Lexical Summary
aphelah: Darkness, gloom
Original Word:אֲפֵלָה
Part of Speech:Noun Feminine
Transliteration:aphelah
Pronunciation:ah-feh-LAH
Phonetic Spelling:(af-ay-law')
KJV: dark, darkness, gloominess, X thick
NASB:gloom, darkness, thick
Word Origin:[feminine ofH651 (אַפֵל - gloom)]
1. duskiness, figuratively, misfortune
2. (concretely) concealment
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
dark, darkness, gloominess, thick
Feminine of'aphel; duskiness, figuratively, misfortune; concrete, concealment -- dark, darkness, gloominess, X thick.
see HEBREW'aphel
NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Originfrom the same as
ophelDefinitiondarkness, gloominess, calamity
NASB Translationdarkness (4), gloom (5), thick (1).
Brown-Driver-Briggs
—
Exodus 10:22 +;
Isaiah 58:10; plural
Isaiah 59:9 —
darknessDeuteronomy 28:29;Proverbs 7:9 ("" ); of supernatural darkness in EgyptExodus 10:22; of day of . (compareAmos 5:20 below )Joel 2:2;Zephaniah 1:15 (both "" , ) simile of wickednessJeremiah 23:18;Proverbs 4:19.
figurative ofcalamityIsaiah 8:22 ("" ),Isaiah 58:10 ("" , opposed to ),Isaiah 59:9 (""id., opposed to )
Topical Lexicon
Overviewאֲפֵלָה appears ten times in the Hebrew Scriptures, depicting a palpable gloom that is at once physical, psychological, and spiritual. In every setting the word underscores separation from the life-giving presence of God and the dire consequences of rejecting His revealed light.
Physical Darkness as Divine Judgment
•Exodus 10:22 records a darkness “so thick it could be felt” over Egypt—an unambiguous sign that the Lord can suspend the natural order to humble the proud and deliver His people.
•Deuteronomy 28:29 places אֲפֵלָה among the covenant curses: “At midday you will grope about like a blind man in the dark,” warning Israel that abandonment of God leads to sensory and moral disorientation. These passages ground subsequent prophetic uses of the term in the realm of judgment.
Moral and Spiritual Blindness
•Proverbs 4:19 contrasts the righteous path of light with the wicked stumbling in אֲפֵלָה, teaching that sin dulls perception and breeds self-destruction.
•Jeremiah 23:12 applies the word to corrupt prophets: “Therefore their path will become slick paths in the darkness; they will be driven away and fall in it.” False teaching leaves both leader and follower in calamity.
•Isaiah 59:9 laments, “We look for light, but there is darkness, for brightness, but we walk in gloom,” revealing that societal injustice is not merely horizontal but evidence of vertical estrangement from God.
Seduction and Secrecy
Proverbs 7:9 places אֲפֵלָה in the illicit rendezvous of the adulteress: “in the twilight, in the evening, in the dark of night and deep darkness.” Sin flourishes where concealment is prized; true wisdom exposes evil to the light (John 3:19–21).
Hope Amid Affliction
Isaiah 58:10 promises that compassionate obedience reverses the curse: “Then your light will rise in the darkness, and your night will become like noonday.” The Lord delights to transform gloom when His people practice justice and mercy.
Eschatological Gloom and the Day of the LORD
•Joel 2:2 warns of “a day of darkness and gloom,” a military and cosmic upheaval foreshadowing final judgment.
•Zephaniah 1:15 echoes the same: “That day will be a day of wrath—a day of distress and anguish, a day of trouble and ruin, a day of darkness and gloom.” The prophets employ אֲפֵלָה to sober covenant-breakers and call them to repentance before the climactic intervention of God.
Theological Threads
1. God alone governs light and darkness (Genesis 1:3–4). When darkness descends, it is never autonomous; it testifies to divine sovereignty.
2. Darkness is both penalty and picture of sin. It is experiential (Exodus 10) and ethical (Proverbs 4), corporate (Isaiah 59) and cosmic (Joel 2).
3. Light is promised on the far side of judgment. The same prophets who announce gloom also proclaim messianic dawn (Isaiah 9:2;Malachi 4:2).
Christological Fulfillment
Matthew cites Isaiah to declare that those “dwelling in the land of the shadow of death, a light has dawned” (Matthew 4:16). Jesus Christ embodies the answer to אֲפֵלָה, proclaiming, “I am the light of the world” (John 8:12). His crucifixion was shrouded in darkness at midday (Mark 15:33), signifying that He bore the covenant curse so believers might walk in unending light (Revelation 21:23–25).
Ministry Implications
• Preaching: Employ the imagery of gloom to confront sin candidly while offering the gospel’s radiant hope.
• Discipleship: Encourage believers to forsake secret sin, replacing it with transparent fellowship and obedience.
• Social engagement:Isaiah 58 links relief of the oppressed with the banishment of darkness; mercy ministry is integral to evangelism.
• Spiritual warfare: Pray for the opening of blind eyes (2 Corinthians 4:4–6), confident that God “has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of His beloved Son” (Colossians 1:13).
Devotional Reflection
Whenever Scripture speaks of אֲפֵלָה, it invites self-examination: Am I harboring any area where God’s light is unwelcome? The antidote is simple yet costly—repentance and faith expressed in obedient deeds (Ephesians 5:8–11). In Christ, the deepest gloom cannot overpower the smallest flame, for “the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it” (John 1:5).
Forms and Transliterations
אֲפֵלָ֛ה אפלה בָּֽאֲפֵלָ֔ה בָּאֲפֵל֥וֹת בָּאֲפֵלָ֔ה באפלה באפלות וַאֲפֵלָ֔ה וַאֲפֵלָ֖ה וַאֲפֵלָ֗ה וַאֲפֵלָֽה׃ וַאֲפֵלָתְךָ֖ ואפלה ואפלה׃ ואפלתך כָּֽאֲפֵלָ֑ה כאפלה ’ă·p̄ê·lāh ’ăp̄êlāh afeLah bā’ăp̄êlāh bā’ăp̄êlōwṯ bā·’ă·p̄ê·lāh bā·’ă·p̄ê·lō·wṯ baafeLah baafeLot kā’ăp̄êlāh kā·’ă·p̄ê·lāh kaafeLah vaafeLah vaafelateCha wa’ăp̄êlāh wa’ăp̄êlāṯəḵā wa·’ă·p̄ê·lā·ṯə·ḵā wa·’ă·p̄ê·lāh
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