Hebrew word · H543

אָמֵן

'amen

amen

From ʾāman, 'to be firm, reliable'. It is a solemn word of agreement, 'truly, surely, so be it', by which a speaker accepts what another has said as valid and binding. When it answers a curse or oath, it binds the speaker personally.

Appears 30 times in 24 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

verily, truly, amen, so be it

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 Deuteronomy 27:15

Range of meaning

From ʾāman, 'to be firm, reliable'. It is a solemn word of agreement, 'truly, surely, so be it', by which a speaker accepts what another has said as valid and binding. When it answers a curse or oath, it binds the speaker personally.

Against the English

In modern church use 'Amen' is mostly the closing word of a prayer or a sign of approval ('Amen to that!'). Here it is a legal act: each person accepts, on oath, that the curse will fall on them if they do this.

How it drifted

Centuries of use at the end of Christian and Jewish prayers made it a formal sign-off. Its older role as accepting an oath has faded from popular awareness.

Used elsewhere in the period

Num 5:22 (the suspected wife answers 'Amen, amen' to the curse oath); Neh 5:13 (the assembly says 'Amen' to an oath backed by a self-curse); Jer 11:5 (Jeremiah answers 'Amen, YHWH' to the covenant curse); 1 Kgs 1:36; 1 Chr 16:36; Ps 41:13. The Mesad Hashavyahu ostracon (late 7th century BC) has a labourer's witnesses saying 'amen'. Qumran 1QS 1–2 has 'Amen, amen' after the Levites' curses. In this chapter the LXX renders it genoito, 'may it be so', which brings out its force as a self-binding wish.

From the study of Psalm 106:48

Range of meaning

From the root ʾ-m-n, 'to be firm, steady, reliable' (the same root gives ʾemunah, 'faithfulness', and heʾemin, 'to trust'). As a word on its own, ʾamen means 'surely, truly, so be it'. It is how a listener formally accepts and takes on what someone else has said: a curse, an oath, a blessing or a prayer.

Against the English

English keeps the Hebrew word without translating it, which is accurate. In modern use, though, 'Amen' mostly works as the closing word that signals a prayer is over, or as a casual 'I agree'. The weight of 'I stand behind this as firm and binding' is often lost.

How it drifted

Repeated in liturgy for centuries, it came to be heard as a way of ending a prayer rather than as the hearers' own pledge.

Used elsewhere in the period

In Deut 27:15–26 the people answer each covenant curse with 'Amen', binding themselves to it. In Num 5:22 a woman accepts an oath with 'Amen, amen'. In Neh 8:6 the people answer Ezra's blessing with 'Amen, amen' and lift their hands, and 1 Chr 16:36 reports this very verse being answered with 'Amen'. The Mesad Hashavyahu ostracon (7th century BCE) uses ʾmn for 'truly'. The Septuagint usually translates it in the Psalms as genoito, 'may it be so'.

From the study of Deuteronomy 27:16

Range of meaning

An adverb or particle from the root ʾmn, 'to be firm, reliable, trustworthy' (the same root gives ʾĕmûnāh, 'faithfulness'). As a response it means 'surely, truly, so be it.' It affirms that what was just said is valid and binding, and often it accepts that thing as an oath on oneself.

Against the English

Modern 'amen' is mostly the closing word of a prayer or a casual 'I agree!' Here it is a legal act of swearing. The speaker puts their own name under the curse.

How it drifted

Later worship use, in synagogue and church, made 'amen' a doxology and prayer-ending. The weight of an oath was largely lost.

Used elsewhere in the period

In Num 5:22 the woman suspected of adultery answers 'Amen, amen,' accepting the curse if she is guilty. In Neh 5:13 the assembly says 'Amen' to a self-curse on oath-breakers. In Jer 11:5 Jeremiah answers 'Amen, LORD' to the covenant curse. In 1 Kgs 1:36 'Amen' confirms a royal decree. The Greek Septuagint renders the Amen of Deut 27 with genoito, 'may it be so.'

