Hebrew word · H2634

חָסֹן

hechason

strong

Strong, sturdy, mighty. The root (chsn) carries ideas of solidity and of stored strength or wealth: the related noun chosen means "wealth, treasure, strength" (Prov 27:24; Isa 33:6; Jer 20:5).

Appears 2 times in 2 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

strong

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 Amos 2:9

Range of meaning

Strong, sturdy, mighty. The root (chsn) carries ideas of solidity and of stored strength or wealth: the related noun chosen means "wealth, treasure, strength" (Prov 27:24; Isa 33:6; Jer 20:5).

Against the English

"Strong" is right. The rare word suggests a massive, unshakeable sturdiness that fits the hard oak.

Used elsewhere in the period

The adjective occurs only here and in Isa 1:31, where "the strong one" (hechason) becomes like tinder and burns. Aramaic uses the related verb for taking or holding power (Dan 7:18, 22).

From the study of Isaiah 1:31

Range of meaning

An adjective meaning 'strong, mighty, sturdy', from a root meaning to be strong or secure. The same root gives חֹסֶן (chosen), 'wealth, treasure, stored riches' (Prov 15:6; Jer 20:5; Isa 33:6), and the verb 'to be stored up' (Isa 23:18). So the root covers both strength and secure, laid-up resources.

Against the English

'The strong' (KJV, ESV), 'the strong man' (BSB, NASB) and 'the mighty man' (NIV) all keep the sense of power. Modern readers may picture physical strength. The word points more to social and economic might: the people who seemed secure. One Jewish translation (NJPS) reads it as 'stored wealth', following the related noun.

Used elsewhere in the period

The only other use is Amos 2:9: the Amorite was 'strong as the oaks' (chason hu' ka'allonim). That pairing of strength and oaks is striking here, because Isa 1:29–30 has just spoken of oaks. Tow (ne'oret) appears in Judg 16:9, where the 'strong' Samson snaps his bonds like tow touched by fire, which is another strength-and-tow image in Israel's stories.

Where it appears

Isaiah · 1

  1. Isaiah 1:31 הֶחָסֹן֙ the strong [person]

    The strong man will become tinder and his work will be a spark; both will burn together, with no one to quench the flames.

    Here: 'The strong one': the powerful, wealthy, self-assured person in Judah. The word's only other use, Amos 2:9, compares the strong to oaks, which fits Isaiah's picture of the oak in vv. 29–30. Some take it as 'stored wealth' (see debates).

Amos · 1

  1. Amos 2:9 וְחָסֹ֥ן and [is] strong

    Yet it was I who destroyed the Amorite before them, though his height was like that of the cedars, and he was as strong as the oaks. Yet I destroyed his fruit above and his roots below.

    Here: A rare word for sturdy, massive strength. It comes first in its clause for emphasis: "and strong was he."

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