Original Word: עָמָל
Part of Speech: Noun
Transliteration: `amal
Pronunciation: ah-mahl
Phonetic Spelling: (aw-mawl')
KJV: grievance(-vousness), iniquity, labour, mischief, miserable(-sery), pain(-ful), perverseness, sorrow, toil, travail, trouble, wearisome, wickedness
NASB: labor, trouble, mischief, fruit of my labor, toil, wickedness, anguish
Word Origin: [from H5998 (עָמַל - labored)]
1. toil, i.e. wearing effort
2. (hence) worry, wheth. of body or mind
From amal; toil, i.e. Wearing effort; hence, worry, wheth. Of body or mind -- grievance(-vousness), iniquity, labour, mischief, miserable(-sery), pain(-ful), perverseness, sorrow, toil, travail, trouble, wearisome, wickedness.
see HEBREW amal
1 trouble ("" sorrow): one's own suffering, עָמָל וְיָגוֺן Jeremiah 20:18; וָכַעַס ׳ע Psalm 10:14; עֳנִי ׳וע Deuteronomy 26:7; Psalm 25:18; וָאָ֑וֶן ׳ע Psalm 90:10; "" אָוֶן Numbers 23:21; Job 5:6; "" שָֽׁוְא Job 7:3; נפשׁו ׳ע Isaiah 53:11; בְּעֵינָ֑י ׳ע Psalm 73:16; מֵעֵינָ֑י ׳וַיַּסְתֵּר ע Job 3:10; ׳מְנַחֲמֵי ע Job 16:2; ׳אדם לע יוּלָּד Job 5:7; אנושׁ אינימוֺ ׳בע Psalm 73:5; ׳שׁכח ע Job 11:16; ׳נַשַּׁנִי ע Genesis 41:51 (E); לא זכר ׳ע Proverbs 31:7; תקצר ׳נפשׁו בע Judges 10:16.
2 trouble, mischief, as done to others: "" שֹׁד Proverbs 24:2; ׳יֹצֵר ע Psalm 94:20; "" רָע Habakkuk 1:13; בְראֹשׁוֺ ׳יָשׁוּב ע Psalm 7:17; וָאָ֑וֶן ׳ע Psalm 10:7; ׳און וע Psalm 55:11; "" אָוֶן Isaiah 10:1; Isaiah 59:4; Habakkuk 1:3; Psalm 7:15; Job 4:8; Job 15:35; עֲמַל שְׂפָתֵימוֺ Psalm 140:10 mischief of their lips.
3 toil, labour (late in Hebrew): Ecclesiastes 2:10 (twice in verse); Ecclesiastes 2:21,24; Ecclesiastes 3:13; Ecclesiastes 4:4,6,8,9; Ecclesiastes 5:14; Ecclesiastes 5:18; Ecclesiastes 6:7; Ecclesiastes 8:15; Ecclesiastes 10:15; with עָמַל (q. v.) Ecclesiastes 1:3; Ecclesiastes 2:11,19,20; Ecclesiastes 5:17; שֶׁאֲנִי שְׁהוּא) עָמֵל ׳ע Ecclesiastes 2:18,22; אֲשֶׁר עָמֵל ׳ע Ecclesiastes 9:9; = fruit of labour, לְאֻמִּים יִירָ֑שׁוּ ׳ע Psalm 105:44; לִבָּם ׳וַיַּכְנַע בע Psalm 107:12 he humbled their mind by toil.
[フレーム]
‘Amal denotes strenuous labor that wears the body, but also the moral and emotional burden that weighs on the soul—"toil, trouble, misery, grievous effort, oppressive gain." It combines the idea of sweat-producing work with the pain, anxiety, or wickedness that so often accompanies that work in a fallen world.
Canonical Distribution
The noun is attested roughly fifty-five times. It appears first in Genesis (41:51-52), is prominent in Job and the Psalms, permeates Wisdom literature (especially Ecclesiastes), and surfaces in the Major and Minor Prophets (Isaiah 53:11; Habakkuk 1:3, etc.). Every section of the Hebrew canon gives voice to ‘amal, underscoring its universality.
‘Amal and the Human Condition
1. Post-Edenic reality
Though ‘amal is not used in Genesis 3, the concept of cursed toil (3:17-19) sets the backdrop for every subsequent occurrence. Joseph names Manasseh, "For God has made me forget all my toil" (Genesis 41:51), revealing how divine providence can soften the sting of labor performed in exile.
2. Job’s lament
Job employs the term more than any other book. "For misery does not spring from the dust" (Job 5:6), yet ‘amal is undeniably present in a righteous man’s experience. Job’s complaints acknowledge the enigma of suffering without accusing God of injustice, pointing toward the need for a Mediator.
‘Amal in Worship and Wisdom
1. Psalms—cry and confidence
• Psalm 10:14: "But You have seen it, for You behold trouble and grief, to repay with Your hand."
• Psalm 55:10-11 portrays a city whose very streets are filled with "destruction, trouble, and deceit."
