Hebrew word · H6141

עִקֵּשׁ

'ikesh

twisted

Twisted, crooked, bent, warped. It describes paths (Prov 2:15; 28:6, 18), speech (8:8; 19:1), and people or hearts (Deut 32:5, 'a crooked and twisted generation'; Ps 18:26; Prov 17:20). The related verb means to twist or pervert (Mic 3:9, 'who make crooked all that is straight'; Prov 10:9).

Appears 11 times in 11 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

twisted, distorted, crooked, perverse, perverted

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 Proverbs 11:20

Range of meaning

Twisted, crooked, bent, warped. It describes paths (Prov 2:15; 28:6, 18), speech (8:8; 19:1), and people or hearts (Deut 32:5, 'a crooked and twisted generation'; Ps 18:26; Prov 17:20). The related verb means to twist or pervert (Mic 3:9, 'who make crooked all that is straight'; Prov 10:9).

Against the English

'Perverse' (BSB, WEB, NASB, NIV) originally meant 'turned the wrong way', which is right. Today, though, it suggests sexual deviance. KJV's 'froward' (meaning 'turned away, contrary') is archaic and mostly not understood. ESV's and NLT's 'crooked' best keeps the picture of the Hebrew.

How it drifted

Starting in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, 'perverse/pervert' became tied to sexuality in English. 'Froward' simply dropped out of use.

Used elsewhere in the period

In Proverbs the word sits in a cluster of path images: the 'straight' (yāšār) way against the crooked one (2:13–15). Deut 32:5 (the Song of Moses) uses it for a faithless generation. The Septuagint here seems to render the idea with diestrammenai, 'twisted, distorted', the word Paul echoes in Phil 2:15 (from Deut 32:5).

From the study of Proverbs 22:5

Range of meaning

Twisted, crooked, bent. Morally: devious, deceitful, false in speech and conduct. In Proverbs it is the regular opposite of tām ('whole, blameless') and yāšār ('straight, upright'): Prov 2:15 ('whose paths are crooked'), 8:8, 11:20, 17:20 ('crooked of heart'), 19:1 ('crooked of lips'), 28:6 ('crooked in his ways').

Against the English

BSB, YLT and NASB say 'perverse', ESV 'crooked', KJV 'froward', WEB 'wicked'. 'Crooked' keeps the road picture best. 'Perverse' is accurate in older English but now suggests sexual deviance to many readers. 'Froward' (older English for 'turned away, contrary') is obscure today. 'Wicked' is correct in general but loses the twisted-road picture.

How it drifted

In modern English 'perverse' and 'pervert' have narrowed toward sexual meaning, and 'froward' has dropped out of use. The Hebrew is about crookedness: dishonesty and deviousness in how one lives and speaks.

Used elsewhere in the period

Deut 32:5 calls Israel 'a crooked (ʿiqqēš) and twisted generation', a phrase the Septuagint renders genea skolia, which Paul echoes in Phil 2:15. The Septuagint of our verse has 'crooked ways' (hodois skoliais).

From the study of Proverbs 19:1

Range of meaning

Twisted, crooked, distorted. It is used of paths, of the heart, of speech and of people. It is the opposite of 'straight' or 'upright' (yashar). The related verb means to twist or pervert, e.g. to 'make crooked' a path or a case.

Against the English

KJV, WEB, BSB and NASB say 'perverse'. In modern English that word leans toward sexual deviance or contrariness. ESV's 'crooked in speech' keeps the picture of something bent. NLT's 'dishonest' gives the core sense but loses the image.

How it drifted

In older English, 'perverse' (from Latin perversus, 'turned the wrong way') meant twisted or wrong-headed. Its modern association with sexual deviance came later and has nothing to do with the Hebrew here.

Used elsewhere in the period

Proverbs 8:8: in wisdom's words 'there is nothing twisted or crooked (iqqesh)'. Proverbs 2:15 describes people 'whose paths are crooked'. Proverbs 28:6 has 'twisted of ways'. Deuteronomy 32:5 calls Israel 'a crooked and twisted generation', a phrase Paul echoes in Philippians 2:15.

Where it appears

Deuteronomy · 1

  1. Deuteronomy 32:5 עִקֵּ֖שׁ perverse

    His people have acted corruptly toward Him; the blemish on them is not that of His children, but of a perverse and crooked generation.

    Here: Twisted out of true, the opposite of yashar, 'straight/upright', which describes God in verse 4. The picture is a path or a stick that has been bent.

2 Samuel · 1

  1. 2 Samuel 22:27 עִקֵּ֖שׁ a perverse [person]

    to the pure You show Yourself pure, but to the crooked You show Yourself shrewd.

Psalms · 2

  1. Psalm 18:26 עִ֝קֵּ֗שׁ a perverse [person]

    to the pure You show Yourself pure, but to the crooked You show Yourself shrewd.

    Here: 'A twisted person': someone whose ways and words are bent and devious, the opposite of straight. The word is common in Proverbs for crooked speech and crooked paths. In Deuteronomy 32:5 Israel is called 'a twisted (ʿiqqēš) and crooked (pətaltōl) generation', the same pair of roots that appears in this line.

  2. Psalm 101:4 עִ֭קֵּשׁ perverse

    A perverse heart shall depart from me; I will know nothing of evil.

Proverbs · 7

  1. Proverbs 2:15 עִקְּשִׁ֑ים [are] twisted

    whose paths are crooked and whose ways are devious.

    Here: "Twisted": the opposite of a straight, level road. It is a moral word in Hebrew, but here the picture of a bent path is still alive. Their way of life is warped out of true.

  2. Proverbs 8:8 וְעִקֵּֽשׁ׃ and a distorted [thing]

    All the words of my mouth are righteous; none are crooked or perverse.

  3. Proverbs 11:20 עִקְּשֵׁי־ perverse [people] of

    The perverse in heart are an abomination to the LORD, but the blameless in their walk are His delight.

    Here: 'Twisted ones of…': people bent out of true. The picture is a crooked path or a warped line, used for people who are devious and turn the straight into the crooked.

  4. Proverbs 17:20 עִקֶּשׁ־ [a person] twisted of

    The one with a perverse heart finds no good, and he whose tongue is deceitful falls into trouble.

  5. Proverbs 19:1 מֵעִקֵּ֥שׁ more than [the] [person] perverse of

    Better a poor man who walks with integrity than a fool whose lips are perverse.

    Here: 'Than (me-) the one twisted …'. The picture is a bent or warped path or object, the opposite of straight. It contrasts with the 'wholeness' of the first line.

  6. Proverbs 22:5 עִקֵּ֑שׁ a perverse [person]

    Thorns and snares lie on the path of the perverse; he who guards his soul stays far from them.

    Here: The person whose life is bent out of line: devious, deceitful, the opposite of 'straight' or 'upright'. A twisted road for a twisted person, the kind of road where hazards gather.

  7. Proverbs 28:6 מֵעִקֵּ֥שׁ more than [the] [person] perverse

    Better a poor man who walks with integrity than a rich man whose ways are perverse.

    Here: With the prefix 'than': 'than the twisted one'. The word pictures something bent out of true. The opposite of a whole, straight life is a warped and dishonest one.

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