A brother (used in the widest sense of literal relationship and metaphorical affinity or resemblance [like 1 ])
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אָח (ach) is the Hebrew word for brother — and in its most theologically charged uses, it names the covenant-community relationship that YHWH requires his people to maintain with one another. From the tragedy of Cain and Abel (Gen 4) to the Deuteronomic law of the brother-poor (Deut 15:7-11) to the psalmist's vision of achim dwelling together in unity (Ps 133:1), ach carries the full weight of the covenant.
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Full entry for אָח (H251) · Open the biblical lexicon
אָח (ach) is the Hebrew word for brother — and in its most theologically charged uses, it names the covenant-community relationship that YHWH requires his people to maintain with one another. From the tragedy of Cain and Abel (Gen 4) to the Deuteronomic law of the brother-poor (Deut 15:7-11) to the psalmist's vision of achim dwelling together in unity (Ps.
The BSB source-word alignment has 629 aligned rows for this entry. Common renderings include brother (39), And his brothers (34), brothers (34), his brothers (33), your brother (30).
The source-word alignment first shows this entry at Genesis 4:2. Its strongest book concentrations include Genesis (178), 1 Chronicles (99), Deuteronomy (48), 2 Samuel (34).
אָח (ach) is the Hebrew word for brother — and in its most theologically charged uses, it names the covenant-community relationship that YHWH requires his people to maintain with one another. From the tragedy of Cain and Abel (Gen 4) to the Deuteronomic law of the brother-poor (Deut 15:7-11) to the psalmist's vision of achim dwelling together in unity (Ps 133:1), ach carries the full weight of the covenant community's obligations to its own members. The local Hebrew artifact indexes this word at about 630 OT occurrences.
Psalm 133:1 gives ach its most concentrated vision: 'Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers (achim) dwell together in unity (gam yachad)!' The psalm is brief — three verses — but its vision is profound: the achim dwelling together in unity (yachad, togetherness, oneness) is like the oil of anointing (v. 2) and like the dew of Hermon (v. 3). The two images are not random: the oil of anointing is Aaron's consecration, the highest sacerdotal act; the dew of Hermon is the water that makes the land fruitful. When the achim dwell together in unity, the priestly blessing and the fruitfulness of the land flow together. This is why YHWH commands his berakah to rest there: 'for there YHWH has commanded the berakah, life forevermore' (v. 3).
Deuteronomy 15:7-11 gives ach its covenant-obligation form: 'If among you, one of your brothers (achikha) should become poor... you shall not harden your heart or shut your hand against your poor brother (achikha), but you shall open wide your hand to him and lend him sufficient for his need, whatever it may be.' The ach-relationship generates binding obligation: you may not close your hand to your brother who is poor. The covenant community's identity as achim means that the poor brother's need is your obligation, not your charity option.
Genesis 4:9 gives ach its foundational question: YHWH asks Cain, 'Where is Abel your brother (achicha)?' Cain's answer — 'Am I my brother's keeper?' — is the first human evasion of ach-obligation. The answer YHWH implies is yes: you are your brother's keeper. The blood of your brother cries out from the ground (v. 10). The ach-obligation is not dissolved by Cain's disavowal; it is violated and its violation produces the first murder.
Leviticus 25:25 gives ach its redemption-obligation: 'If your brother (achikha) becomes poor and sells part of his property, then his nearest redeemer (goel) shall come and redeem what his brother has sold.' The ach-redeemer (goel, H1353) is the one who restores the poor brother's lost property, buys back his freedom, and preserves the family's inheritance in the land. The Book of Ruth is the enacted parable of the goel-obligation: Boaz as the kinsman-redeemer who restores Naomi and Ruth by fulfilling the ach-obligation to its full extent.
Psalm 22:22 gives ach its congregational use: 'I will tell of your name to my brothers (achay); in the midst of the congregation I will praise you.' The speaker's deliverance from suffering becomes the occasion for proclaiming YHWH's name to the achim — the covenant community gathered for praise. This verse is quoted in Hebrews 2:12 as a word of Christ: 'I will tell of your name to my brothers (adelphois).'
For the preacher, אָח (ach) gives the congregation its basic social unit: not the isolated individual but the brother-network of mutual obligation, shared praise, and communal flourishing.
אָח (ach) is indexed in the local Hebrew artifact at about 630 OT occurrences. Its range extends from literal biological brothers (Gen 4:2, Cain and Abel; Gen 37:4, Joseph and his brothers) to fellow Israelites with covenant obligations (Deut 15:7, the poor brother; Lev 25:25, the ach to be redeemed) to the covenant community in worship (Ps 22:22, telling of YHWH's name to the achim) to the vision of the community in unity (Ps 133:1).
The ach-relationship generates specific obligations: to open one's hand to the poor brother (Deut 15:11), to redeem the lost inheritance (Lev 25:25), to preserve the brother's household (Deut 25:5-10), and to avoid hatred in one's heart (Lev 19:17).
Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers live together in harmony!
The vision of covenant brotherhood: 'how good and pleasant it is when achim dwell together (gam yachad).' The image of oil flowing down Aaron's beard to his garments (v. 2) and the dew of Hermon falling on Zion's hills (v. 3) frame the ach-unity as both priestly (the anointing oil) and fruitful (the life-giving dew). YHWH commands (tsivah) his berakah where achim dwell in unity — the togetherness of the brothers is the location of the commanded blessing.
And the Lord said to Cain, “Where is your brother Abel?” “I do not know!” he answered. “Am I my brother’s keeper?”
The foundational ach-question: 'Where is Abel your brother (achicha)?' Cain's deflection — 'am I my brother's keeper?' — is the first recorded evasion of ach-obligation. YHWH's counter (v. 10, 'the voice of your brother's blood is crying to me from the ground') establishes the principle: the ach-obligation is not dissolved by the brother's death or the avoider's denial. Blood cries out; the ach-relationship demands an answer.
