אִם
if
‘if’ is one of 8 main senses fuller range ↓
Full lexicon entry — Brown-Driver-Briggs (BDB)
From Brown-Driver-Briggs (BDB)
Where this word appears
Grammar key — what these labels mean
Part of speech
- Conjunction
- A joining word (e.g. “and,” “but”) linking words or clauses.
Every verse where H518 appears in the Book of Job — 104 distinct verses. Click any verse to open its interlinear word-by-word view. Verse text shown in the World English Bible for context — . Each verse’s Hebrew form is shown with its reference; the English is not keyword-highlighted, since the data carries no word-level English alignment. Use “Compare translations” on any verse to read it across multiple English versions. This concordance covers the Hebrew Bible; Septuagint (Greek Old Testament) occurrences are not indexed here.
Job
- Job 1:11 אִם conj But put forth your hand now, and touch all that he has, and he will renounce you to your face."
- Job 2:5 אִם conj But put forth your hand now, and touch his bone and his flesh, and he will renounce you to your face."
- Job 4:17 אִ֥ם conj 'Shall mortal man be more just than God? Shall a man be more pure than his Maker?
- Job 6:5 אִ֥ם conj Does the wild donkey bray when he has grass? Or does the ox low over his fodder?
- Job 6:6 אִם conj Can that which has no flavor be eaten without salt? Or is there any taste in the white of an egg?
- Job 6:12 אִם אִֽם conj conj Is my strength the strength of stones? Or is my flesh of brass?
- Job 6:13 הַ/אִ֬ם ptcl inter + conj Isn't it that I have no help in me, That wisdom is driven quite from me?
- Job 6:28 אִם conj Now therefore be pleased to look at me, For surely I shall not lie to your face.
- Job 6:30 אִם conj Is there injustice on my tongue? Can't my taste discern mischievous things?
- Job 7:4 אִם conj When I lie down, I say, 'When shall I arise, and the night be gone?' I toss and turn until the dawning of the day.
- Job 7:12 אִם conj Am I a sea, or a sea-monster, That you put a guard over me?
- Job 8:3 וְ/אִם conj + conj Does God pervert justice? Or does the Almighty pervert righteousness?
- Job 8:4 אִם conj If your children have sinned against him, He has delivered them into the hand of their disobedience;
- Job 8:5 אִם conj If you want to seek God diligently, Make your supplication to the Almighty.
- Job 8:6 אִם conj If you were pure and upright, Surely now he would awaken for you, And make the habitation of your righteousness prosperous.
- Job 8:18 אִם conj If he is destroyed from his place, Then it shall deny him, saying, 'I have not seen you.'
- Job 9:3 אִם conj If he is pleased to contend with him, He can't answer him one time in a thousand.
- Job 9:15 אִם conj Whom, though I were righteous, yet would I not answer. I would make supplication to my judge.
- Job 9:16 אִם conj If I had called, and he had answered me, Yet would I not believe that he listened to my voice.
- Job 9:19 אִם וְ/אִם conj conj + conj If it is a matter of strength, behold, he is mighty! If of justice, 'Who,' says he, 'will summon me?'
- Job 9:20 אִם conj Though I am righteous, my own mouth shall condemn me. Though I am blameless, it shall prove me perverse.
- Job 9:23 אִם conj If the scourge kills suddenly, He will mock at the trial of the innocent.
- Job 9:24 אִם conj The earth is given into the hand of the wicked. He covers the faces of the judges of it. If not he, then who is it?
- Job 9:27 אִם conj If I say, 'I will forget my complaint, I will put off my sad face, and cheer up;'
- Job 9:30 אִם conj If I wash myself with snow, And cleanse my hands with lye,
- Job 10:4 אִם conj Do you have eyes of flesh? Or do you see as man sees?
- Job 10:5 אִם conj Are your days as the days of mortals, Or your years as man's years,
- Job 10:14 אִם conj If I sin, then you mark me. You will not acquit me from my iniquity.
- Job 10:15 אִם conj If I am wicked, woe to me. If I am righteous, I still shall not lift up my head, Being filled with disgrace, And conscious of my affliction.
- Job 11:2 וְ/אִם conj + conj "Shouldn't the multitude of words be answered? Should a man full of talk be justified?
- Job 11:7 אִ֤ם conj "Can you fathom the mystery of God? Or can you probe the limits of the Almighty?
- Job 11:10 אִם conj If he passes by, or confines, Or convenes a court, then who can oppose him?
- Job 11:13 אִם conj "If you set your heart aright, Stretch out your hands toward him.
