194. ulay
Lexical Summary
ulay: Perhaps, maybe, possibly, if only

Original Word: אוּלַי
Part of Speech: Adverb
Transliteration: uwlay
Pronunciation: oo-lah'ee
Phonetic Spelling: (oo-lah'ee)
KJV: if so be, may be, peradventure, unless
NASB: perhaps, suppose, if, should
Word Origin: [from H176 (אוֹ אַו - or)]

1. if not
2. hence perhaps

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
if so be, may be, peradventure, unless

Or (shortened) rulay {oo-lah'ee}; from 'ow; if not; hence perhaps -- if so be, may be, peradventure, unless.

see HEBREW 'ow

NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Origin
a prim. root
Definition
perhaps
NASB Translation
if (1), perhaps (35), should (1), suppose (8).

Brown-Driver-Briggs
II. אוּלַי44 and (Genesis 24:39) אֻלַי

adverb (perhaps from אוֺ & לַי = לֵי, לֵא, as in לוּלֵא, = or not ?).

1 peradventure, perhaps; usually expressing a hope, as Genesis 16:2; Numbers 22:6,11; Numbers 23:3; 1 Samuel 6:5; Jeremiah 20:10; but also a fear or doubt, as Genesis 27:12; Job 1:5, followed by לֹא Genesis 24:5,39; in mockery Isaiah 47:12; Jeremiah 51:8.

2 followed by another clause ἀσυνδέτως, it, it expresses vir-tually the protasis = if peradventure Genesis 18:24,28 (compare Genesis 18:29-32) Hosea 8:7 the blade shall yield no meal; אוּלַי יַעֲשֶׂה זָרִים יִבְלָעֻהוּ if perchance it yield, strangers shall swallow it up.

3 in Numbers 22:33 לוּלֵי (q.v) must be read; unless she had turned aside from me, surely, etc.

Topical Lexicon
Overview

אוּלַי frames human uncertainty before the certainty of God. The particle most often appears on the lips of people who know that final outcomes rest with the Lord but still act, plan, intercede, or repent in hope. Across roughly forty-five Old Testament occurrences the word gathers around four major themes: covenant longing, intercessory atonement, battle and deliverance, and prophetic calls to repentance.

Covenant Longing in the Patriarchal Narratives

1. Desire for offspring
Genesis 16:2 – Sarai, barren and aging, tells Abram, “Please go to my maidservant; perhaps I can build a family through her.” Her uncertainty reveals faith mixed with human contrivance, setting the stage for God’s later miracle.
Genesis 30:1 – Rachel says, “Give me children, or I will die,” yet in 30:3 she adopts Sarai’s earlier perhaps, showing the recurring human impulse to secure covenant promises by sight rather than by patient trust.

2. Securing a bride for Isaac
Genesis 24:39 – Abraham’s servant recounts, “I asked my master, ‘What if the woman will not follow me?’” אוּלַי expresses the risk inherent in obedience; the servant proceeds anyway and God richly answers.

3. Fear of discovery
Genesis 27:12 – Jacob worries, “Perhaps my father will feel me,” illustrating how אוּלַי can voice guilty apprehension.
Genesis 50:15 – Joseph’s brothers say, “Perhaps Joseph will hold a grudge against us,” highlighting unresolved sin and the need for forgiveness within the covenant family.

Intercessory Atonement and Mercy

1. Moses on Sinai
Exodus 32:30 – “You have committed a great sin. But now I will go up to the LORD; perhaps I can make atonement for your sin.” Moses knows only God can forgive, yet he pleads because God has revealed His mercy (Exodus 34:6-7).

2. Job’s priestly role
Job 1:5 – After each feast Job offers burnt offerings, reasoning, “Perhaps my sons have sinned and cursed God in their hearts.” The regular use of אוּלַי underscores the vigilance of a righteous intercessor.

3. Hezekiah’s hope
2 Kings 19:4; Isaiah 37:4 – Faced with Assyrian blasphemy, Hezekiah sends to Isaiah: “Perhaps the LORD your God will hear all the words of the Rabshakeh… and rebuke the words that the LORD your God has heard.” The king’s supplication rests on covenant promises even while confessing his own helplessness.

Battle, Deliverance, and Strategic Planning

1. Reconnaissance and provision
1 Kings 18:5 – During drought Ahab tells Obadiah, “Go through the land to every spring and brook; perhaps we may find grass to keep the horses and mules alive.” Human rulers plan, but rain finally comes only by prophetic prayer.

2. Faith on the battlefield
1 Samuel 14:6 – Jonathan says to his armor-bearer, “Come, let us cross over to the garrison of these uncircumcised men. Perhaps the LORD will act on our behalf. For nothing can hinder the LORD from saving, whether by many or by few.” אוּלַי highlights courageous faith that moves forward without presumption.

