מָאֵן

Genesis 37:35 וַיְמָאֵן֙ and he refused

All his sons and daughters tried to comfort him, but he refused to be comforted. “No,” he said. “I will go down to Sheol mourning for my son.” So his father wept for him.

Here: “And he refused.” This is a firm, deliberate refusal, the same verb used for people who will not obey or will not accept something. Jacob does not just fail to feel better. He turns down what they offer.

Genesis 39:8 וַיְמָאֵ֓ן׀ and he refused

But he refused. “Look,” he said to his master’s wife, “with me here, my master does not concern himself with anything in his house, and he has entrusted everything he owns to my care.

Here: “And he refused.” The verb describes a settled refusal of the will, not a momentary hesitation. In the Hebrew it stands alone and first, before any explanation, so the answer comes before the reasons. It carries a rare chanting mark (the shalshelet, a long wavering note) found only four times in the Torah.

Genesis 48:19 וַיְמָאֵ֣ן and he refused

But his father refused. “I know, my son, I know!” he said. “He too shall become a people, and he too shall be great; nevertheless, his younger brother shall be greater than he, and his offspring shall become a multitude of nations.”

Here: "And he refused": a firm, settled refusal, not a mild objection. Jacob will not let Joseph move his right hand off Ephraim's head (v. 17–18).

Exodus 4:23 וַתְּמָאֵ֖ן and you refused

and I told you to let My son go so that he may worship Me. But since you have refused to let him go, behold, I will kill your firstborn son!’”

Exodus 7:14 מֵאֵ֖ן he has refused

Then the LORD said to Moses, “Pharaoh’s heart is unyielding; he refuses to let the people go.

Exodus 10:3 מֵאַ֔נְתָּ have you refused

So Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh and told him, “This is what the LORD, the God of the Hebrews, says: ‘How long will you refuse to humble yourself before Me? Let My people go, so that they may worship Me.

Here: A completed-action form: "you have been refusing", a refusal that has gone on up to now. The word is Exodus' running label for Pharaoh's stance (4:23; 7:14; 9:2; 10:4).

Exodus 16:28 מֵֽאַנְתֶּ֔ם have you refused

Then the LORD said to Moses, “How long will you refuse to keep My commandments and instructions?

Exodus 22:17 מָאֵ֧ן יְמָאֵ֛ן absolutely <refuse>, he will refuse

If her father absolutely refuses to give her to him, the man still must pay an amount comparable to the bridal price of a virgin.

Numbers 20:21 וַיְמָאֵ֣ן׀ and it refused

So Edom refused to allow Israel to pass through their territory, and Israel turned away from them.

Numbers 22:13 מֵאֵ֣ן he has refused

So Balaam got up the next morning and said to Balak’s princes, “Go back to your homeland, because the LORD has refused to let me go with you.”

Numbers 22:14 מֵאֵ֥ן he has refused

And the princes of Moab arose, returned to Balak, and said, “Balaam refused to come with us.”

Deuteronomy 25:7 מֵאֵ֨ין he has refused

But if the man does not want to marry his brother’s widow, she is to go to the elders at the city gate and say, “My husband’s brother refuses to preserve his brother’s name in Israel. He is not willing to perform the duty of a brother-in-law for me.”

1 Samuel 8:19 וַיְמָאֲנ֣וּ and they refused

Nevertheless, the people refused to listen to Samuel. “No!” they said. “We must have a king over us.

1 Samuel 28:23 וַיְמָאֵ֗ן and he refused

Saul refused, saying, “I will not eat.” But his servants joined the woman in urging him, and he heeded their voice. He got up from the ground and sat on the bed.

2 Samuel 2:23 וַיְמָאֵ֣ן and he refused

But Asahel refused to turn away. So Abner thrust the butt of his spear into his stomach, and it came out his back, and he fell dead on the spot. And every man paused when he came to the place where Asahel had fallen and died.

2 Samuel 13:9 וַיְמָאֵ֖ן and he refused

Then she brought the pan and set it down before him, but he refused to eat. “Send everyone away!” said Amnon. And everyone went out.

1 Kings 20:35 וַיְמָאֵ֥ן and he refused

Meanwhile, by the word of the LORD, one of the sons of the prophets said to his companion, “Strike me, please!” But the man refused to strike him.

Here: "And he refused." This is a flat, deliberate refusal and not mere hesitation, and the narrator gives no reason for it. The verb itself does not say whether a refusal is right or wrong; verse 36 supplies that verdict.

1 Kings 21:15 מֵאֵן֙ he refused

When Jezebel heard that Naboth had been stoned to death, she said to Ahab, “Get up and take possession of the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite, who refused to give it to you for silver. For Naboth is no longer alive, but dead.”

2 Kings 5:16 וַיְמָאֵֽן׃ and he refused

But Elisha replied, “As surely as the LORD lives, before whom I stand, I will not accept it.” And although Naaman urged him to accept it, he refused.

Here: A firm, settled refusal, the verb used for flatly declining (e.g. Gen 39:8, Joseph refusing Potiphar's wife). It closes the verse with no further discussion.

Nehemiah 9:17 וַיְמָאֲנ֣וּ and they refused

They refused to listen and failed to remember the wonders You performed among them. They stiffened their necks and appointed a leader to return them to their bondage in Egypt. But You are a forgiving God, gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and rich in loving devotion, and You did not forsake them.

Here: A firm, deliberate refusal, not a failure to understand. It opens the list of what the wilderness generation did and makes their unwillingness the first charge.

Esther 1:12 וַתְּמָאֵ֞ן and she refused

Queen Vashti, however, refused to come at the king’s command brought by his eunuchs. And the king became furious, and his anger burned within him.