- Job 11:14 אִם conj If iniquity is in your hand, put it far away, Don't let unrighteousness dwell in your tents.
- Job 13:8 אִם conj Will you show partiality to him? Will you contend for God?
- Job 13:9 אִם conj Is it good that he should search you out? Or as one deceives a man, will you deceive him?
- Job 13:10 אִם conj He will surely reprove you If you secretly show partiality.
- Job 14:5 אִ֥ם conj Seeing his days are determined, The number of his months is with you, And you have appointed his bounds that he can't pass;
- Job 14:7 אִֽם conj "For there is hope for a tree, If it is cut down, that it will sprout again, That the tender branch of it will not cease.
- Job 14:8 אִם conj Though the root of it grows old in the earth, And the stock of it dies in the ground;
- Job 14:14 אִם conj If a man dies, shall he live again? All the days of my warfare would I wait, Until my release should come.
- Job 16:6 אִֽם conj "Though I speak, my grief is not subsided. Though I forbear, what am I eased?
- Job 17:2 אִם conj Surely there are mockers with me, My eye dwells on their provocation.
- Job 17:13 אִם conj If I look for Sheol as my house, If I have spread my couch in the darkness,
- Job 17:16 אִם conj Shall it go down with me to the gates of Sheol, Or descend together into the dust?"
- Job 19:5 אִם conj If indeed you will magnify yourselves against me, And plead against me my reproach;
- Job 20:6 אִם conj Though his height mount up to the heavens, And his head reach to the clouds,
- Job 20:12 אִם conj "Though wickedness is sweet in his mouth, Though he hide it under his tongue,
- Job 21:4 וְ/אִם conj + conj As for me, is my complaint to man? Why shouldn't I be impatient?
- Job 21:6 וְ/אִם conj + conj When I remember, I am troubled. Horror takes hold of my flesh.
- Job 22:3 וְ/אִם conj + conj Is it any pleasure to the Almighty, that you are righteous? Or does it benefit him, that you make your ways perfect?
- Job 22:20 אִם conj Saying, 'Surely those who rose up against us are cut off, The fire has consumed the remnant of them.'
- Job 22:23 אִם conj If you return to the Almighty, you shall be built up, If you put away unrighteousness far from your tents.
- Job 24:25 וְ/אִם conj + conj If it isn't so now, who will prove me a liar, And make my speech worth nothing?"
- Job 27:4 אִם אִם conj conj Surely my lips shall not speak unrighteousness, Neither shall my tongue utter deceit.
- Job 27:5 אִם conj Far be it from me that I should justify you. Until I die I will not put away my integrity from me.
- Job 27:10 אִם conj Will he delight himself in the Almighty, And call on God at all times?
- Job 27:14 אִם conj If his children are multiplied, it is for the sword. His offspring shall not be satisfied with bread.
- Job 27:16 אִם conj Though he heap up silver as the dust, And prepare clothing as the clay;
- Job 30:24 אִם conj "However doesn't one stretch out a hand in his fall? Or in his calamity therefore cry for help?
- Job 30:25 אִם conj Didn't I weep for him who was in trouble? Wasn't my soul grieved for the needy?
- Job 31:5 אִם conj "If I have walked with falsehood, And my foot has hurried to deceit
- Job 31:7 אִ֥ם conj If my step has turned out of the way, If my heart walked after my eyes, If any defilement has stuck to my hands,
- Job 31:9 אִם conj "If my heart has been enticed to a woman, And I have laid wait at my neighbor's door;
- Job 31:13 אִם conj "If I have despised the cause of my man-servant Or of my maid-servant, When they contended with me;
- Job 31:16 אִם conj "If I have withheld the poor from their desire, Or have caused the eyes of the widow to fail,
- Job 31:19 אִם conj If I have seen any perish for want of clothing, Or that the needy had no covering;
- Job 31:20 אִם conj If his heart hasn't blessed me, If he hasn't been warmed with my sheep's fleece;
- Job 31:21 אִם conj If I have lifted up my hand against the fatherless, Because I saw my help in the gate:
- Job 31:24 אִם conj "If I have made gold my hope, And have said to the fine gold, 'You are my confidence;'
- Job 31:25 אִם conj If I have rejoiced because my wealth was great, And because my hand had gotten much;
- Job 31:26 אִם conj If I have seen the sun when it shined, Or the moon moving in splendor,
- Job 31:29 אִם conj "If I have rejoiced at the destruction of him who hated me, Or lifted up myself when evil found him;
- Job 31:31 אִם conj If the men of my tent have not said, 'Who can find one who has not been filled with his meat?'