3. Military appeals to prophets
Jeremiah 21:2 – Zedekiah seeks Jeremiah: “Inquire now of the LORD for us, because Nebuchadnezzar… is warring against us; perhaps the LORD will perform wonders for us.” The request reveals a heart more interested in relief than repentance—a theme common to late-monarchy occurrences.

Prophetic Calls to Repentance

אוּלַי becomes a pastoral word in the mouths of prophets who urge a stubborn people to repent while time remains.

Jeremiah 26:3 – “Perhaps they will listen and each will turn from his evil way; then I will relent of the disaster.”
Jeremiah 36:3; 36:7 – The written scroll is read “so that they may turn… perhaps each will turn from his evil way.”
Ezekiel 12:3 – Ezekiel performs a sign act “perhaps they will understand, though they are a rebellious house.”
Joel 2:14 – “Who knows? He may turn and relent and leave a blessing behind Him.”
Amos 5:15 – “Hate evil, love good, establish justice at the gate. Perhaps the LORD God of Hosts will be gracious to the remnant of Joseph.”
Zephaniah 2:3 – “Seek the LORD, all you humble of the earth… perhaps you will be hidden on the Day of the LORD’s anger.”
Jonah 3:9 – Even Nineveh’s king grasps the logic: “Who knows? God may turn and relent.”

In each setting אוּלַי appeals to divine compassion without questioning divine justice. The word guards against fatalism; because the character of God is consistent, repentance is never pointless.

Ministry Significance

1. Encouragement to Intercede

The recurring link between אוּלַי and priestly or prophetic prayer (Moses, Job, Hezekiah, Jeremiah) urges believers to stand in the gap. Uncertainty about outcomes is no excuse for prayerlessness; rather, it drives humble dependence.

2. Motivation for Evangelism and Preaching

Prophets proclaim judgment yet hold out “perhaps” as a doorway to mercy. Gospel proclamation carries the same invitation: call all people to repentance, trusting that “the kindness of God leads you to repentance” (Romans 2:4).

3. Pastoral Care amid Suffering

Давid’s flight (2 Samuel 16:12) records, “Perhaps the LORD will see my affliction and repay me with good for the cursing I receive today.” Sufferers may not know the immediate outcome, but they may entrust their cause to the righteous Judge.

4. Guardrail against Presumption

Jonathan’s valor (1 Samuel 14) distinguishes faith from presumption. Believers may act boldly yet always concede the final decision to God.

Summary

אוּלַי gathers the hopes, fears, and petitions of God’s people into a single particle of possibility. It honors divine sovereignty, fuels prayer, encourages courageous obedience, and extends an open invitation to repentance. When Scripture says “perhaps,” it does not question God’s faithfulness; it invites human hearts to submit, seek, and hope in the One whose purposes are certain and whose mercies are new every morning.

Forms and Transliterations
א֠וּלַי אֻלַ֛י אוּלַ֖י אוּלַ֗י אוּלַ֛י אוּלַ֞י אוּלַ֡י אוּלַ֣י אוּלַ֣י ׀ אוּלַ֤י אוּלַ֥י אוּלַ֨י אוּלַי֙ אוּלַי֩ אולי אלי ’u·lay ’ū·lay ’ulay ’ūlay uLai
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Interlinear GreekInterlinear HebrewStrong's NumbersEnglishman's Greek ConcordanceEnglishman's Hebrew ConcordanceParallel Texts
Englishman's Concordance
Genesis 16:2
HEB: אֶל־ שִׁפְחָתִ֔י אוּלַ֥י אִבָּנֶ֖ה מִמֶּ֑נָּה
NAS: in to my maid; perhaps I will obtain children
KJV: unto my maid; it may be that I may obtain children
INT: to my maid perhaps will obtain through

Genesis 18:24
HEB: אוּלַ֥י יֵ֛שׁ חֲמִשִּׁ֥ים
NAS: Suppose there are fifty
INT: Suppose there are fifty

Genesis 18:28
HEB: א֠וּלַי יַחְסְר֞וּן חֲמִשִּׁ֤ים
NAS: Suppose the fifty righteous
INT: Suppose are lacking the fifty

Genesis 18:29
HEB: אֵלָיו֙ וַיֹּאמַ֔ר אוּלַ֛י יִמָּצְא֥וּן שָׁ֖ם
NAS: and said, Suppose forty
INT: and to said Suppose are found in it

Genesis 18:30
HEB: לַֽאדֹנָי֙ וַאֲדַבֵּ֔רָה אוּלַ֛י יִמָּצְא֥וּן שָׁ֖ם
NAS: and I shall speak; suppose thirty
INT: the Lord shall speak suppose are found there

Genesis 18:31
HEB: אֶל־ אֲדֹנָ֔י אוּלַ֛י יִמָּצְא֥וּן שָׁ֖ם
NAS: to the Lord; suppose twenty
INT: to the Lord suppose are found in it