Where it appears

Numbers · 2

  1. Numbers 5:22 אָמֵ֥ן׀ אָמֵֽן׃ amen

    May this water that brings a curse enter your stomach and cause your belly to swell and your thigh to shrivel.’ Then the woman is to say, ‘Amen, Amen.’

    Here: From the root meaning firm, reliable or established. Saying it makes the curse binding on herself: "Yes, let it be so if I am guilty."

Deuteronomy · 12

  1. Deuteronomy 27:15 אָמֵֽן׃ ס amen

    ‘Cursed is the man who makes a carved idol or molten image—an abomination to the LORD, the work of the hands of a craftsman—and sets it up in secret.’ And let all the people say, ‘Amen!’

    Here: From the root for 'firm, reliable'. Each person says, in effect, 'It stands: this is valid, and it applies to me too'. Each one accepts the curse as binding on themselves if they commit the deed.

  2. Deuteronomy 27:16 אָמֵֽן׃ ס amen

    ‘Cursed is he who dishonors his father or mother.’ And let all the people say, ‘Amen!’

    Here: From a root meaning 'firm, reliable.' Here it is a solemn acceptance. Each person says, 'It is firm. Let it be so, and let it fall on me if I am the one who does this.'

  3. Deuteronomy 27:17 אָמֵֽן׃ ס amen

    ‘Cursed is he who moves his neighbor’s boundary stone.’ And let all the people say, ‘Amen!’

  4. Deuteronomy 27:18 אָמֵֽן׃ ס amen

    ‘Cursed is he who lets a blind man wander in the road.’ And let all the people say, ‘Amen!’

  5. Deuteronomy 27:19 אָמֵֽן׃ ס amen

    ‘Cursed is he who withholds justice from the foreigner, the fatherless, or the widow.’ And let all the people say, ‘Amen!’

    Here: From the root meaning "firm, reliable." Here it is a formal oath-response. Each speaker confirms that the curse is valid and accepts it as binding on himself if he does this thing.

  6. Deuteronomy 27:20 אָמֵֽן׃ ס amen

    ‘Cursed is he who sleeps with his father’s wife, for he has violated his father’s marriage bed.’ And let all the people say, ‘Amen!’

  7. Deuteronomy 27:21 אָמֵֽן׃ ס amen

    ‘Cursed is he who lies with any animal.’ And let all the people say, ‘Amen!’

  8. Deuteronomy 27:22 אָמֵֽן׃ ס amen

    ‘Cursed is he who sleeps with his sister, the daughter of his father or the daughter of his mother.’ And let all the people say, ‘Amen!’

  9. Deuteronomy 27:23 אָמֵֽן׃ ס amen

    ‘Cursed is he who sleeps with his mother-in-law.’ And let all the people say, ‘Amen!’

  10. Deuteronomy 27:24 אָמֵֽן׃ ס amen

    ‘Cursed is he who strikes down his neighbor in secret.’ And let all the people say, ‘Amen!’

  11. Deuteronomy 27:25 אָמֵֽן׃ ס amen

    ‘Cursed is he who accepts a bribe to kill an innocent person.’ And let all the people say, ‘Amen!’

    Here: From the root for 'firm, reliable'. Here it is an oath-like agreement: 'Yes, that is true, and let it apply.' By saying it, each person accepts the curse as binding on themselves if they ever do this.

  12. Deuteronomy 27:26 אָמֵֽן׃ פ amen

    ‘Cursed is he who does not put the words of this law into practice.’ And let all the people say, ‘Amen!’

    Here: From the root for 'firm, reliable'. By saying it the people confirm the curse as valid and bind themselves to it. In effect each speaker accepts the sanction against themselves if they become 'the one who does not uphold'.

1 Kings · 1

  1. 1 Kings 1:36 אָמֵ֑ן amen

    “Amen,” replied Benaiah son of Jehoiada. “May the LORD, the God of my lord the king, so declare it.