- Job 31:33 אִם conj If like Adam I have covered my transgressions, By hiding my iniquity in my heart,
- Job 31:36 אִם conj Surely I would carry it on my shoulder; And I would bind it to me as a crown.
- Job 31:38 אִם conj If my land cries out against me, And the furrows of it weep together;
- Job 31:39 אִם conj If I have eaten the fruits of it without money, Or have caused the owners of it to lose their life:
- Job 33:5 אִם conj If you can, answer me; Set your words in order before me, and stand forth.
- Job 33:23 אִם conj "If there is beside him an angel, An interpreter, one among a thousand, To show to man what is right for him;
- Job 33:32 אִם conj If you have anything to say, answer me: Speak, for I desire to justify you.
- Job 33:33 אִם conj If not, listen to me: Hold your peace, and I will teach you wisdom."
- Job 34:14 אִם conj If he set his heart on himself, If he gathered to himself his spirit and his breath;
- Job 34:16 וְ/אִם conj + conj "If now you have understanding, hear this. Listen to the voice of my words.
- Job 34:17 וְ/אִם conj + conj Shall even one who hates justice govern? Will you condemn him who is righteous and mighty?--
- Job 34:32 אִֽם conj Teach me that which I don't see. If I have done iniquity, I will do it no more'?
- Job 35:6 אִם conj If you have sinned, what effect do you have against him? If your transgressions are multiplied, what do you do to him?
- Job 35:7 אִם conj If you are righteous, what do you give him? Or what does he receive from your hand?
- Job 36:8 וְ/אִם conj + conj If they are bound in fetters, And are taken in the cords of afflictions,
- Job 36:11 אִֽם conj If they listen and serve him, They shall spend their days in prosperity, And their years in pleasures.
- Job 36:12 וְ/אִם conj + conj But if they don't listen, they shall perish by the sword; They shall die without knowledge.
- Job 36:29 אִם conj Yes, can any understand the spreading of the clouds, And the thunderings of his pavilion?
- Job 37:13 אִם אִם אִם conj conj conj Whether it is for correction, or for his land, Or for loving kindness, that he causes it to come.
- Job 37:20 אִֽם conj Shall it be told him that I would speak? Or should a man wish that he were swallowed up?
- Job 38:4 אִם conj "Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth? Declare, if you have understanding.
- Job 38:18 אִם conj Have you comprehended the earth in its breadth? Declare, if you know it all.
- Job 38:33 אִם conj Do you know the laws of the heavens? Can you establish the dominion of it over the earth?
- Job 39:9 אִם conj "Will the wild ox be content to serve you? Or will he stay by your feeding trough?
- Job 39:10 אִם conj Can you hold the wild ox in the furrow with his harness? Or will he till the valleys after you?
- Job 39:13 אִם conj "The wings of the ostrich wave proudly; But are they the feathers and plumage of love?
- Job 39:27 אִם conj Is it at your command that the eagle mounts up, And makes his nest on high?
- Job 40:9 וְ/אִם conj + conj Or have you an arm like God? Can you thunder with a voice like him?
- Job 41:3 אִם conj Will he make many petitions to you? Or will he speak soft words to you?
- Job 42:8 אִם conj Now therefore, take to yourselves seven bulls and seven rams, and go to my servant Job, and offer up for yourselves a burnt offering; and my servant Job shall pray for you, for I will accept him, that I not deal with you according to your folly. For you have not spoken of me the thing that is right, as my servant Job has."
About this entry
At a glance — auto-summarized from this page’s data, not written by a person. Every figure links to its source below. This summary describes the numbers; it doesn’t interpret them.
אם — transliterated ʼim — is a Hebrew word carrying the sense “if.” The lexicon spreads it across several senses; see its full sense range. Spanning 931 verses in 37 books, it ranks among the most common words of the Hebrew Bible. Its earliest occurrence is Genesis 4:7. Each statement above links to its evidence; the full detail follows below.
Gloss history
Strong's 1890 vs modern scholarship
About this word
Strong's H518 catalogs a Hebrew word from the Hebrew Old Testament.
These counts are not copied from any lexicon or concordance. They are computed here, from the morphology-tagged Hebrew Old Testament. What Lemma adds →
- 931
- distinct verses
- The word appears in 931 distinct verses.
- 37 / 39
- OT books
- The word appears in 37 of 39 Old Testament books.
- #39
- by frequency
- Top 50 most frequent Hebrew words (rank 39 of 8,640 Hebrew words by occurrence).
