אֲבָל
a.val (H0061)
truly
AI Word Study
# אֲבָל (aval): "Truly" in Biblical Hebrew The Hebrew word אֲבָל (aval) functions as an affirmative particle meaning "truly" or "certainly," appearing eleven times throughout the biblical text. As a relatively rare word in the Hebrew Bible, its limited frequency suggests it served a specialized rhetorical purpose rather than functioning as an everyday expression. The term operates at the level of emphasis and assertion, signaling that what follows carries particular weight or conviction. In biblical discourse, אֲבָל appears designed to lend certainty and force to statements. Unlike more common Hebrew affirmatives, its scarcity makes each occurrence potentially significant—the speaker or writer invokes this particle when insisting on the truth or reality of a claim. The word bridges the gap between ordinary assertion and emphatic declaration, allowing biblical authors to mark statements as especially trustworthy or important without resorting to elaboration or extended argumentation. Understanding אֲבָל helps readers recognize moments in the biblical text where speakers deliberately underscore their sincerity or the reliability of their words. The particle's limited use suggests that biblical Hebrew preserved more emphatic alternatives for situations demanding particular force, allowing writers to modulate their rhetorical intensity through lexical choice rather than through repetition or elaboration alone.
AI synthesis uses only provided lexicon data -- never training knowledge.
God said, “No, but Sarah, your wife, will bear you a son. You shall call his name Isaac. I will establish my covenant with him for an everlasting covenant for his offspring after him.
They said to one another, “We are certainly guilty concerning our brother, in that we saw the distress of his soul, when he begged us, and we wouldn’t listen. Therefore this distress has come upon us.”
The king said to her, “What ails you?” She answered, “Truly I am a widow, and my husband is dead.
Jonathan answered Adonijah, “Most certainly our lord king David has made Solomon king.
He said, “What then is to be done for her?” Gehazi answered, “Most certainly she has no son, and her husband is old.”
But David had brought God’s ark up from Kiriath Jearim to the place that David had prepared for it; for he had pitched a tent for it at Jerusalem.
Nevertheless there are good things found in you, in that you have put away the Asheroth out of the land, and have set your heart to seek God.”
Nevertheless the people sacrificed still in the high places, but only to Yahweh their God.
But the people are many, and it is a time of much rain, and we are not able to stand outside. This is not a work of one day or two, for we have greatly transgressed in this matter.
I, Daniel, alone saw the vision; for the men who were with me didn’t see the vision; but a great quaking fell on them, and they fled to hide themselves.
But I will tell you that which is inscribed in the writing of truth. There is no one who holds with me against these, but Michael your prince.