אֶבְיוֹן

From the study of Proverbs 31:20

Range of meaning

Needy, destitute, in want. It describes a person lacking the necessities of life and dependent on others' help. It is often the more desperate word in the pair "poor and needy". Its origin is debated. Some link it to the root ʾābâ ("to want, be willing"), giving "one who wants". Others suggest it was borrowed from an Egyptian word meaning "wretched".

Against the English

"The needy" in all major versions. This is accurate.

Used elsewhere in the period

Exod 23:6, 11 (the fallow-year crop left for "the needy"); Deut 15:4, 7, 11; Ps 72:13; 1 Sam 2:8 ("he lifts the needy from the ash heap"); Prov 14:31 ("whoever is kind to the needy honors his Maker"). Ezek 16:49 accuses Sodom of not strengthening "the hand of the poor and needy", the same pair, and again expressed with "hand".

From the study of Isaiah 29:19

Range of meaning

Needy, poor, someone in want who must rely on others. In law and prophecy it is regularly paired with ʿani or ʿanav. It marks people whose survival depends on fair treatment: debt relief, gleaning rights, honest courts.

Against the English

"Poor" (KJV, BSB, WEB) and "needy" (NASB, NIV) are both accurate. The phrase "the poor among men" can sound odd in modern English. It means "the needy of humankind", possibly with the intensive force "the poorest of people".

Used elsewhere in the period

Exod 23:6 "do not pervert the justice due to your ʾevyon"; Deut 15:4, 7, 11; Amos 2:6, 4:1, 8:4 (the needy sold "for a pair of sandals"); Isa 14:30, 25:4, 32:7 (the scoundrel ruins "the needy" with lies "even when the needy speaks what is right", a close parallel to 29:21).

From the study of Amos 8:4

Range of meaning

Needy, in want, without means. Often paired with ʿani ('afflicted') and dal ('weak, poor'). It describes economic dependence and vulnerability, not just low income: the ʾevyon has to borrow, can lose land, and can be sold for debt.

Against the English

'Needy' fits well. 'Poor' in modern English can sound like a fixed income bracket. The Hebrew word is about being exposed: someone who will go under unless others, and the law, protect them.

Used elsewhere in the period

Torah law names the ʾevyon as protected: Exod 23:6 (do not twist justice for your ʾevyon), Deut 15:4, 7, 11 (open your hand to your ʾevyon), Deut 24:14 (do not exploit a hired worker who is poor and ʾevyon). Amos 2:6 and 8:6 speak of selling or buying the ʾevyon 'for a pair of sandals', meaning debt-slavery for trivial sums. The Psalms make the ʾevyon the special concern of God and the king (Ps 72:4, 12–13).