Original Word: בַּל
Part of Speech: Adverb
Transliteration: bal
Pronunciation: bahl
Phonetic Spelling: (bal)
KJV: lest, neither, no, none (that), not (any), nothing
NASB: no, nor, cannot, none, fail, never, nothing
Word Origin: [from H1086 (בָּלָה - wear)]

1. (properly) a failure
2. (by implication) nothing
3. (usually, adverb) not at all
4. (also) lest

lest, neither, no, none that

From balah; properly, a failure; by implication nothing; usually (adverb) not at all; also lest -- lest, neither, no, none (that...), not (any), nothing.

see HEBREW balah

Word Origin
from balah
Definition
not
NASB Translation
cannot (2), fail (1), immovable* (1), never (1), never* (4), no (5), none (2), nor (5), nothing (1), nothing* (1), scarcely* (3), untouched* (1).

בַּל₆₉ adverb not (Phoenician id.: e.g. CIS^{i. 165, 15} בל יכן לכהן shall not be for the priest; :3, 3 בל עתי = before my time) a poetic synonym of לֹא, of comparatively rare occurrence, Hosea 7:2; Hosea 9:16 (Qr) Isaiah 14:21; Isaiah 35:9; Isaiah 43:17; Proverbs 9:13; Proverbs 14:7; Proverbs 19:23; Proverbs 22:29; Proverbs 23:7,35 (twice in verse); Proverbs 24:23; 1 Chronicles 16:30 ( = Psalm 96:10), only besides, except in the passages cited, in other Psalms: often repeated in the same context, as Isaiah 26:10 (twice in verse); Isaiah 26:11,14 (twice in verse); Isaiah 26:18 (twice in verse); Isaiah 33:20 (twice in verse); Isaiah 33:21,23 (twice in verse); Isaiah 33:24; Isaiah 44:8,9 (3 t. in verse); Psalm 10:4; Psalm 10:6; Psalm 10:11; Psalm 10:15; Psalm 10:18; Psalm 16:2; Psalm 16:4 (twice in verse); Psalm 16:8; Psalm 17:3 (twice in verse); Psalm 17:5; Psalm 21:3; Psalm 21:8; Psalm 21:12; also used often with אֶמּוֺט, יִמּוֺט, תִּמּוֺט Psalm 10:6; Psalm 16:8; Psalm 21:8; Psalm 30:7; Psalm 46:6; Psalm 93:1; Psalm 96:10; Psalm 104:5; Proverbs 10:30; Proverbs 12:3; Job 41:15. In Isaiah 40:24 it is probably that it acquires from the context the sense of hardly: yea, hardly are they planted, yea, hardly are they sown ..., when he even bloweth upon them, and they wither; compare לֹא 2 Kings 20:4. Joined anomalously with an infin., Psalm 32:9 בַּל קְרוֺב אֵלֶיךָ (else) there is not coming nigh thee (i.e. else they will not approach thee).

Overview of Meaning and Function

בַּל (bal) appears about seventy-two times in the Hebrew Scriptures as a strong negative adverb meaning “not,” “never,” or “without.” Unlike the common particle לֹא (lo), bal normally stands at the head of a clause or phrase to give emphatic denial or to describe an action or condition that is utterly excluded. Its force is absolute: what is denied with bal is considered impossible, inconceivable, or permanently ruled out. The contexts in which it is used cluster around covenant security, moral certainties, and prophetic assurances.

Key Thematic Domains

1. Divine Reliability and Covenant Security

Bal frequently reinforces statements about the immovability of God’s purposes. In Psalm 62:2, “He alone is my rock and my salvation; He is my fortress; I will never be shaken,” the psalmist’s confidence rests on God’s character, not personal resolve. Because the Lord is constant, what He upholds “will never be shaken” (bal). Similar covenant-grounded assurances appear in Psalm 55:22 and Psalm 112:6, underscoring that covenant faithfulness is not a tentative hope but an unassailable reality.

2. Ethical Certitudes Concerning the Righteous and the Wicked

Wisdom literature wields bal to mark non-negotiable moral outcomes. Proverbs 10:30 declares, “The righteous will never be shaken, but the wicked will not inhabit the land.” Here bal frames the righteous person’s permanence, contrasting the instability reserved for the wicked. The phrase occurs again in Proverbs 12:21 and Proverbs 14:25, stressing that certain ethical consequences are fixed in God’s moral order.

