pour out Your wrath on Jerusalem, will You destroy the entire remnant of Israel?”

    Here: A raw cry of dismay. In the Bible it is almost always addressed straight to God ('Ahah, Adonai YHWH'), by people protesting or terrified at what God is doing or asking: Joshua, Gideon, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel here and in 4:14 and 11:13.

  3. Ezekiel 11:13 אֲהָהּ֙ alas!

    Now as I was prophesying, Pelatiah son of Benaiah died. Then I fell facedown and cried out in a loud voice, “Oh, Lord GOD, will You bring the remnant of Israel to a complete end?”

    Here: A cry of dismay and protest, something like 'Oh no!'. In the Bible it nearly always comes before 'Lord YHWH' when someone is horrified at what God is doing or asking (Joshua 7:7; Jeremiah 1:6; 4:10; Ezekiel 4:14; 9:8).

  4. Ezekiel 20:49 אֲהָ֖הּ alas!

    Then I said, “Ah, Lord GOD, they are saying of me, ‘Is he not just telling parables?’”

Joel · 1

  1. Joel 1:15 אֲהָ֖הּ alas!

    Alas for the day! For the Day of the LORD is near, and it will come as destruction from the Almighty.

    Here: A raw cry of horror and dismay, the sound a person makes when disaster becomes real. The verse begins with a scream, not with a statement.

Word data: STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0), main text only.