Dictionaries :: Ah; Aha

International Standard Bible Encyclopaedia

Ah; Aha:

a, a-ha': Interjections of frequent occurrence in the Old Testament, representing different Hebrew words and different states of feeling.

(1) 'ahah, expressing complaint and found in the phrase "Ah, Lord Yahweh" (Jer 1:6; 4:10 etc.; Eze 4:14 etc.). Elsewhere the word is translated "alas!" (Joe 1:15).

(2) 'ach, occurs once (Eze 21:15), expressing grief in contemplating Israel's destruction.

(3) he'ach, usually expresses malicious joy over the reverses of an enemy, and is introduced by the verb "to say" (Brown-Driver-Briggs' Lexicon); so in Ps 35:21,25; Eze 25:3; 26:2; 36:2; in the repeated Psalm 40:15; 70:3. It expresses satiety in Isa 44:16; and represents the neighing of a horse in Job 39:25.

(4) hoy, expresses grief or pain, (Isa 1:4; Jer 22:18). In 1Ki 13:30 it is translated "alas!" More frequently it is used to indicate that a threat of judgment is to follow (Isa 10:5; 29:1); or to direct attention to some important announcement (Isa 55:1), where the Hebrew word is translated "Ho."

(5) Greek oua, in Mr 15:29, used by those who mocked Jesus, as He hung upon the cross. All of these words are evidently imitative of the natural sounds, which spontaneously give expression to these emotions of complaint, grief, pain, exultation, etc.

Written by Edward Mack