View all 931 occurrences in the concordance →
By section of the Old Testament
By traditional corpus
Conventional, traditional groupings — biblical authorship is debated, so this is a traditional corpus grouping, not an authorship claim. Each share is this word’s portion of its verses in that division of the Hebrew canon. Each figure is a share of the word’s 931 distinct verses.
- Prophets (Nevi'im) 377 verses · 40%
- Torah (Pentateuch) 295 verses · 32%
- Writings (Ketuvim) 259 verses · 28%
How translations render this word
Counts come from each version’s own published word-to-Strong’s tagging or interlinear alignment — an approximate guide to how each version renders this word, not a word-level alignment the data otherwise carries. Because each total is that version’s own tagged count, the per-version totals vary from one another and need not match the appearance or distinct-verse counts above. These counts may also differ from a printed concordance because Lemma counts each distinctly tagged rendering and does not collapse phrase taggings into a single head-word total. This is a fixed set of word-tagged versions (KJV, ASV, BSB, ULT) and does not change with the reading translation you choose elsewhere. Each version’s license is shown beside its name below (and on Sources).
- King James Version: If 4×, But 2×, I will not 2×
- American Standard Version: If 4×, But 2×, Him 2×
- Berean Standard Bible: If 522×, Or 64×, When 25×
- unfoldingWord Literal Text: If 701×, Or 65×, Except 36×
King James Version Public Domain
Renders H518 across 43 tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus 29 renderings that appear only once — usually multi-word phrases or single function words the recovered tagging swept in, not distinct renderings. Not rendered by a distinct English word in 1 further occurrence.
American Standard Version Public Domain
Renders H518 across 43 tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus 29 renderings that appear only once — usually multi-word phrases or single function words the recovered tagging swept in, not distinct renderings.
Berean Standard Bible Public Domain
Renders H518 across 867 tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus other, less common renderings. Plus 56 renderings that appear only once — usually multi-word phrases or single function words the recovered tagging swept in, not distinct renderings. Not rendered by a distinct English word in 202 further occurrences.
unfoldingWord Literal Text CC BY-SA 4.0
Renders H518 across 1,048 tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus other, less common renderings. Plus 36 renderings that appear only once — usually multi-word phrases or single function words the recovered tagging swept in, not distinct renderings.
8 senses and sub-senses in the full BDB
What do BDB’s symbols mean?
BDB uses these scholarly abbreviations:
| Symbol | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 𝔊 | the Septuagint (the ancient Greek translation, LXX) |
| 𝔙 | the Vulgate (the Latin translation) |
| 𝔖 | the Syriac version (the Peshitta) |
| 𝔗 | the Targum (the Aramaic translation) |
| ψ | the Psalms |
| √ | root (the underlying root or stem) |
| ‖ | parallel passage (a synonymous or contrasted parallel) |
| † | the dagger: every passage where the word occurs is cited |
The 8 senses and sub-senses the full Brown-Driver-Briggs lexicon distinguishes for this word, in lexicon order (not ranked by frequency), with BDB’s own verbatim wording and sub-sense lettering. Shown in Hebrew script with BDB’s own scholarly abbreviations. The condensed entry is in the Lexicon Entry tab. See also the Forms in the corpus table below.
- 1. hypoth. part. if.