The psalmists bring both the oppression they suffer and the oppression they see into the sanctuary, confident that the Lord "upholds the cause of the oppressed" (Psalm 146:7).
2. Ecclesiastes—vanity of toil
"What does a man gain from all the labor at which he toils under the sun?" (Ecclesiastes 1:3). Throughout the book, ‘amal describes the wearying chase for meaning apart from God. The Teacher concludes that toil finds its purpose only when God is "remembered" (12:1, 13).
Prophetic Indictment of Social Evil
The prophets turn ‘amal outward, exposing structural injustice.
• Habakkuk 1:3: "Why do You make me see iniquity, and why do You tolerate wrongdoing? Destruction and violence are before me; strife is ongoing, and conflict escalates."
• Jeremiah 20:12 appeals to the Lord who "tests the righteous and sees the mind and the heart," asking Him to avenge the oppressed.
• Micah 2:1-2 condemns those who "devise iniquity...they oppress (ʿāmal) a man and his house."
Thus ‘amal becomes a forensic term: the evidence of society’s covenant breach.
Redemptive Trajectory
Isaiah 53:11 unites the strands: "After the anguish of His soul, He will see the light of life and be satisfied." The Servant bears humanity’s ‘amal and converts it into atonement. All preceding cries meet their answer in His substitutionary travail.
Eschatological Hope
Nahum 1:13 promises the removal of Assyrian bondage: "Now I will break off his yoke from you and tear away your shackles." Revelation echoes this hope when it foretells a new creation where "there will be no more curse" (Revelation 22:3), implying the abolition of futile toil.
Practical Ministry Implications
• Pastoral care must acknowledge both the dignity and the drudgery of labor.
• Social ethics demand resistance to systems that manufacture ‘amal for the vulnerable (Proverbs 24:2; Isaiah 10:1-2).
• Gospel proclamation centers on the One who invites, "Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden" (Matthew 11:28), fulfilling the prophetic vision of toil transformed into rest.
Numbers 23:21
HEB: וְלֹא־ רָאָ֥ה עָמָ֖ל בְּיִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל יְהוָ֤ה
NAS: has He seen trouble in Israel;
KJV: neither hath he seen perverseness in Israel:
INT: Nor seen trouble Israel the LORD
Deuteronomy 26:7
HEB: עָנְיֵ֛נוּ וְאֶת־ עֲמָלֵ֖נוּ וְאֶת־ לַחֲצֵֽנוּ׃
NAS: our affliction and our toil and our oppression;
KJV: on our affliction, and our labour, and our oppression:
INT: and saw our affliction and our toil and our oppression
Judges 10:16
HEB: וַתִּקְצַ֥ר נַפְשׁ֖וֹ בַּעֲמַ֥ל יִשְׂרָאֵֽל׃ פ
NAS: and He could bear the misery of Israel
KJV: was grieved for the misery of Israel.
INT: could and his soul the misery of Israel
Job 3:10
HEB: בִטְנִ֑י וַיַּסְתֵּ֥ר עָ֝מָ֗ל מֵעֵינָֽי׃
NAS: Or hide trouble from my eyes.
KJV: nor hid sorrow from mine eyes.
INT: of my womb hide trouble my eyes
Job 4:8
HEB: אָ֑וֶן וְזֹרְעֵ֖י עָמָ֣ל יִקְצְרֻֽהוּ׃
NAS: And those who sow trouble harvest
KJV: and sow wickedness, reap
INT: iniquity sow trouble harvest
Job 5:6
HEB: לֹא־ יִצְמַ֥ח עָמָֽל׃
NAS: Nor does trouble sprout
KJV: of the dust, neither doth trouble spring out
INT: Nor sprout trouble
Job 5:7
HEB: כִּֽי־ אָ֭דָם לְעָמָ֣ל יוּלָּ֑ד וּבְנֵי־
NAS: is born for trouble, As sparks
KJV: is born unto trouble, as the sparks
INT: For man trouble is born afflicted
Job 7:3
HEB: שָׁ֑וְא וְלֵיל֥וֹת עָ֝מָ֗ל מִנּוּ־ לִֽי׃
NAS: And nights of trouble are appointed
KJV: of vanity, and wearisome nights
INT: of vanity and nights of trouble are appointed
Job 11:16
HEB: כִּי־ אַ֭תָּה עָמָ֣ל תִּשְׁכָּ֑ח כְּמַ֖יִם
NAS: For you would forget [your] trouble, As waters
KJV: Because thou shalt forget [thy] misery, [and] remember
INT: for you trouble forget waters
Job 15:35
HEB: הָרֹ֣ה עָ֭מָל וְיָ֣לֹד אָ֑וֶן
NAS: They conceive mischief and bring forth
KJV: They conceive mischief, and bring forth
INT: conceive mischief and bring iniquity
Job 16:2
HEB: רַבּ֑וֹת מְנַחֲמֵ֖י עָמָ֣ל כֻּלְּכֶֽם׃
NAS: things; Sorry comforters
KJV: many such things: miserable comforters
INT: many comforters Sorry all
Psalm 7:14
HEB: אָ֑וֶן וְהָרָ֥ה עָ֝מָ֗ל וְיָ֣לַד שָֽׁקֶר׃
NAS: And he conceives mischief and brings forth
KJV: and hath conceived mischief, and brought forth
INT: wickedness conceives mischief and brings falsehood
Psalm 7:16
HEB: יָשׁ֣וּב עֲמָל֣וֹ בְרֹאשׁ֑וֹ וְעַ֥ל
NAS: His mischief will return
KJV: His mischief shall return
INT: will return his mischief head upon
Psalm 10:7
HEB: תַּ֥חַת לְ֝שׁוֹנ֗וֹ עָמָ֥ל וָאָֽוֶן׃
NAS: his tongue is mischief and wickedness.
