H0034 H0034
evyon -- needy, poor, destitute; one who is materially impoverished and vulnerable
The adjective evyon describes a person in dire material want -- the genuinely destitute and vulnerable, not merely the modest or humble. It is the strongest of the Hebrew poverty vocabulary, often paired with ani ('afflicted/poor') and dal ('weak/lowly') to form a prophetic triad denouncing social oppression. Amos thunders against those who 'sell the needy (evyon) for a pair of sandals' (Amos 2:6; 8:6), and the Deuteronomic legislation repeatedly insists on generosity: 'you shall not harden your heart or shut your hand against your poor (evyon) brother' (Deut 15:7). The Psalms celebrate God as the defender of the evyon (Ps 37:14; 109:31). Spanish necesitado/pobre, French necessiteux/indigent, and German Armer converge on this core sense of economic destitution.
Senses
1. needy, poor, destitute — A person in a state of severe material poverty and social vulnerability, used both adjectivally and substantively for the destitute who are subject to exploitation and who depend upon divine and communal protection. Prophetic texts like Amos 2:6 and 8:6 pair evyon with dal ('weak') to condemn economic oppression, while Deuteronomy 15:7-11 legislates open-handed provision for the evyon. Multilingual glosses -- Spanish necesitado, French necessiteux, German Armer -- uniformly point to material neediness across all 61 occurrences. 61×
AR["الفَقيرَ", "المُحْتَاجُ", "المِسكين", "المِسكينَ", "المِسْكينَ", "عَلَى-الْفَقِيرِ", "وَ-الْمُحْتَاجَ", "وَ-الْمِسْكِينِ", "وَ-مِسكينًا", "وَ-مِسْكينٌ", "وَ-مِسْكينٍ", "وَالمِسْكينَ", "وَالْمِسْكِينَ", "وَالْمِسْكِينِ", "وَمُحْتَاجًا", "وَمِسْكينٌ", "وَمِسْكِينٌ"]·ben["অভাবীকে", "অভাবীর", "এবং-অভাবী", "এবং-অভাবীকে", "এবং-অভাবীর", "এবং-দীনকে", "ও-অভাবী", "ও-অভাবীকে", "ও-অভাবীর", "ও-দীন", "দরিদ্র", "দরিদ্রকে", "দীনকে"]·DE["Armer", "[ואביון]", "der-Arme", "und-Arme", "und-Armer", "und-beduerftig", "und-der-Arme"]·EN["and-needy", "and-the-needy", "the-needy"]·FR["et-Abimélek", "et-indigent", "et-nécessiteux", "et-pauvre", "pauvre"]·heb["אביון", "ו-אביון"]·HI["और-कंगाल", "और-कंगाल-को", "और-दरिद्र", "और-दरिद्र-का", "और-दरिद्र-को", "और-दीन", "और-दीन-का।", "और-दीन-की", "कंगाल-को", "दरिद्र", "दरिद्र-के", "दरिद्र-को", "दीन-को"]·ID["dan-berkekurangan", "dan-miskin", "dan-orang-melarat", "dan-orang-papa", "dan-orang-yang-berkekurangan", "dan-orang-yang-membutuhkan", "dan-yang-berkekurangan", "orang-miskin", "orang-papa"]·IT["bisognoso", "e-bisognoso", "e-il-bisognoso", "e-needy"]·jav["lan-kacingkrangan", "lan-kakèrangan", "lan-kasusahan", "lan-mbetahaken", "lan-tiyang-kacingkrangan", "lan-tiyang-kakèrangan", "lan-tiyang-kasusahan", "lan-tiyang-kirang", "lan-tiyang-miskin", "lan-tiyang-mlarat", "saha-butuh", "tiyang-butuh", "tiyang-kacingkrangan", "tiyang-miskin"]·KO["가난한-자-가", "가난한-자의", "궁핍하다", "궁핍한-자-를", "궁핍한-자-의", "궁핍한-자를", "그리고-가난하도다", "그리고-굁핸한", "그리고-궁핍하도다", "그리고-궁핍한", "그리고-궁핍한-자-를", "그리고-궁핍한-자의", "그리고-궁핵한-자를", "그리고-궁핸한-자를", "그리고-궁핸한-자의"]·PT["ao-necessitado", "do-necessitado", "e-necessitado", "e-o-necessitado", "e-o-necessitado;", "necessitado", "o-necessitado"]·RU["бедняка", "и-нищего", "и-нищий", "нищего", "нищий"]·ES["al-menesteroso", "al-necesitado", "al-pobre", "el-necesitado", "el-pobre", "y-al-necesitado", "y-menesteroso", "y-necesitado"]·SW["maskini", "mhitaji", "na-mhitaji"]·TR["muhtaçın", "muçtağı", "ve-düşkünü", "ve-düşkünün", "ve-muhtacın", "ve-muhtaç", "ve-yoksul", "ve-yoksulu", "yoksul", "yoksulu"]·urd["اور-حاجتمند-کو", "اور-ضرورتمند-کو", "اور-محتاج", "اور-محتاج-کا", "اور-محتاج-کو", "اور-مسکین", "اور-مسکین-پر", "اور-مسکین-کا", "اور-مسکین-کو", "غریب", "غریب-کا", "غریب-کو", "غریب-کے", "محتاج-کو", "وَ-محتاج"]
Deut 15:4, Deut 15:7, Deut 15:7, Deut 15:9, Deut 15:11, Deut 15:11, Deut 24:14, Esth 9:22, Job 5:15, Job 24:4, Job 24:14, Job 30:25 (+38 more)
Related Senses
G2962 1. Lord (divine title) (661×)H0136 1. Lord (divine title) (440×)H0113 1. lord, human superior (249×)G1849 1. authority, power (91×)H6485a 2. Qal: punish, bring judgment (63×)H8198 1. maidservant, female slave (63×)G2962 2. master, lord (human authority) (61×)H0519 1. female servant, maidservant (56×)H6041 1. poor, needy person (55×)H0113 2. master, owner of servants (49×)H4910 1. Qal: to have dominion, exercise power over (44×)H1800 1. poor, needy (socioeconomic) (38×)H3515 1. heavy, severe, grievous (36×)G4434 1. (34×)G5092 1. honor, esteem, respect (33×)H6485a 4. Qal: visit, attend to, care for (32×)H3513 1. honor / show respect (Piel) (30×)H4910 2. Qal: to rule, govern (administrative authority) (27×)H4513 1. withhold, restrain, hold back (25×)G1658 1. free (23×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
† אֶבְיוֹן adj. in want, needy, poor,—so, always abs., Dt 15:4 + 40 times; אֶבְיֹנְךָ Ex 23:6 Dt 15:11; אֶבְיוֹנִים Am 4:1 + 14 times; אֶבְיוֹנֵי (אֶבְיֹנֵי) Ex 23:11 Is 29:19; אֶבְיוֹנֶיהָ ψ 132:15—(Hex. only JED; mostly poet., 23 times ψ) needy, chiefly poor (in material things); as adj. Dt 15:7(×2), 9; 24:14 ψ 109:16 (both ‖ עָנִי); elsewhere subst.; ψ 49:3 (‖ עָשׁיר); Dt 15:4, 11; subj. to…