Genesis 18:32
HEB: אַךְ־ הַפַּ֔עַם אוּלַ֛י יִמָּצְא֥וּן שָׁ֖ם
NAS: only this once; suppose ten are found
INT: only this suppose are found in it

Genesis 24:5
HEB: אֵלָיו֙ הָעֶ֔בֶד אוּלַי֙ לֹא־ תֹאבֶ֣ה
NAS: said to him, Suppose the woman
INT: about the servant Suppose is not willing

Genesis 24:39
HEB: אֶל־ אֲדֹנִ֑י אֻלַ֛י לֹא־ תֵלֵ֥ךְ
NAS: to my master, 'Suppose the woman
INT: to my master Suppose not along

Genesis 27:12
HEB: אוּלַ֤י יְמֻשֵּׁ֙נִי֙ אָבִ֔י
NAS: Perhaps my father will feel
INT: Perhaps will feel my father

Genesis 32:20
HEB: אֶרְאֶ֣ה פָנָ֔יו אוּלַ֖י יִשָּׂ֥א פָנָֽי׃
NAS: his face; perhaps he will accept
INT: will see his face perhaps will accept his face

Genesis 43:12
HEB: תָּשִׁ֣יבוּ בְיֶדְכֶ֔ם אוּלַ֥י מִשְׁגֶּ֖ה הֽוּא׃
NAS: of your sacks; perhaps it was a mistake.
INT: back your hand perhaps A mistake he

Exodus 32:30
HEB: אֶל־ יְהוָ֔ה אוּלַ֥י אֲכַפְּרָ֖ה בְּעַ֥ד
NAS: up to the LORD, perhaps I can make atonement
KJV: unto the LORD; peradventure I shall make an atonement
INT: to the LORD perhaps make for

Numbers 22:6
HEB: הוּא֙ מִמֶּ֔נִּי אוּלַ֤י אוּכַל֙ נַכֶּה־
NAS: mighty for me; perhaps I may be able
INT: they are too perhaps may be able to defeat

Numbers 22:11
HEB: לִּי֙ אֹת֔וֹ אוּלַ֥י אוּכַ֛ל לְהִלָּ֥חֶם
NAS: curse them for me; perhaps I may be able
INT: come curse perhaps may be able to fight

Numbers 22:33
HEB: שָׁלֹ֣שׁ רְגָלִ֑ים אוּלַי֙ נָטְתָ֣ה מִפָּנַ֔י
NAS: times. If she had not turned aside
KJV: times: unless she had turned
INT: three times If aside me

Numbers 23:3
HEB: עֹלָתֶךָ֒ וְאֵֽלְכָ֗ה אוּלַ֞י יִקָּרֵ֤ה יְהוָה֙
NAS: and I will go; perhaps the LORD
INT: your burnt will go perhaps will come the LORD

Numbers 23:27
HEB: מָק֖וֹם אַחֵ֑ר אוּלַ֤י יִישַׁר֙ בְּעֵינֵ֣י
NAS: place; perhaps it will be agreeable
INT: place to another perhaps convenient affliction

Joshua 9:7
HEB: אֶל־ הַחִוִּ֑י אוּלַ֗י בְּקִרְבִּי֙ אַתָּ֣ה
NAS: to the Hivites, Perhaps you are living
KJV: unto the Hivites, Peradventure ye dwell
INT: to the Hivites Perhaps within you

Joshua 14:12
HEB: גְּדֹל֣וֹת בְּצֻר֔וֹת אוּלַ֨י יְהוָ֤ה אוֹתִי֙
NAS: cities; perhaps the LORD
KJV: [and] fenced: if so be the LORD
INT: great fortified perhaps the LORD with

1 Samuel 6:5
HEB: יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל כָּב֑וֹד אוּלַ֗י יָקֵ֤ל אֶת־
NAS: of Israel; perhaps He will ease
INT: of Israel glory perhaps will ease his hand

1 Samuel 9:6
HEB: נֵ֣לֲכָה שָּׁ֔ם אוּלַי֙ יַגִּ֣יד לָ֔נוּ
NAS: there, perhaps he can tell
INT: go there perhaps tell our journey

1 Samuel 14:6
HEB: הָעֲרֵלִ֣ים הָאֵ֔לֶּה אוּלַ֛י יַעֲשֶׂ֥ה יְהוָ֖ה
NAS: uncircumcised; perhaps the LORD
INT: uncircumcised of these perhaps will work the LORD

2 Samuel 14:15
HEB: אֶל־ הַמֶּ֔לֶךְ אוּלַ֛י יַעֲשֶׂ֥ה הַמֶּ֖לֶךְ
NAS: to the king, perhaps the king
INT: to the king perhaps will perform the king

2 Samuel 16:12
HEB: אוּלַ֛י יִרְאֶ֥ה יְהוָ֖ה
NAS: Perhaps the LORD will look
INT: Perhaps will look the LORD

45 Occurrences

Strong's Hebrew 194
45 Occurrences


’ū·lay — 45 Occ.

193b
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