For there will never cease to be poor in the land; that is why I am commanding you to open wide your hand to your brother and to the poor and needy in your land.
The covenant ach-obligation to the poor: 'you shall open wide your hand to your brother (achikha).' The repeated 'open wide' (patoach tiftach, the absolute infinitive for emphasis) is the covenant imperative: the ach-relationship means that the poor brother's need makes an absolute claim on the covenant community. The fact that there will always be poor in the land (v.
11, A sober realism) does not reduce the obligation but intensifies it: you will always have opportunity to fulfill the ach-obligation of open-handedness.
I will proclaim Your name to my brothers; I will praise You in the assembly.
The congregational ach: 'I will tell of your name to my brothers (achay), in the midst of the congregation I will praise you.' The psalmist's deliverance from the suffering of Psalm 22 (vv. 1-21) becomes the occasion for proclamation to the achim — the covenant community gathered in praise. Hebrews 2:12 quotes this verse as the word of Christ: 'I will tell of your name to my brothers (adelphois).'
The NT's achim-in-Christ are the fulfillment of Israel's covenant brotherhood — and Christ himself names them his achim.
If your brother becomes impoverished and sells some of his property, his nearest of kin may come and redeem what his brother has sold.
The ach-redeemer (goel): 'his nearest redeemer (goel) shall come and redeem what his brother (achiv) has sold.' The goel-obligation is the ach-obligation in its most demanding form: when a brother loses his land, his nearest kinsman must buy it back and restore it to the family. The Book of Ruth enacts this: Boaz as the goel who redeems Naomi's land and marries Ruth to preserve the dead brother's household (Ruth 4:9-10).
This is the OT's enacted parable of the divine Goel: YHWH as the kinsman-redeemer who buys back what was lost.
BSB source-word alignment connects this entry to exact verse rows, English rendering, source form, transliteration, and parsing.
How English Renders ItA compact distribution from source-word alignment before the full evidence tables.
Hebrew word. Brother encompasses blood kinship, tribal solidarity, covenantal partnership, and metaphorical affinity or resemblance.
Brother encompasses blood kinship, tribal solidarity, covenantal partnership, and metaphorical affinity or resemblance.
a brother (used in the widest sense of literal relationship and metaphorical affinity or resemblance [like 1]) BDB: brother Usage: another, brother(-ly); kindred, like, other. Compare also the proper names beginning with 'Ah-' or 'Ahi-'.
How this word appears across different grammatical cases and numbers.
Selected passage-level study witnesses for this word. This section is not the full occurrence list.
Showing 4 selected witnesses from 630 lexical occurrence verses.
אָח is a primitive word - no further derivation.
Compound and idiomatic phrases that include this word. Follow a link to study the phrase and how its parts work together.
אָח (ach) gives the congregation its basic social grammar: not isolated individuals before God but brothers bound by covenant obligation. Psalm 133:1's vision — achim dwelling together in unity, with the anointing oil running down and the berakah commanded there — is the picture of what the covenant community looks like at its best. And Genesis 4:9 gives the community the most probing question it will ever face: 'Where is your brother?'
The evasion 'am I my brother's keeper?' is the origin of all social irresponsibility within the covenant community. YHWH's implied answer in this scene is yes. Deuteronomy 15:11's 'open wide your hand to your brother' is the concrete test of whether the ach-identity is real: when the poor brother is present, does the hand open? The NT extends the ach-definition in the most radical direction possible: in Matthew 25:40, Jesus says 'whatever you did to one of the least of these my brothers (adelphon), you did it to me.'
The achim of the NT community are not defined by biology or ethnicity but by their relationship to Jesus — and Jesus calls all who do the will of the Father his brothers (Matt 12:50). The ach-obligation does not narrow in the NT; it expands beyond the covenant nation to anyone who is in Christ.
Ps.133.1
אָח (ach) has a feminine form אָחוֹת (achot, sister, H269) and is used in the plural אַחִים (achim, brothers) for the covenant community. The word is used in a wide range from biological kin to fellow Israelites (Deut 15:7, 'one of your brothers in any of your towns') to covenant allies (1Kgs 20:32, 'Ben-hadad your brother'). The goel (H1353, kinsman-redeemer) is the ach in his highest obligation — the one who activates the ach-relationship to restore what was lost.
In NT Greek, adelphos (G80, brother) carries the full range of ach: biological brother, fellow believer, and a term of address for fellow Jews (Acts 2:29) and for believers (Matt 12:50). Jesus's use of adelphos in Matthew 25:40 ('the least of these my brothers') is the climactic extension of the ach-obligation: care for the marginalized is care for Christ himself.
The NT's ach-theology is concentrated in the community of disciples. Matthew 12:50 — 'whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother (adelphos) and sister and mother' — redefines the ach-community around relationship to Jesus, not biological lineage or ethnicity. Hebrews 2:11-12 applies Psalm 22:22 directly to Christ: 'he is not ashamed to call them brothers (adelphous)...
I will tell of your name to my brothers (adelphois).' The one who suffered as the psalmist of Psalm 22 is also the one who proclaims YHWH's name to his brothers in the congregation. Romans 8:29 grounds the ach-relationship in the divine purpose: 'those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers (adelphon).'
Christ is the firstborn brother (H1060 bekor parallel); the church is the family of achim gathered around him. The Deuteronomic ach-obligation to the poor brother finds its NT form in 1 John 3:17: 'if anyone has the world's goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God's love abide in him?' The ach-obligation does not end at the new covenant boundary — it intensifies, because the ach is now a member of the body of Christ.