Hebrew word · H386

אֵיתָן

'eitan

strong

An adjective, often used as a noun: 'enduring, perennial, permanent, ever-flowing', and by extension 'firm, strong'. HALOT and BDB both give 'perennial, ever-flowing' as the basic sense when it describes water.

Appears 13 times in 13 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

1) perpetual, constant, perennial, ever-flowing

1a) ever-flowing (of a stream)

1b) permanence, permanent, enduring (fig.)

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 Exodus 14:27

Range of meaning

An adjective, often used as a noun: 'enduring, perennial, permanent, ever-flowing', and by extension 'firm, strong'. HALOT and BDB both give 'perennial, ever-flowing' as the basic sense when it describes water. When it describes people or nations it means 'enduring, firmly established' (Num 24:21; Jer 5:15, 'an enduring nation'; Job 12:19).

Against the English

KJV and WEB: 'returned to his/its strength.' YLT: 'to its perennial flow.' BSB: 'to its normal state.' The modern versions catch the sense of return to normal, but lose the idea of permanence. KJV's 'strength' makes it sound as if the sea regained its violent power.

How it drifted

The KJV took the derived sense 'strong/firm' (compare 'strength' in Gen 49:24 and Job 33:19). Today 'strength' suggests force or ferocity. The Hebrew points instead to the sea's lasting, unfailing, natural condition.

Used elsewhere in the period

Deut 21:4: 'naḥal ʾêtān', a wadi that flows all year. Amos 5:24: 'righteousness like an ever-flowing (ʾêtān) stream'. Ps 74:15: 'you dried up ever-flowing rivers (naharôt ʾêtān)', in a psalm that also recalls God splitting the sea (74:13). The month name Ethanim (1 Kgs 8:2) is usually explained as 'the month of perennial streams'. The LXX here paraphrases as returning 'to its place'.

From the study of Proverbs 13:15

Range of meaning

Constant, lasting, perennial, steady, firmly established. It is used for a stream that never runs dry (Amos 5:24, 'an ever-flowing stream'; Psalm 74:15, 'ever-flowing rivers'), for a nation that has lasted from ancient times (Jeremiah 5:15), for the 'enduring foundations of the earth' (Micah 6:2), for a dwelling that is 'secure' (Numbers 24:21), and for the sea returning to its normal 'steady flow' (Exodus 14:27). It is also a man's name, Ethan (1 Kings 4:31; Psalm 89 heading).

Against the English

KJV, NASB, BSB and WEB have 'hard' or 'difficult'. ESV, NRSV and NIV follow the ancient versions and give 'their ruin' or 'destruction', with notes saying the Hebrew is uncertain. No other passage uses ʾêtān to mean 'difficult' in the sense of 'troublesome'.

How it drifted

'Hard' probably comes from understanding ʾêtān as 'firm, hard, rocky'. Deuteronomy 21:4 has naḥal ʾêtān, which the KJV renders 'rough valley' and others 'a valley with a flowing stream'. Once 'hard' entered the KJV, the phrase took on its proverbial English sense: 'sin makes your life difficult.'

Used elsewhere in the period

The Hebrew Bible uses the word about 13–14 times, almost always for permanence or steadiness. The Septuagint here has ἐν ἀπωλείᾳ, 'in destruction'. The Vulgate has vorago, 'abyss, whirlpool'. Dictionaries such as BDB ('perennial, ever-flowing; permanent, enduring') and HALOT ('constant, permanent') do not list 'difficult' as a normal meaning.

From the study of Amos 5:24

Range of meaning

Enduring, permanent, constant, unfailing; from there also firm, strong, secure. Used of a lasting nation (Jer 5:15), a firm dwelling place (Num 24:21), a bow that stays steady (Gen 49:24), the sea returning to its normal, constant flow (Exod 14:27), and "ever-flowing rivers" that only God could dry up (Ps 74:15). Also the name of the autumn month Ethanim (1 Kgs 8:2), often explained as the month of streams that still flow.

Against the English

KJV and WEB "mighty stream" stress force and volume. The Hebrew stresses that the stream lasts and never fails. NIV "never-failing," ESV/NASB/BSB "ever-flowing" and YLT "perennial" capture it better.

How it drifted

The Latin Vulgate rendered it torrens fortis ("a strong torrent"), and the KJV tradition followed with "mighty." The "strong" sense exists in the word, but with nachal the point is that the water lasts.

Used elsewhere in the period

Deut 21:4 uses the identical phrase nachal eitan for a wadi with permanent water. Ps 74:15 has naharot eitan, "ever-flowing rivers." The Greek Old Testament here has an unexpected rendering, abatos ("impassable"), probably guessing from the "strong" sense.

