Original Word: אֵפֶר
Part of Speech: Noun Masculine
Transliteration: epher
Pronunciation: AY-fer
Phonetic Spelling: (ay'-fer)
KJV: ashes
NASB: ashes, dust
Word Origin: [from an unused root meaning to bestrew]

1. ashes

ashes

From an unused root meaning to bestrew; ashes -- ashes.

Word Origin
from an unused word
Definition
ashes
NASB Translation
ashes (21), dust (1).

אֵ֫פֶר noun [masculine] ashes (as light, flying?) — ׳א absolute Genesis 18:27 +; construct Numbers 19:9,10 — ashes of red heifer, used in purifications Numbers 19:9,10; on head, as sign of humiliation 2 Samuel 13:19; contrition Daniel 9:3 ("" צוֺם, שַׂק), Jonah 3:6 ("" שַׂק) compare Job 42:6 (׳עָפָר וא), Isaiah 58:5 ("" שַׂק); mourning Esther 4:1,3("" שַׂק) compare Job 2:8 (׳ישׁב בתוך הא), Jeremiah 6:26 ("" שַׂק), Ezekiel 27:30 ("" עפר); in simile scattereth hoarfrost ׳כָּא Psalm 147:16; but also as filthy, loathsome ׳כעפר וא Job 30:19 (Di simile of mourning, grief), as worthless, ׳מִשְׁלֵי א Job 13:12 proverbs of ashes; figurative of worthlessness Isaiah 44:20; insignificance ׳עפר וא Genesis 18:27; ignominy Ezekiel 28:18; Malachi 3:21; distress & sorrow כַּלָּחֶם אָכָ֑לְתִּי ׳א Psalm 102:10 (so Assyrian compare Zim^{BP 42}) compare Lamentations 3:16; Isaiah 61:3 (מְּאֵר תַּחַת אֵפֶר).

II. אפר (enclose, envelope, Assyrian apâru, attire Dl^{Pr 54}; Thes compare Arabic , cover; MV compare Aramaic , מעפרא, mantle, turban; but connection of √ ()ע ׳מּ with אפר is dubious)

Meaning and Range of Imagery

The noun describes the gray powder that remains after fire has consumed fuel. Scripture uses the term literally for the residue of burnt materials and figuratively for human frailty, grief, repentance, judgment, and transformation.

Symbol of Mortality and Humility

Abraham admits his creatureliness: “I am but dust and ashes” (Genesis 18:27). The juxtaposition of dust and ashes stresses the double reminder of earth-origin and fire-consumed end. Job echoes the same humility when he says, “I repent in dust and ashes” (Job 42:6). Every use in this category confronts people with their transience before the eternal God.

Expression of Grief and Mourning

Ashes are strewn or sat in when calamity strikes. Tamar “put ashes on her head” after her violation (2 Samuel 13:19). In Persia, Mordecai and the Jews “wailed loudly and bitterly… with sackcloth and ashes” (Esther 4:1, Esther 4:3). Jeremiah calls Judah to such visible lament: “Roll in ashes” (Jeremiah 6:26). The gesture externalizes inward sorrow and invites communal sympathy.

Instrument of Repentance

Fasting with ashes accentuates contrition. Daniel sought God “with fasting, sackcloth, and ashes” (Daniel 9:3). Nineveh’s king “sat in ashes” as the city turned from evil (Jonah 3:6). Isaiah critiques empty ritual that lacks heartfelt change: “Is it only to bow one’s head… and spread out sackcloth and ashes?” (Isaiah 58:5). Genuine repentance weaves together humbled posture and obedient life.

Liturgical and Cultic Use

The ashes of the red heifer were collected “for the water of cleansing; it is for purification from sin” (Numbers 19:9). Their careful storage and handling (Numbers 19:10) highlight God’s provision of ceremonial purity while underscoring that even the cleansing agent is itself a product of judgment by fire.

Metaphor of Desolation and Judgment

Prophets picture ruined pride as ashes on the ground. Tyre’s sailors “roll in ashes” over the city’s fall (Ezekiel 27:30). The proud guardian cherub is reduced to “ashes on the ground” (Ezekiel 28:18). Malachi portrays final retribution: “They will be ashes under the soles of your feet” (Malachi 4:3). In each case, the imagery conveys irreversible overthrow by divine justice.

Contrast and Promise of Restoration

Ashes are not the final word. The Servant of the Lord is commissioned “to give them a crown of beauty instead of ashes” (Isaiah 61:3). The psalmist, who once “ate ashes like bread” (Psalm 102:9), later celebrates God who “heals the brokenhearted” (Psalm 147:3–6 context). Where faith meets grace, ashes become the backdrop for glory.

Eschatological Overtones

Ashes appear both in scenes of deepest repentance and final judgment, bookending the prophetic story. Humanity’s self-abasement in ashes anticipates the consummation when wickedness itself is turned to ash beneath the redeemed (Malachi 4:3), affirming God’s consistent moral governance from Genesis to Malachi.

Practical Ministry Applications

• Preaching: Use the ash motif to expose sin’s seriousness and to announce Christ’s exchange—beauty for ashes.
• Pastoral Care: Invite mourners to lament honestly, assuring them that God hears prayers “from the ash heap” (Job 2:8 context).
• Corporate Worship: Seasonal calls to repentance (for example, Ash Wednesday) draw on biblical precedent, yet must link outward symbol with inward faith, as Isaiah 58 instructs.
• Discipleship: Teach believers to remember mortality (Genesis 18:27) and live in humble dependence, while resting in the sure promise of restoration (Isaiah 61:3).

Christological Foreshadowing

Ashes mark the cost of sin and the depth of sorrow; the cross answers both. The fire of judgment fell on the spotless Lamb, and from that sacrifice believers receive cleansing more perfect than the red heifer’s ashes ever provided. Through the risen Christ, God truly “bestows on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes.”

אֵ֑פֶר אֵ֔פֶר אֵ֗פֶר אֵ֙פֶר֙ אֵ֣פֶר אֵ֤פֶר אֵ֭פֶר אפר בָּאֵ֖פֶר בָּאֵֽפֶר׃ בָאֵ֔פֶר באפר באפר׃ הָאֵֽפֶר׃ האפר׃ וָאֵ֑פֶר וָאֵ֔פֶר וָאֵ֙פֶר֙ וָאֵֽפֶר׃ ואפר ואפר׃ כָּאֵ֥פֶר כאפר לְאֵ֙פֶר֙ לאפר ’ê·p̄er ’êp̄er bā’êp̄er ḇā’êp̄er bā·’ê·p̄er ḇā·’ê·p̄er baEfer Efer hā’êp̄er hā·’ê·p̄er haEfer kā’êp̄er kā·’ê·p̄er kaEfer lə’êp̄er lə·’ê·p̄er leEfer vaEfer wā’êp̄er wā·’ê·p̄erInterlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel Texts