3. Liturgical and Personal Assurance in the Psalms

Psalms employ bal in prayers and songs of trust, often coupling it with verbs of motion to proclaim that the believer “will not slip,” “will not be moved,” or “will not lack.” Psalm 15:5 concludes the portrait of the blameless worshiper with, “He who does these things will never be shaken.” In Psalm 30:6, David confesses that former self-confidence (“I will never be shaken”) without dependence on God proved fragile, demonstrating bal’s rhetorical capacity to expose misplaced security as well as to affirm true stability.

4. Prophetic Promises and Warnings

Prophets use bal to cancel presumptuous plans or assure coming judgment. Isaiah 7:7 warns the conspiring kings of Aram and Israel, “It will not happen; it will not occur,” communicating the absolute nullification of their scheme. Conversely, Isaiah 45:23 affirms an irrevocable divine oath: every knee will bow—there will be no exception (bal).

5. Judicial and Legal Passages

Legal texts employ bal to express total prohibition or the impossibility of escape from justice. In Numbers 35:33 (“Do not defile the land in which you live, for bloodshed defiles the land, and no atonement can be made for the land but by the blood of him who shed it”), bal signals that alternative expiations simply do not exist. The term therefore guards the sanctity of life and underscores the seriousness of divine law.

Distribution by Literary Category

• Psalms and Wisdom: more than half the occurrences, providing vocabulary for worship, counsel, and public faith.
• Prophetic Books: approximately one-quarter, furnishing emphatic denials or certainties concerning future events.
• Law and Narrative: the remainder, often marking categorical statements of impossibility, especially in ritual or judicial settings.

Theological Implications

1. God’s Unshakeable Holiness

Bal strengthens declarations about the impossibility of God’s failure. When applied to the Lord’s promises, it communicates an eternity-spanning reliability that sustains hope and obedience.

2. Human Limitations and Dependence

Where bal negatives human presumption—as in Psalm 30:6—Scripture reveals the folly of self-reliance and points worshipers to divine sufficiency. The particle thus deepens humility and fuels prayer.

3. Moral Absolutes

By announcing that certain outcomes can “never” occur to the righteous or “never” be granted to the wicked, bal affirms objective moral order rooted in God’s character—an anchor against moral relativism.

Christological Foreshadowing

In the Old Testament, bal underscores final certainties that converge in Jesus Christ. The righteous who “will never be shaken” find their ultimate ground in the immovable cornerstone (Isaiah 28:16; 1 Peter 2:6). Likewise, prophetic denials of thwarted redemption (“It will not happen”) are fulfilled when the cross secures an irrevocable victory (Luke 24:26–27). The term’s absolutism anticipates the New Testament’s emphatic οὐ μὴ (ou mē) constructions, such as “I will never leave you nor forsake you” (Hebrews 13:5).

Ministry and Discipleship Applications

• Assurance: When counseling believers, pastors may turn to bal-verses like Psalm 55:22—“He will never let the righteous be shaken”—to ground comfort in God’s unalterable commitment.
• Holiness: Bal’s role in prohibitions reminds the church that some practices are categorically incompatible with covenant life; discipleship involves recognizing non-negotiables.
• Preaching: Expository sermons can highlight bal to contrast transient worldly promises with the permanence of divine truths, urging hearers to set their hope “where moth and rust do not destroy.”

Conclusion

בַּל (bal) is a small but potent word that guards the absolutes of revelation. Whether denying the permanence of evil or certifying the steadfastness of God’s covenant mercy, it serves as a linguistic pillar supporting the Bible’s message of unshakeable truth. Its seventy-two appearances call readers to rest in promises that can never fail and heed warnings that can never be annulled.

בַּ֝֗ל בַּֽל־ בַּל־ בַל־ בל בל־ וּֽבַל־ וּבַֽל־ וּבַל־ ובל־ יַעֲשׂ֑וּן יעשון bal bal- ḇal- ū·ḇal- ūḇal- uval val ya‘ăśūn ya·‘ă·śūn yaaSunInterlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel Texts