- a. construction (v. more fully Dr§ 136–138, 143 Friedrich Die Hebr. Condit. sätze 1884): (1) with impf. (continued by pff. & waw consec.; apod. usually begins with pf. & waw consec. or bare impf.; or, if necess., with imper. or juss.) (a) of future time: Gn 18:26 אִם־אֶמְצָא if I shall find 50 righteous in Sodom, וְנָשָׂאתִי I will pardon, etc., 24:8; 32:9 Dt 19:8 f. 1 K 1:52 b; 6:12 ψ 89:31–33; Gn 42:37 Ju 13:16 1 K 1:52 a ψ 132:12. (b) of past time (rare, but classical): Gn 31:8 אִם יֹאמַר if ever he said … וְיָֽלְדוּ then they used to bear, etc., Ex 40:37; & in the protestations Jb 31:7, 13, 16, 25 etc. (alternating with pff., v. infr., & with jussives in apod.) (c) assuming a purely imaginary case (with impf. in both clauses, like the double opt. in Greek), if, though: Gn 13:16 so that אִם־יוּכַל if a man were able to number the stars, thy seed also יִמָּנֶה might be numbered, Nu 22:18 Is 1:18 אִם־יִהְיוּ ח׳ כַּשָּׁנִים יַלְבִּינוּ though your sins were as scarlet, they should become white as snow, Am 9:2–4 אִם־יַחְתְּרוּ though they were to dig into Sheôl, from thence תִּקָּחֵם would my hand fetch them, ψ 27:3; 139:8 +. (2) with pt. (expressing either a present process, or an approaching future: apod. as 1 a) Gn 24:42, 49 Ju 6:36 (+ ישׁ) 9:15; 11:9 אִם מְשִׁיבִים אַתֶּם if ye are going to bring me back וְנָתַן י׳ then י׳ will, etc.; similarly with יֵשׁ or אֵין Gn 44:26 Ex 22:2 1 S 20:8; 23:23; & with no explicit copula Dt 22:2; 25:2 Lv 1:3, 14, etc. (3) with perf. (a) of fut. or pres. time (continued by pff. & waw consec.: apod. as 1 a) Gn 43:9 אִם־לֹא הֲבִיאֹתִיו אֵלָיךָ וְהִצַּגְתִּיו לְפָנֶיךָ if I do not bring him back (si eum non reduxero) and set him before thee, I will be guilty for ever, 47:6 if thou knowest that there are men of worth among them וְשַׂמְתָּם then make them, etc., Ju 16:17 2 S 15:33 2 K 7:4 ψ 41:7; 94:18 Jb 7:4; 9:30 f. 10:14 אִם חָטָאתִי וּשְׁמַרְתָּ֑נִי if I sin, thou watchest me. On אִם־נָא Gn 18:3 al. v. נָא. (b) of past time, whether (α) in actual fact, or (β) in an assumed case (the pf. is here continued by the impf. and waw consec.; apod. begins as before). (4) (a) Ju 9:16–19 אִם … עֲשִׂיתֶם if ye have done honestly וַתַּמְלִיכוּ and have made Abimelech king …, 1 S 26:19; especially in protestations, as ψ 7:4 אִם עָשִׂיתִי זאת if I have done this …, let the enemy pursue my soul, etc. Je 33:25 f. Jb 31:5 f. 9, etc. (b) Nu 5:27 if she have defiled herself וַתִּמְעֹל and been faithless, וּבָאוּ then shall they come, etc., 15:24; 35:22–24. (c) with bare pf. in apod., in sense of If … had …, only Dt 32:30 אִם־לֹא כִּי were it not that …, ψ 73:15. (לוּ is more usual in such cases.) (5) with inf. once (si vera l.) Jb 9:27 אִם אָמְרִי = if I say (lit. if (there is) my saying).—Note that the vb. following אִם is often strengthened by the inf. abs., as Ex 15:26; 19:5; 21:5; 22:3, 12, 16, 22 Ju 11:30; 14:12; 16:11 etc.; cf. DrSm 1:20, 6. e.g. Genesis 18:26
- b. Special uses: (1) repeated אִם … אִם whether … or (sive … sive) Ex 19:13 Dt 18:3 2 S 15:21; similarly אִם … וְאִם Gn 31:52 Je 42:6 Ez 2:5 Ec 11:3; 12:14 (cf. ܐܶܢ … ܐܶܢ, ܘܶܐܢ … ܐܢ PS250; وَإِنْ … إِنْ & وَإِمَّا … إِمَّا); cf. Pr 2:3. (2) After an oath (expressed, or merely implied) אִם (the formula of imprecation being omitted) becomes an emph. negative, and אִם־לֹא an emph. affirmative: 2 S 11:11 by thy life אִם־אֶעֱשֶׂה אֶת־הַדָּבָר הַזֶּה (may God bring all manner of evil upon me) if I do this thing! = surely I will not do this thing! (cf. the full phrases in 1 S 3:17 2 K 6:31) Gn 14:23; 42:15 Nu 14:23 1 S 3:14; 19:6 2 K 2:2; 3:14 & often; Is 22:14 ψ 89:36; 95:11 Jb 6:28; אִם־לֹא Nu 14:28 Jos 14:9 1 K 20:23 2 K 9:26 Is 5:9; 14:24 Je 15:11; 49:20 Jb 1:11 + especially Ez; after a neg. clause, emphasizing a contrasted idea, Gn 24:38 (where the expl. by Aramaic אֶלָּא is not supported by Heb. usage), cf. Je 22:6. Repeated, אִם … וְאִם 2 S 20:20 2 K 3:14 Is 62:8 Je 38:16; Ez 14:16. In adjurations (with 2nd or 3rd ps.) = that not Gn 21:23; 26:29; 31:50 1 S 24:22 1 K 1:51 Ct 2:7; 3:5 +. Of past or present time: 1 S 25:34 as י׳ liveth (I say) that, unless thou hadst hastened …, כִּי אִם נוֹתַר that surely there had not been left …! 