H5356a H5356a
innocence, cleanness; freedom from guilt, especially in the phrase "innocence of hands"
This noun describes moral innocence or freedom from guilt, most commonly in the phrase "innocence of hands" (נִקְּיוֹן כַּפַּיִם), symbolizing clean conduct and blamelessness. Genesis 20:5 uses it in Abimelech's defense before God, while Psalms 26:6 and 73:13 employ it in contexts of ritual purity and righteous living. Hosea 8:5 extends it to freedom from punishment, and Amos 4:6 plays on its literal sense of physical cleanness ("cleanness of teeth" = famine, no food).
Senses
1. sense 1 — Denotes moral and ritual innocence, the state of being free from guilt or wrongdoing. The phrase "innocence of hands" appears in Genesis 20:5, Psalm 26:6, and 73:13, signifying clean, blameless conduct. Multilingual renderings consistently use innocence/innocency terminology (inocencia, innocent, Reinheit), confirming this is fundamentally an ethical-moral term. In Hosea 8:5, it shifts slightly to denote freedom from deserved punishment. The conjunctive forms [ונקין] are occasionally bracketed, indicating textual or morphological interest. 4×
AR["الطَّهارَةَ", "بِ-النَّقاوَةِ", "بِالبَرَاءَةِ", "وَ-بِ-نَقَاوَةِ"]·ben["ও-নির্দোষতায়", "নির্দোষতা", "নির্দোষতায়"]·DE["[נקין]", "innocence", "und-in-der-Reinheit"]·EN["and-in-innocence-of", "in-innocence", "innocence"]·FR["dans-innocent", "et-dans-innocence-de", "innocent"]·heb["ב-ניקיון", "ו-ב-נקין", "ניקיון"]·HI["और-निरदोशत-मे", "निर्दोषता-की", "निर्दोषता-में", "में-निर्दोषता"]·ID["dan-dengan-kesucian", "dengan-tidak-bersalah", "kesucian"]·IT["[נקין]", "e-in-innocence-di", "nell'innocenza"]·jav["ing-karesikan", "ing-resik", "lan-ing-kasucyaning"]·KO["결백-으로", "결백함-으로", "그리고-깨끗함-으로", "깨끗함을"]·PT["e-em-inocência-de", "em-inocência", "inocência"]·RU["в-невинности", "и-в-чистоте", "невинности"]·ES["en-inocencia", "inocencia", "y-en-inocencia-de"]·SW["kwa-kutokuwa-na-hatia", "kwa-usafi", "moyo-wangu", "usafi"]·TR["masumiyeti", "masumiyetle", "masumiyetle-", "ve-masumiyetinde"]·urd["-پاکیزگی-میں", "اور-پاکیزگی-میں", "بِ-بے-گناہی", "پاکی"]
Related Senses
H2896a 1. good (quality or moral) (305×)H7563 1. wicked person (259×)H7451c 1. moral evil or wickedness (234×)H5771 1. iniquity, sin, wrongdoing (222×)H6662 1. righteous person (substantive) (195×)G0266 1. sin, failure, transgression (173×)H2403b 1. sin, transgression (170×)H2617a 1. Covenant faithfulness, steadfast love (167×)H2398 1. Qal: to sin, commit sin (165×)H6666 1. righteousness, moral uprightness (145×)G5485 1. grace, divine favor (141×)H7451a 1. morally evil, wicked (129×)H2403b 2. sin-offering, sacrifice for sin (120×)G2570 1. good, right, excellent (98×)H6588 1. transgression, offense against God (88×)G0018 1. good (moral quality) (85×)H2896b 1. good, what is good (85×)H7451b 1. evil, wickedness (moral) (83×)H7451a 2. evil, harm, calamity (80×)G1342 1. righteous, upright (of persons) (70×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
† נִקָּיוֹן n.[m.] innocency;—נ׳ ψ 26:6; 73:13; נִקָּיֹן Ho 8:5; cstr. נִקְּיוֹן Am 4:6; נִקְיֹן Gn 20:5;— 1. freedom from guilt, innocency: נ׳ כַּפַּי Gn 20:5 (RJE); אֶרְחַץ בנ׳ כַּפָּ֑י ψ 26:6 I will wash my hands in innocency = 73:13. 2. freedom from punishment Ho 8:5. 3. in physical sense, נִקְיוֹן שִׁנַּיִם cleanness of teeth (without food) Am 4:6 (but read perhaps after 𝔊 𝔖 𝔗 קַהֲיוֹן bluntness, so LagBN 201).