KJV: under his tongue [is] mischief and vanity.
INT: Under his tongue is mischief and wickedness
Psalm 10:14
HEB: כִּֽי־ אַתָּ֤ה ׀ עָ֘מָ֤ל וָכַ֨עַס ׀ תַּבִּיט֮
NAS: [it], for You have beheld mischief and vexation
KJV: [it]; for thou beholdest mischief and spite,
INT: for you mischief and vexation have beheld
Psalm 25:18
HEB: רְאֵ֣ה עָ֭נְיִי וַעֲמָלִ֑י וְ֝שָׂ֗א לְכָל־
NAS: upon my affliction and my trouble, And forgive
KJV: upon mine affliction and my pain; and forgive
INT: Look my affliction and my trouble and forgive all
Psalm 55:10
HEB: חוֹמֹתֶ֑יהָ וְאָ֖וֶן וְעָמָ֣ל בְּקִרְבָּֽהּ׃
NAS: And iniquity and mischief are in her midst.
KJV: thereof: mischief also and sorrow [are] in the midst
INT: her walls and iniquity and mischief her midst
Psalm 73:5
HEB: בַּעֲמַ֣ל אֱנ֣וֹשׁ אֵינֵ֑מוֹ
NAS: They are not in trouble [as other] men,
KJV: They [are] not in trouble [as other] men;
INT: trouble men else
Psalm 73:16
HEB: לָדַ֣עַת זֹ֑את עָמָ֖ל [הִיא כ]
NAS: this, It was troublesome in my sight
KJV: to know this, it [was] too painful for me;
INT: to understand it was troublesome he my sight
Psalm 90:10
HEB: שָׁנָ֗ה וְ֭רָהְבָּם עָמָ֣ל וָאָ֑וֶן כִּי־
NAS: Yet their pride is [but] labor and sorrow;
KJV: yet [is] their strength labour and sorrow;
INT: years their pride is labor and sorrow for
Psalm 94:20
HEB: הַוּ֑וֹת יֹצֵ֖ר עָמָ֣ל עֲלֵי־ חֹֽק׃
NAS: with You, One which devises mischief by decree?
KJV: with thee, which frameth mischief by a law?
INT: of destruction devises mischief and appointed
Psalm 105:44
HEB: אַרְצ֣וֹת גּוֹיִ֑ם וַעֲמַ֖ל לְאֻמִּ֣ים יִירָֽשׁוּ׃
NAS: of [the fruit of] the peoples' labor,
KJV: and they inherited the labour of the people;
INT: the lands of the nations labor the peoples' take
Psalm 107:12
HEB: וַיַּכְנַ֣ע בֶּעָמָ֣ל לִבָּ֑ם כָּ֝שְׁל֗וּ
NAS: their heart with labor; They stumbled
KJV: their heart with labour; they fell down,
INT: humbled labor their heart stumbled
Psalm 140:9
HEB: רֹ֥אשׁ מְסִבָּ֑י עֲמַ֖ל שְׂפָתֵ֣ימוֹ [יְכַסּוּמֹו
NAS: of those who surround me, May the mischief of their lips
KJV: of those that compass me about, let the mischief of their own lips
INT: the head about may the mischief of their lips clad self
55 Occurrences
Strong's Hebrew 5999
55 Occurrences
‘ā·māl — 22 Occ.
‘ă·mā·lê·nū — 1 Occ.
‘ă·mā·lî — 5 Occ.
‘ă·mā·lōw — 6 Occ.
‘ā·māl — 1 Occ.
ba·‘ă·mal — 2 Occ.
ba·‘ă·mā·lām — 1 Occ.
ba·‘ă·mā·lōw — 2 Occ.
be·‘ā·māl — 1 Occ.
he·‘ā·māl — 1 Occ.
lə·‘ā·māl — 1 Occ.
mê·‘ă·mal — 1 Occ.
še·‘ă·mā·lōw — 1 Occ.
ū·ḇa·‘ă·mā·lə·ḵā — 1 Occ.
ū·ḇe·‘ā·māl — 1 Occ.
wa·‘ă·mal — 1 Occ.
wa·‘ă·mā·lî — 1 Occ.
wa·‘ă·mā·lōw — 3 Occ.
wə·‘ā·māl — 3 Occ.