Where it appears

Genesis · 1

  1. Genesis 49:24 בְּאֵיתָן֙ in permanence

    Yet he steadied his bow, and his strong arms were tempered by the hands of the Mighty One of Jacob, in the name of the Shepherd, the Rock of Israel,

    Here: 'In steadiness/permanence'. Elsewhere the word describes streams that never dry up and nations that last. The bow held firm and kept holding, with a sense of staying power rather than raw force.

Exodus · 1

  1. Exodus 14:27 לְאֵ֣יתָנ֔וֹ to normal [state] its

    So Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and at daybreak the sea returned to its normal state. As the Egyptians were retreating, the LORD swept them into the sea.

    Here: 'Ēitān' describes what is lasting and never fails, like a stream that flows all year. The sea goes back to its permanent, full-flowing condition, as if the dry path had never been there.

Numbers · 1

  1. Numbers 24:21 אֵיתָן֙ [is] enduring

    Next he saw the Kenites and lifted up an oracle, saying: “Your dwelling place is secure, and your nest is set in a cliff.

Deuteronomy · 1

  1. Deuteronomy 21:4 אֵיתָ֔ן ever-flowing

    bring the heifer to a valley with running water that has not been plowed or sown, and break its neck there by the stream.

Job · 2

  1. Job 12:19 וְאֵֽתָנִ֣ים and [people] long established

    He leads priests away barefoot and overthrows the established.

  2. Job 33:19 אֵתָֽן׃ [is] constant

    A man is also chastened on his bed with pain and constant distress in his bones,

    Here: 'Unceasing.' The word is used for streams that never dry up. With 'strife' it means the aching battle in his bones never lets up. With the written 'multitude' it could mean 'all his bones are (once) firm' or 'are stiff', which is why the KJV adds a word in italics.

Psalms · 1

  1. Psalm 74:15 אֵיתָֽן׃ ever-flowing

    You broke open the fountain and the flood; You dried up the ever-flowing rivers.

    Here: Lasting and never failing. Joined to "rivers" it means "rivers of permanence", rivers that flow all year round. The point is the paradox: God dried up the very rivers that do not dry up.

Proverbs · 1

  1. Proverbs 13:15 אֵיתָֽן׃ [is] enduring

    Good understanding wins favor, but the way of the faithless is difficult.

    Here: Elsewhere the word means 'ever-flowing', 'lasting' or 'firmly set' (as with streams, nations and foundations). It is a strange word to find here. The line may be ironic, may stretch the sense to 'hard and unyielding', or may come from a copying error for 'their ruin' (see the debates).

Jeremiah · 3

  1. Jeremiah 5:15 אֵיתָ֣ן enduring

    Behold, I am bringing a distant nation against you, O house of Israel,” declares the LORD. “It is an established nation, an ancient nation, a nation whose language you do not know and whose speech you do not understand.

    Here: Used elsewhere for a stream that never dries up. The nation is lasting, unfailing and impossible to wear down: a power with staying-power, not a raiding party that will soon pass.

  2. Jeremiah 49:19 אֵיתָן֒ an ever-flowing [stream]

    Behold, one will come up like a lion from the thickets of the Jordan to the watered pasture. For in an instant I will chase Edom from her land. Who is the chosen one I will appoint for this? For who is like Me, and who can challenge Me? What shepherd can stand against Me?”

    Here: Describes the pasture as permanent, watered by streams that never dry up. It is the most secure grazing there is, and so the most tempting to a lion. It suggests Edom's sense that it was safe for good.

  3. Jeremiah 50:44 אֵיתָן֒ an ever-flowing [stream]

    Behold, one will come up like a lion from the thickets of the Jordan to the watered pasture. For in an instant I will chase Babylon from her land. Who is the chosen one I will appoint for this? For who is like Me, and who can challenge Me? What shepherd can stand against Me?”

    Here: 'Ever-flowing / perennial': used of streams that never dry up. A pasture that is always watered is a rich, secure one, which suits Babylon on its rivers and canals.

Amos · 1

  1. Amos 5:24 אֵיתָֽן׃ ever-flowing

    But let justice roll on like a river, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.

    Here: "Enduring, constant, permanent." A "nachal eitan" is a wadi that does not dry up (the same phrase appears in Deut 21:4). The point is that it never fails, not just that it is strong: a justice that keeps flowing through the dry season, unlike Israel's festival enthusiasm.

Micah · 1

  1. Micah 6:2 וְהָאֵתָנִ֖ים and O enduring [ones]

    Hear, O mountains, the LORD’s indictment, you enduring foundations of the earth. For the LORD has a case against His people, and He will argue it against Israel:

    Here: "And you enduring ones": a second group of witnesses is addressed, named for their permanence. The word is used elsewhere of streams that never dry up and of dwellings that last.

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