Lexical Summary negohah: Brightness, Light, Radiance Original Word: נְגֹהָה Strong's Exhaustive Concordance brightness Feminine of nogahh; splendor -- brightness. see HEBREW nogahh NAS Exhaustive Concordance Word Originfrom nagah Definition brightness NASB Translation brightness (1). Brown-Driver-Briggs [נְגֹהָה] noun feminine brightness; figurative of prosperity; — plural לִנְנֹהוֺת Isaiah 59:9 (opposed to אֲפֵלוֺת; "" אוֺר). Topical Lexicon Biblical Occurrence Strong’s Hebrew 5054 appears once, at Isaiah 59:9, rendered “brightness” in the Berean Standard Bible: “Therefore justice is far from us, and righteousness does not reach us. We look for light, but there is darkness; for brightness, but we walk in gloom.” Immediate Context in Isaiah 59 Isaiah 59 is a national confession of sin. Verses 1–8 expose Israel’s violence, deceit, and injustice; verses 9–15 describe the people’s self-awareness of the resulting moral darkness. “Brightness” (נְגֹהָה) is paired antithetically with “gloom,” intensifying the lament that the covenant community, created to reflect God’s light (Isaiah 42:6), now stumbles in spiritual night. Key contrasts in the chapter: Historical Setting The oracle reflects conditions either during Isaiah’s later ministry under Manasseh or the early post-exilic era reflected through Isaiah’s prophetic lens. In both contexts the people experienced political turmoil and social breakdown, prompting hopes for restoration and righteousness that only God could supply. Thematic Significance 1. Moral Perception: “Brightness” conveys the clarity that accompanies righteousness. Its absence marks a numbed conscience incapable of discerning God’s ways (cf. Proverbs 4:19). Related Old Testament Motifs of Light • Psalm 27:1 “The LORD is my light and my salvation—whom shall I fear?” Although these texts use different Hebrew terms, they illuminate the broader Scriptural pattern in which divine presence dispels moral and existential darkness. Prophetic Hope and Christological Fulfillment Isaiah 59 closes with a promise: “The Redeemer will come to Zion” (59:20). The New Testament identifies this Redeemer as Jesus Christ, who declares, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows Me will never walk in the darkness, but will have the light of life” (John 8:12). The single Old Testament cry for “brightness” finds its answer in the incarnate Word (John 1:9). Ministry Application 1. Preaching: Isaiah’s juxtaposition of “brightness” and “gloom” exposes sin while pointing to divine remedy. Gospel preaching must retain both emphases—human inability and God’s intervention. Practical Reflection When personal or communal sin dims spiritual sight, Isaiah 59:9 provides language for honest confession. Yet the verse also invites confident expectation: the God who reveals darkness can replace it with unquenchable brightness, culminating in the glory of the Lamb who “will be their light” (Revelation 21:23). Forms and Transliterations לִנְגֹה֖וֹת לנגהות lin·ḡō·hō·wṯ lingoHot linḡōhōwṯLinks Interlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel TextsEnglishman's Concordance Isaiah 59:9 HEB: וְהִנֵּה־ חֹ֔שֶׁךְ לִנְגֹה֖וֹת בָּאֲפֵל֥וֹת נְהַלֵּֽךְ׃ NAS: darkness, For brightness, but we walk KJV: but behold obscurity; for brightness, [but] we walk INT: behold darkness brightness gloom walk 1 Occurrence |