17:55 as thy soul liveth אִם־יָדָֽעְתִּי if I know it! 1 K 17:12; 18:10—both אִם־יֵשׁ (כִּי in 1 K 17:12 introduces the fact sworn to, & need not be translated; so 2 S 3:35: v. כִּי); ψ 131:2 אִם־לֹא (after a neg. clause: cf. supr. Gn 24:38). Cf. Str§ 90. (3) Part. of wishing, if but …! oh that …! (rare) ψ 81:9 If thou wouldest hearken to me! 95:7; 139:19 Pr 24:11 1 Ch 4:10. Cf. Ex 32:32. With imv. (si vera l.) Jb 34:16 וְאִם־בִּֽינָה; and with an anacoluthon, Gu 23:13 (P) אִם־אַתָּה לוּ שְמָעֵנִי if thou!—oh that thou wouldst hear me! (4) Nearly = when—with the pf.: (a) of past, Gn 38:9 Nu 21:9 וְהָיָה אִם־נָשַׁךְ … וְהִבִּיט and it used to be, if or when a serpent had bitten a man, that he would look, etc., Ju 6:3 ψ 78:34 (v. Dr§ 136 δ Obs.); Am 7:2. (b) of pres. or fut., Is 4:4 אִם רָחַץ when the Lord shall have washed, 24:13; 28:25; cf. Nu 36:4 (with the impf.) e.g. Exodus 19:13
- c. Compounded with other particles:—(α) בִּלְתִּי אִם except if, except, †Gn 47:18 Ju 7:14 Am 3:3, 4. (β) הֲלוֹא אִם †2 K 20:19 (for which Is 39:8 has simply כִּי), perhaps Is it not (good), if …? (De Di). (γ) כִּי־אִם, q.v. (δ) עַד אִם †Gn 24:19, 33 Is 30:17 Ru 2:21, & עַד אֲשֶׁר אִם †Gn 28:15 Nu 32:17 Is 6:11, until, proposes until if or when. (ε) רַק אִם if only (v. sub רַק). אִם־לֹא in Ez 3:6b is very difficult. The Vrss render If I had sent, etc., implying לֻא for אִם־לֹא (for Ew’s אִם־לֻא = אִלּוּ, q.v., is precarious): Ges Hi Co ‘but (אִם־לֹא after a neg., cf. supr. Gn 24:38 ψ 131:2) unto them (Isr.) have I sent thee: they can understand thee’ (but understand is a dub. rendering of שָׁמַע אֶל). e.g. Genesis 47:18
- 2. Interrog.part.
- a. in direct qu.: (a) alone (not freq. and usually = Num? expecting the answer No, especially in a rhet. style): Gn 38:17 1 K 1:27; Ju 5:8 מָגֵן אִם־יֵרָאֶה וָרֹמַח was there a shield to be seen or a spear …? Is 29:16; and repeated Am 3:6 Je 48:27 Jb 6:12. (b) more freq. in disjunctive interrogation: (α) הֲ … אִם, expressing a real alternative Jos 5:13 הֲלָנוּ אַתָּה אִם־לְצָרֵינוּ art thou for us, or for our enemies? Ju 9:2 1 K 22:6, 15: more often expressing a merely formal alternative, especially in poetry (a rhetorical Num?) Gn 37:8 Nu 11:12, 22 Ju 11:25b 2 S 19:36 Is 10:15; 66:8 Je 3:5 Hb 3:8 ψ 77:10; 78:20 Jb 4:17; 6:5, 6; 10:4, 5; 11:7 etc. (β) הֲ … וְאִם (rarer than הֲ … אִם, but similar in use) 2 S 24:13 (a real alt.); Is 49:24; 50:2 Je 5:9 (v 29 אִם) 14:22 Jo 1:2; 4:4 Jb 8:3; 11:2; 21:4; 22:3; 34:17; 40:8f. (formal); Gn 17:17 P (with an anacol.) shall a child …? וְאִם־שָׂרָה הֲבַת־תִּשְׁעִים שָׁנָה תֵּלֵד or Sarah,—shall she that is 90 years old bear? Pr 27:24 (וְאִם after neg. clause). e.g. Genesis 38:17
- b. in oblique interrogation, if, whether: (a) alone, after verbs of seeing, inquiring, etc. 2 K 1:2 Je 5:1; 30:6 Mal 3:10 ψ 139:24 Ct 7:13 La 1:12 Ezr 2:59; once מִי יוֹדֵעַ אִם who knoweth if …? i. e. (like haud scio an) perhaps Est 4:14 (older syn. מִי יוֹדֵעַ alone: see 2 S 12:22 Jo 2:14 Jon 3:9). (b) disjunctively הֲ … אִם Gn 27:21 Nu 13:18–20; so אִם … וְאִם Jos 24:15. e.g. 2 Kings 1:2
- c. compounded with הֲ, הַאִם †Nu 17:28 הַאִם תַּמְנוּ לִגְוֹעַ prob. an emph. Num? Shall we ever have finished dying? Jb 6:13 difficult: perhaps Is it that my help is not in me? (a forcible means of expressing that that which might be thought impossible is nevertheless the case); Hi as an aposiop., If my help is not in me (am I still to wait)? (The view that הַאִם = הֲלֹא nonne? is inconsistent with the fact that אִם in a question has regularly the force of Num?) e.g. Numbers 17:28
Senses from the full Brown-Driver-Briggs lexicon (Brown, Driver, Briggs; Oxford 1906 — public domain), digitized via Sefaria, supplemented by the OpenScriptures HebrewLexicon (CC BY 4.0). Full attribution on Sources.
