Original Word: הוֹ
Part of Speech: Interjection
Transliteration: how
Pronunciation: ho
Phonetic Spelling: (ho)
KJV: alas
NASB: alas
Word Origin: [by permutation from H1929 (הָהּ - alas)]

1. oh!

alas

By permutation from hahh; oh! -- alas.

see HEBREW hahh

Word Origin
a prim. interj.
Definition
ah!
NASB Translation
alas (2).

הוֺ interjection id quod the more usual הוֺי (q. v.) Ah! Amos 5:16 of mourners וּבְכָלחֿוּצוֺת יאֹמְרוּ חוֺהֿוֺ.

Summary

Strong’s Hebrew 1930 (הוֹ) is a brief, urgent interjection of lament translated “Alas!” or “Oh!” Its only scriptural setting is Amos 5:16, where it is twice repeated to heighten the sound of communal mourning in the face of divine judgment.

Scriptural Context

Amos 5:16 presents a prophetic picture of total societal collapse:

“Therefore this is what the LORD, the GOD of Hosts, says: ‘There will be wailing in all the public squares and cries of “Alas! Alas!” in all the streets. The farmer will be called to mourn, and the professional mourners to wail.’”

The doubled הוֹ captures the raw sound that will echo across Israel’s towns. The prophet does not merely foretell catastrophe; he lets the audience hear it.

Public Lament in Ancient Israel

1. Town Gates and Marketplaces – Civic centers became impromptu funeral parlors, signaling that no sphere of life was exempt from the Lord’s verdict.
2. Farmers and Craftsmen – Ordinary laborers are summoned to grieve, revealing that judgment reaches beyond urban elites.
3. Professional Mourners – Their presence underscores both the scale of death and the cultural norm of hiring vocal lamenters to articulate communal sorrow (compare Jeremiah 9:17–18).

Thematic Significance

• Divine Justice: The interjection stands as a sonic witness that God’s righteousness reacts decisively to covenant infidelity (Amos 5:11–12).
• Immediacy: Unlike extended speeches of woe (often using the longer term אוֹי, Strong’s 1945), הוֹ is an outcry in real time, illustrating that judgment has moved from warning to experience.
• Universality of Suffering: By repeating the cry, Amos shows that every social stratum joins the lament; no one can purchase immunity from Yahweh’s discipline.

Prophetic Voice and Literary Effect

Amos uses sensory elements—sound, sight, and social upheaval—to move hearers from complacency to conviction. The terse הוֹ works like an alarm bell, compressing theology into one syllable. The prophet’s poetic craft thus becomes an instrument of pastoral care, urging repentance before final exile (Amos 5:4, 6).

Intertextual Echoes

Though הוֹ itself is rare, its thematic twin “Woe” resonates through Scripture:
• Isaiah 5:20; Isaiah 10:1 – Oracles of judgment against moral perversion and oppressive legislation.
• Habakkuk 2:6–19 – Five “woes” announcing the downfall of Babylon.
• Matthew 23:13–36 – Jesus’ seven woes upon hypocritical leaders, echoing the prophetic tradition.

Together these passages testify that the Lord’s grief over sin is consistent across covenants, culminating in the cross where Christ bears the ultimate “Alas!” on behalf of His people (Matthew 27:46; 2 Corinthians 5:21).

Applications for Ministry Today

• Prophetic Preaching: Use the brevity and urgency of הוֹ to remind congregations that God’s warnings are not rhetorical flourishes but calls to decisive action (Hebrews 12:25).
• Corporate Repentance: Just as entire communities joined the lament in Amos, churches are invited to collective confession, acknowledging societal sins alongside personal ones (1 Peter 4:17).
• Pastoral Lament: Biblical lament legitimizes grief in worship, balancing triumphalism with honest sorrow in a fallen world (Romans 8:22–23).

Related Hebrew Expressions

• אוֹי (Strong’s 1945) – A longer cry of woe used widely by Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Habakkuk.
• הוֹי (variant interjection) – Often translated “Woe” or “Ah,” sharing the same emotional register but appearing in broader contexts.

See Also

Amos 5:1–17; Isaiah 1:4; Joel 2:12–17; Revelation 8:13.

ה֑וֹ הו הוֹ־ הו־ ho hov hōw hōw-Interlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel Texts