1 Chronicles · 1

  1. 1 Chronicles 16:36 אָמֵ֔ן amen

    Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel, from everlasting to everlasting.” Then all the people said, “Amen!” and “Praise the LORD!”

    Here: From the root meaning 'firm, reliable'. The people declare what has been sung to be firm and true, and take it on as their own word.

Nehemiah · 3

  1. Nehemiah 5:13 אָמֵ֗ן amen

    I also shook out the folds of my robe and said, “May God likewise shake out of his house and possessions every man who does not keep this promise. May such a man be shaken out and have nothing!” The whole assembly said, “Amen,” and they praised the LORD. And the people did as they had promised.

    Here: Spoken assent to the curse: “it is firm, let it be so.” Those who say it accept the curse as binding on themselves.

  2. Nehemiah 8:6 אָמֵ֤ן׀ אָמֵן֙ amen

    Then Ezra blessed the LORD, the great God, and with their hands uplifted, all the people said, “Amen, Amen!” Then they bowed down and worshiped the LORD with their faces to the ground.

    Here: From the root meaning 'firm, reliable.' Spoken by listeners, it affirms what was just said as true and binding on themselves: 'Yes, so it is; so let it be.'

Psalms · 7

  1. Psalm 41:13 אָ֘מֵ֥ן׀ וְאָמֵֽן׃ amen, and amen

    Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel, from everlasting to everlasting. Amen and Amen.

    Here: From the root for 'firm, reliable'. It is the hearers' solemn agreement: 'It is true, let it stand.'

  2. Psalm 72:19 אָ֘מֵ֥ן׀ וְאָמֵֽן׃ amen, and amen

    And blessed be His glorious name forever; may all the earth be filled with His glory. Amen and amen.

    Here: From the root meaning 'firm, reliable'. It is the hearers' answer: 'Yes, it is sure; so be it!' It confirms what has just been said.

  3. Psalm 89:52 אָ֘מֵ֥ן׀ וְאָמֵֽן׃ amen, and amen

    Blessed be the LORD forever! Amen and amen.

    Here: A word of solemn assent from the root meaning 'firm, reliable'. The worshippers make the blessing their own: 'It is firm, so let it be.'

  4. Psalm 106:48 אָמֵ֗ן amen

    Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel, from everlasting to everlasting. Let all the people say, “Amen!” Hallelujah!

    Here: From a root meaning 'firm, reliable'. Saying it makes the blessing just spoken one's own: 'Yes, it is so; let it stand.'

Isaiah · 2

  1. Isaiah 65:16 אָמֵ֔ן אָמֵ֑ן surely

    Whoever invokes a blessing in the land will do so by the God of truth, and whoever takes an oath in the land will swear by the God of truth. For the former troubles will be forgotten and hidden from My sight.

    Here: Used here as a title, and nowhere else in the Hebrew Bible as part of a divine title: 'the God of the Amen'. Elsewhere amen is the word said to accept and confirm an oath, curse or blessing. God is the one who makes it so, whose word holds firm.

Jeremiah · 2

  1. Jeremiah 11:5 אָמֵ֥ן׀ amen

    This was in order to establish the oath I swore to your forefathers, to give them a land flowing with milk and honey, as it is to this day.” “Amen, LORD,” I answered.

    Here: A formal 'it is firm', the word by which a hearer accepted the terms just spoken, including the curse in verse 3. Jeremiah commits himself to the covenant's terms on the record.

  2. Jeremiah 28:6 אָמֵ֕ן amen

    “Amen!” Jeremiah said. “May the LORD do so! May the LORD fulfill the words you have prophesied, and may He restore the articles of His house and all the exiles back to this place from Babylon.

    Here: A solemn word of assent, from a root meaning “firm, reliable.” Here it works as a wish, “may it be so,” and not as a ruling that Hananiah's oracle is true. Verses 7–9 make that clear straight away.

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