Word origin
conj. (= Aramaic ܐܶܢ if [and in ܐܶܠܴܐ, אֶלָּא = ܐܶܢ ܠܴܐ if not, except], Arabic إِنْ if [and in إِلَّا = إِنْ لَا if not, except], Ethiopic እመ if = מָה + אִם (إِنْ + مَا) [and in አላ if not, but], Assyrian šumma; SAr. hm; Arabic أَمْ (Lat. an?) = أَاِمْ, cf. הַאִם: v. NöM p. 208, ZMG 1886, p. 739; WAG i. § 367 e 𝔗Onk Jon. אִם, 𝔗Hag אין.)
— Brown-Driver-Briggs (Oxford 1906, public domain), digitized via Sefaria, supplemented by the OpenScriptures HebrewLexicon (CC BY 4.0). See Sources.
Origin: a primitive particle
Jastrow Dictionary
A second Hebrew/Aramaic lexicon for comparison, covering Aramaic and post-biblical (Talmudic, Targumic, Midrashic) usage that the biblical-Hebrew BDB does not. Matched by lemma rather than by Strong’s number, so a lemma may carry more than one Jastrow headword (shown separately below), and the entries cover usage well beyond the Bible.
אִם
- 1. if, when. Mekh. Yithro, end כל א׳ שבתורה רשות every Im (If) in the Torah refers to voluntary actions (which you may or may not do) except three &c. Y. Gitt. VII, 48ᵈ בגין דאמר א׳ because he said, If (I die), i.e. conditional divorce. Succ. 53ᵃ א׳ אני כאן when I am here; a. fr.
- 2. whether. Yoma III, 1; a. fr.—א׳ … א׳ whether … or. Y. Pes. VI, beg. 33ᵃ א׳ פסח וכ׳ whether or not the Passover ceremonies supersede the Sabbath; a. fr. [Ib. אם יש תוחלת read יש וכ׳ אפשר, as before.]—אִם כֵּן (abbrev. א"כ) if this be so. Ber. I, 1; a. fr.—אֶלָּא אִם כֵּן (abbr. אא"כ) only when indeed, not until, unless. Keth. 76ᵃ; a. fr.
אֵם
- 1. mother, freq. = my mother. Sabb. 134ᵃ; a. fr.—Y. M. Kat. III, beg. 81ᶜ הניח חק אִמֹּו left his mother’s lap (Palestine).—Num. R. s. 10 (ref. to immo Prov. XXXI, 1) אמו זו … התורה וכ׳ ‘his mother’ that means the Law which trained Solomon and which is called a mother of those studying it, as you read (Prov. II, 3; text אִם is read אֵם ēm). e.g. Proverbs 31:1
- 2. womb, mouth of the womb. Ḥull. III, 2 (54ᵃ) ניטלה האם וכ׳ if the mouth of the womb is absent, cut out. Bekh. IV, 4 (28ᵇ).—Trnsf. legitimate existence, authority. Succ. 6ᵇ, a. fr. יש א׳ למסורת the traditional Scripture text (letters without vowels) is authoritative in Biblical interpretation, opp. יש א׳ למקרא the traditional reading (vowels) must guide us, e.g. בחלב (Ex. XXIII, 19) may be read בַּחֲלֵב as the traditional vocalization, or בְּחֵלֶב in the fat of.— Pl. אִמָּהוֹת, אִימָּהוֹת. Kidd. IV, 4 her genealogy must be traced back ארבע א׳ to the mothers of four generations (on each side) which is eight mothers. Y. Snh. II, 20ᵇ bot. they are not אֲמָהוֹת אלא אִימָּהוֹת maid-servants but mothers (of the nation).—Trnsf. א׳ של בצלים seed-onions. Peah III, 4. Erub. 29ᵃ; a. e.—Ch. אִימָּא. [Koh. R. to XII, 7 א׳ דבצלי׳, v. אַמָּה.] e.g. Exodus 23:19
A Dictionary of the Targumim, the Talmud Babli and Yerushalmi, and the Midrashic Literature (Marcus Jastrow; London, Luzac, 1903) — Public Domain. Digitized via Sefaria. Digitized via Sefaria. Full attribution on Sources.
