H0233 H0233
then, in that case; a temporal or logical particle indicating consequence
This Hebrew adverb means 'then' or 'in that case,' marking temporal sequence or logical consequence. It appears three times in Psalm 124:3-5, in a climactic song of deliverance. The psalmist constructs a hypothetical: 'If it had not been the LORD who was on our side...then [azai] they would have swallowed us alive...then [azai] the waters would have overwhelmed us...then [azai] the swollen waters would have gone over our soul.' Each 'then' introduces a consequence that would have occurred without God's intervention. The repetition builds intensity, showing how close Israel came to destruction and how completely God delivered them. The adverb is dialectical, related to the more common 'az.'
Senses
1. sense 1 — Translations uniformly render this as 'then': English 'then,' Spanish 'entonces,' French 'alors,' German 'dann.' Psalm 124:3, 4, 5 employs the word three times in a powerful rhetorical structure following 'if not for the LORD'—then enemies would have swallowed Israel alive, then floods would have swept them away, then raging waters would have drowned them. The triple use of 'then' creates a crescendo of threat, each clause more vivid than the last, all countered by the reality of God's deliverance. The psalm turns near-disaster into praise. 3×
AR["إذًا"]·ben["তখন"]·DE["dann"]·EN["then"]·FR["alors"]·heb["אזי"]·HI["तब"]·ID["Maka"]·IT["allora"]·jav["Lajeng"]·KO["그-때-에"]·PT["Então"]·RU["Тогда"]·ES["Entonces"]·SW["Ndipo"]·TR["o-zaman"]·urd["تب"]
Related Senses
H3117 1. day, specific time (2231×)H5704 1. until, unto, as far as (1238×)H8141 1. year, unit of time (880×)H6258 1. and now (421×)G2250 1. day (388×)H5750 1. again, more, further (288×)H5769 1. forever, to eternity (280×)H6256 1. time, period (264×)H2320 1. month, calendar period (260×)H0310a 2. after (temporal) (258×)H3915 1. night, period of darkness (234×)H1242 1. morning (214×)H5750 2. still, yet (continuative) (166×)G5119 1. then (160×)G3568 1. now (147×)G2193 1. until (143×)G3825 1. (141×)G3752 1. (123×)H6153 1. evening, time of day (123×)H0227a 1. then (122×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
† אֲזַי = אָז (prob. a dialectic form; cf. Aramaic אֱדַיִן) then, in that case ψ 124:3, 4, 5, in apod. after לוּלֵי: cf. אָז ψ 119:92.