Job 6:7 מֵאֲנָ֣ה it refuses

My soul refuses to touch them; they are loathsome food to me.

Psalm 77:2 מֵאֲנָ֖ה it refused

In the day of trouble I sought the Lord; through the night my outstretched hands did not grow weary; my soul refused to be comforted.

Here: A deliberate, stubborn refusal. Its subject is 'my self' (nefesh, at the end of the line), and the same wording is used of Rachel refusing comfort for her children in Jeremiah 31:15.

Psalm 78:10 מֵאֲנ֥וּ they refused

They failed to keep God’s covenant and refused to live by His law.

Proverbs 1:24 וַתְּמָאֵ֑נוּ and you refused

Because you refused my call, and no one took my outstretched hand,

Here: 'And you refused' (addressed to more than one person). The verb means a deliberate, stubborn 'no', the same word used of Pharaoh refusing to let Israel go. They heard the call and turned it down.

Proverbs 21:7 מֵ֝אֲנ֗וּ they refuse

The violence of the wicked will sweep them away because they refuse to do what is just.

Here: 'They have refused': a choice of the will, not an inability. The past-tense form presents the refusal as a settled stance already taken.

Proverbs 21:25 מֵאֲנ֖וּ they refuse

The craving of the slacker kills him because his hands refuse to work.

Here: "They have refused". This is the verb for a stubborn, willful no, the same word used of Pharaoh refusing to let Israel go. The verb form points to a refusal already settled. The subject is 'they', meaning the hands.

Isaiah 1:20 תְּמָאֲנ֖וּ you will refuse

But if you resist and rebel, you will be devoured by the sword.” For the mouth of the LORD has spoken.

Here: A settled, stubborn refusal, the word used for Pharaoh refusing to let Israel go. It is the exact opposite of 'you are willing' (tōʾbû) in v.19, and the two words sound alike in Hebrew.

Jeremiah 3:3 מֵאַ֖נְתְּ you refused

Therefore the showers have been withheld, and no spring rains have fallen. Yet you have the brazen look of a prostitute; you refuse to be ashamed.

Here: A deliberate refusal, not an inability. Jeremiah uses this verb often for Judah's stubbornness: they 'refused to take correction' and 'refused to return' (5:3; 8:5; 9:6).

Jeremiah 5:3 מֵאֲנ֖וּ מֵאֲנ֖וּ they refused

O LORD, do not Your eyes look for truth? You struck them, but they felt no pain. You finished them off, but they refused to accept discipline. They have made their faces harder than stone and refused to repent.

Here: 'They refused.' This is a deliberate no, a matter of will. It is not a failure to understand. The word comes twice in this verse.

Jeremiah 8:5 מֵאֲנ֖וּ they have refused

Why then have these people turned away? Why does Jerusalem always turn away? They cling to deceit; they refuse to return.

Here: A firm, deliberate refusal. They are not unable; they will not. It is a word Jeremiah uses often (3:3; 5:3; 9:6).

Jeremiah 9:6 מֵאֲנ֥וּ they have refused

You dwell in the midst of deception; in their deceit they refuse to know Me,” declares the LORD.

Here: A firm, wilful 'no'. The form shows a settled stance, not a slip. Jeremiah uses this verb again and again for a people who refuse to listen, to return, to accept correction.

Jeremiah 11:10 מֵֽאֲנוּ֙ they refused

They have returned to the sins of their forefathers who refused to obey My words. They have followed other gods to serve them. The house of Israel and the house of Judah have broken the covenant I made with their fathers.

Here: "They refused." A deliberate, stubborn no, not failing to notice. Jeremiah uses this verb again and again for his people's refusals (3:3; 5:3; 8:5; 9:6).

Jeremiah 15:18 מֵֽאֲנָה֙ it has refused

Why is my pain unending, and my wound incurable, refusing to be healed? You have indeed become like a mirage to me—water that is not there.

Here: 'It has refused.' The wound is pictured as if it had a will of its own and stubbornly will not close. Jeremiah usually uses this verb for Israel refusing to repent (5:3; 8:5).

Jeremiah 25:28 יְמָאֲנ֛וּ they will refuse

If they refuse to take the cup from your hand and drink it, you are to tell them that this is what the LORD of Hosts says: ‘You most certainly must drink it!

Jeremiah 31:15 מֵאֲנָ֛ה she has refused

This is what the LORD says: “A voice is heard in Ramah, mourning and great weeping, Rachel weeping for her children and refusing to be comforted, because they are no more.”

Here: 'She has refused'. A deliberate, settled refusal, not just being unable. The same verb is used when Jacob 'refused to be comforted' over Rachel's son Joseph (Gen 37:35).

Jeremiah 50:33 מֵאֲנ֖וּ they have refused

This is what the LORD of Hosts says: “The sons of Israel are oppressed, and the sons of Judah as well. All their captors hold them fast, refusing to release them.

Here: 'They have refused': a stubborn, settled unwillingness. In the Exodus story this is Pharaoh's verb (Exod 4:23; 7:14; 9:2; 10:3–4).

Hosea 11:5 מֵאֲנ֖וּ they have refused

Will they not return to the land of Egypt and be ruled by Assyria because they refused to repent?

Here: 'They refused.' This is the verb used for Pharaoh's stubborn refusal in Exodus. The completed form describes a refusal that has already happened and become a settled fact. The subject switches to plural, meaning the people of Israel.

Zechariah 7:11 וַיְמָאֲנ֣וּ and they refused

But they refused to pay attention and turned a stubborn shoulder; they stopped up their ears from hearing.

Here: "And they refused." A flat, willed refusal, not a failure to understand. It is the same verb used of Pharaoh refusing to let Israel go (Exod 4:23; 7:14). It opens the story of what the ancestors did with the message summed up in vv. 9–10.