Forms in the corpus
The 30 distinct written forms H518 takes in the Hebrew Bible, most frequent first — each parse links to that state’s occurrences in the concordance. Hebrew forms include their vowel points and cantillation, so a single lemma takes many written forms.
| Form | Parsing | Example | Uses |
|---|---|---|---|
| אִם | Conjunction | Amos 3:3 | 708 |
| וְ/אִם | Conjunction | Amos 9:3 | 214 |
| אִֽם | Conjunction | Amos 6:12 | 39 |
| וְ/אִ֣ם | Conjunction | Ecclesiastes 11:3 | 12 |
| וְ/אִ֨ם | Conjunction | Genesis 17:17 | 11 |
| וְ/אִם֙ | Conjunction | Genesis 4:7 | 11 |
| אִ֣ם | Conjunction | Esther 2:15 | 10 |
| אִ֚ם | Conjunction | Genesis 34:15 | 9 |
| אִ֥ם | Conjunction | Ezra 2:59 | 9 |
| וְ/אִֽם | Conjunction | Amos 9:2 | 7 |
| וְֽ/אִם | Conjunction | Deuteronomy 22:25 | 5 |
| אִ֤ם | Conjunction | Habakkuk 3:8 | 4 |
| וְ/אִ֡ם | Conjunction | Exodus 21:29 | 4 |
| וְ/אִ֥ם | Conjunction | Jeremiah 5:2 | 3 |
| אִ֖ם | Conjunction | Nehemiah 2:2 | 2 |
| אִ֡ם | Conjunction | Judges 6:37 | 2 |
| אם | Conjunction | Jeremiah 39:12 | 2 |
| וְ/אִ֖ם | Conjunction | Jeremiah 12:17 | 2 |
| וְ/אִ֤ם | Conjunction | 1 Samuel 2:25 | 2 |
| וְ/אִ֧ם | Conjunction | 1 Kings 20:18 | 2 |
| וְ/אִם֮ | Conjunction | Leviticus 13:53 | 2 |
| וְ֠/אִם | Conjunction | Leviticus 27:7 | 2 |
| אִ֗ם | Conjunction | 1 Kings 1:27 | 1 |
| אִ֛ם | Conjunction | Jeremiah 2:31 | 1 |
| אִ֨ם | Conjunction | Jeremiah 22:28 | 1 |
| אִם֙ | Conjunction | Genesis 15:4 | 1 |
| הַ/אִ֥ם | Conjunction | Numbers 17:13 | 1 |
| הַ/אִ֬ם | Conjunction | Job 6:13 | 1 |
| וְ/אִ֛ם | Conjunction | Leviticus 19:7 | 1 |
| וְ/אִם֩ | Conjunction | Joshua 24:15 | 1 |
Septuagint verse parallels
This word appears in 899 verses that also exist in the Greek Old Testament (Septuagint), out of the 931 Hebrew verses it occurs in. You can read those verses in Greek by switching the Old Testament edition to the Septuagint.
Read these verses in the Septuagint
- Genesis 4:7
- Exodus 1:16
- Leviticus 1:3
- Numbers 5:8
- Deuteronomy 1:35
- Joshua 2:14
- Judges 2:22
- Ruth 2:21
- 1 Samuel 1:11
- 2 Samuel 3:13
- 1 Kings 1:27
- 2 Kings 1:2
This is a verse-level parallel only — the same verses exist in both the Hebrew and Greek Old Testaments. No word-level Hebrew↔Greek correspondence is claimed: the data carries no such alignment, so no Greek word is shown as this Hebrew word’s translation. Coverage is not total — the Septuagint omits the deuterocanon and renumbers the Psalms, so some Hebrew verses have no direct Greek parallel.
