afak · control oneself

What it means

afak (אָפַק) is a Hebrew word of the Bible that means “control oneself”.

Hold back; refrain.

How to say it

Approximate pronunciation. Vowels sound as in Spanish (a as in father, e as in bed, i as in machine, o as in note, u as in rule); the syllable in bold is stressed. The voice is your device's.

Its senses in the Bible

1. To keep oneself in check; push oneself to act.

From Brown-Driver-Briggs (1906)

How it is translated

The words this translation uses for it, most frequent first.

• I forced myself ×1
• I have restrained myself ×1
• control himself ×1
• controlling himself ×1
• have been restrained ×1
• restrained himself ×1
• will you restrain yourself ×1

Where it appears

• Genesis×2
• 1 Samuel×1
• Esther×1
• Isaiah×3

• Genesis 43:31

  Then he washed his face and came out, and controlling himself he said, “Serve the food.”

• Genesis 45:1

  Then Joseph could not control himself before all who stood by him, and he cried out, “Have everyone go out from me!” So no one stood with him when Joseph made himself known to his brothers.

• 1 Samuel 13:12

  I said, ‘Now the Philistines will come down against me at Gilgal, and I have not pleaded before YHWH’; so I forced myself and offered up the burnt offering.”

• Esther 5:10

  But Haman restrained himself and went to his house; and he sent and brought his friends and Zeresh his wife.

• Isaiah 42:14

  “I have kept silent for ages past; I have been still, I have restrained myself; like a woman giving birth I will groan; I will pant and gasp at once.

• Isaiah 63:15

  Look from the heavens and see, from the residence of your holiness and of your beauty. Where are your zeal and your mighty deeds? The stirring of your inner parts and your compassion toward me have been restrained.

• Isaiah 64:12

  At these things will you restrain yourself, YHWH? Will you keep silent and afflict us to the extreme?