H3863 H3863
If only, would that; also conditional 'if' for counterfactual situations; rarely negative or dubitative.
Lu is a small but emotionally charged particle that carries the weight of unfulfilled longing and unrealized possibility. Its primary force is optative — 'if only,' 'would that' — giving voice to some of Scripture's most poignant wishes: Abraham's plea 'O that Ishmael might live before you!' (Gen 17:18) and Israel's bitter cry in the wilderness, 'Would that we had died in Egypt!' (Num 14:2). In its conditional use, lu introduces counterfactual scenarios that never materialized: 'if they had been wise, they would understand' (Deut 32:29). The Arabic cognate law functions identically as both optative and counterfactual conditional, confirming this dual function is ancient Semitic inheritance rather than a Hebrew innovation. French and German translations reveal the tension translators feel: rendering the same particle as ojalá/si-seulement ('if only') in wishes but si/wenn ('if') in hypotheticals.
1. if only, would that — Optative particle expressing unfulfilled wish or longing — 14 occurrences, the dominant sense. Covers Abraham's prayer for Ishmael (Gen 17:18), the Israelites' death-wish in the wilderness (Num 14:2, twice), and Moses' lament 'Oh that they were wise!' (Deut 32:29 in some readings). The emotional register ranges from desperate yearning to resigned regret. Spanish ojalá (from Arabic inshallah) and French si-seulement both deploy dedicated wish-particles, while the Hebrew particle itself carries no verb — the desire lives entirely in the syntax of what follows. 14×
AR["لَوْ","لَيْتَ","لَيْتَ-","لَيْتَنَا","لَيْتَهُ","وَ-لَيتَ"]·ben["অনুগ্রহ-করে","এবং-যদি","এবং-হায়","যদি","যদি-","হোক"]·DE["[לוא]","doch","ihm","möchte-doch","und-wenn-nur","wahrlich","wenn-doch","wenn-nur"]·EN["If-only","Oh-that","and-if-only","if-only","indeed"]·FR["[לוא]","en-effet","et-si-seulement","si-seulement"]·heb["ו-לו","לו"]·HI["और-काश","कअश","काश","काश-"]·ID["Oh-seandainya","Seandainya","Sekiranya","dan-seandainya","kalau-saja","kiranya","seandainya","sekiranya"]·IT["[לוא]","a-lui","e-se-solo","if-only","invero","se-solo"]·jav["Manawi-kèmawon","Mbok-bilih-","Menawi-kemawon","Saupami","bokmanawi","lan-langkung-sae","mbok-bilih","mugi","saestu-"]·KO["그리고-차라리","만약","만일","부디","오","오-","오-만일","오-찢으셨더라면","차라리"]·PT["E-oxalá","Oh","Quem-dera","Se","Se-ao-menos","de-fato","e-se","oh-se","oh-se-","oxalá","quem-dera","se"]·RU["О-если-бы","бы","если-бы","и-о","о","о-если-бы","о-если-бы-","ох","пусть"]·ES["Oh-que","Ojalá-","Si","ojalá","ojalá-","si","y-ojalá","¡Oh-si","¡Oh-si-"]·SW["Laiti","iwe","je-si","kwangu","laiti","laiti-","na-laiti"]·TR["Keske","keske-","keşke","keşke-","ve-keşke"]·urd["اور-کاش","اے-کاش","کاش","کاش-"]
Gen 17:18, Gen 23:13, Gen 30:34, Num 14:2, Num 14:2, Num 20:3, Num 22:29, Deut 32:29, Josh 7:7, 1 Sam 14:30, Job 6:2, Ps 81:13 (+2 more)
▼ 3 more senses below
Senses
2. if (conditional) — Conditional particle introducing counterfactual or hypothetical protasis — 7 occurrences. States what would have been the case under conditions that did not obtain: 'If the LORD had desired to kill us, he would not have accepted our offering' (Judg 13:23); 'If my brothers were still alive, I would not kill you' (Judg 8:19). The protasis takes a perfect verb, and the apodosis typically carries a negative or imperfect. Arabic law with past tense maps exactly onto this pattern, as does German wenn with subjunctive, confirming the counterfactual frame. 7×
AR["(لَوْ)","(وَ-لَوْ)","لَو","لَوْ","لَوْ-"]·ben["এবং-যদিও","যদি","যদি-"]·DE["[לו]","ihm","wenn"]·EN["(and-even-if)","(if)","if","if-"]·FR["(and-même-if)","(if)","si","si-seulement","à-lui"]·heb["(ו-לו)","לו","לו-"]·HI["अगर","और-अगर","यदि","यदि-"]·ID["'Seandainya-","(dan-seandainya)","(seandainya)","Seandainya-","jika","seandainya"]·IT["(and-anche-if)","(if)","[לו]","se"]·jav["Saupami-","menawi","sanadyan","saupami","saupami-"]·KO["그리고-비록","만야","만약-","만일","만일-"]·PT["(se)","Se","e-mesmo-se","se","se-"]·RU["Если-","если-","если-бы","если-бы-","и-если-бы"]·ES["(si)","(y-si)","Si","si"]·SW["Ikiwa","hata-kama","kama","laiti"]·TR["(keşke)","(ve-keşke)","Eğer-","eğer","keşke-","mı-"]·urd["(اور-اگر)","(اگر)","اگر","اگر-","کاش"]
3. not (negative) — Negative sense 'not' — a single disputed occurrence at Job 9:33 where lu may function as a negator: 'there is not an arbiter between us.' Some grammarians treat this as a variant of lo ('not') rather than a separate sense of lu, and the French rendering si-seulement suggests translators themselves were uncertain. The Joban context, rich in rare and archaic particles, may preserve an older Semitic negative usage that Arabic law occasionally exhibits. 1×
AR["لا"]·ben["নেই"]·DE["nicht"]·EN["not"]·FR["si-seulement"]·heb["לא"]·HI["नहीं"]·ID["Tidak"]·IT["non"]·jav["mboten"]·KO["않다-"]·PT["Não"]·RU["нет"]·ES["No"]·SW["hakuna"]·TR["değil"]·urd["نہیں"]
4. perhaps, possibly — Dubitative particle expressing possibility — a single occurrence at Gen 50:15 where Joseph's brothers fear 'perhaps Joseph will hate us.' The shift from wish to apprehension is subtle: the same particle that elsewhere expresses longing here introduces anxious possibility. Spanish quizá and German vielleicht both select dedicated 'perhaps' vocabulary, while French peut-être confirms the probabilistic rather than optative reading. This marginal sense may represent lu at the far edge of its irrealis semantic range. 1×
AR["لَعَلَّ"]·ben["যদি"]·DE["vielleicht"]·EN["perhaps"]·FR["peut-être"]·heb["לו"]·HI["शायद"]·ID["mungkin"]·IT["forse"]·jav["Bokmenawi"]·KO["아마도"]·PT["Talvez"]·RU["может-быть"]·ES["quizá"]·SW["kwa"]·TR["Belki"]·urd["شاید"]
BDB / Lexicon Reference
† לוּ17 and לוּא (†1 S 14:30; Is 48:18; 63:19), also לֻא (Qr לוּ), †2 S 18:12; 19:7 (Arabic لَوْ, Aramaic ܠܘܰܝ, לְוַי, Mishn. לְוַי, Assyrian lû, with opt. force, Dl§§ 78 end, 93, 145; cf. Köii. 333), conj. if, O that:— 1. if (stating a case which has not been, or is not likely to be, realized): a. sq. pf. (so mostly), Dt 32:29 לו חכמו ישׂכילו זאת if they had been wise (which they are not), they…