nacham · relent, be sorry, comfort

What it means

nacham (נָחַם) is a Hebrew word of the Bible that means “relent, be sorry, comfort”.

A verb of deep feeling, with two uses: "comfort" someone, and "be sorry" for something or "relent". Said of God, it expresses his grief at evil or that he does not carry out a punishment he had announced; not that he had made a mistake (compare Numbers 23:19).

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 ease someone in his pain with words and company.
2. To grieve over something done, or to feel sorrow for someone.
3. God gives up the evil he announced and leaves it unfulfilled.
4. To recover one's spirits after a loss and feel relief.

From Brown-Driver-Briggs (1906)

Word study

A verb of deep feeling with two uses. In one form, to comfort someone. In another, to be sorry for something, to regret it, to be moved to pity or to relent. BDB: to be sorry, to pity, to repent, to console, and also to ease oneself by taking vengeance. From the same root are נֶחָמָה, “comfort”, and the names Nehemiah and Nahum.

• Comforting one who weeps Genesis 37:35Genesis 50:21Isaiah 40:1
• YHWH “was sorry” that he had done something Genesis 6:61 Samuel 15:11
• YHWH relents concerning the evil announced Exodus 32:14Jonah 3:10
• “Or a son of man, that he should relent” Numbers 23:191 Samuel 15:29
• Being moved to pity Judges 2:18

How we translate it

This edition's glossary keeps the forms apart: נִחַם (piel) = “comfort” and נִחַם (nifal) = “be sorry” or “relent”; with God as subject it does not say “repent”, and “change one's mind” is kept only for the Greek μετανοέω. When a person takes back what he said, it says “repent” (Job 42:6). “Comfort” 19 times, “comforted” 19, “relent” 16, “relented” 10, “comforters” 5, “I am sorry” 2… In 1 Samuel 15 both renderings are used (15:11, 35 and 15:29). With עַל, “moved to pity” (Judges 2:18).

How it is translated

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

• comfort ×19
• comforted ×19
• relent ×16
• relented ×10
• comfort me ×9
• comfort him ×7
• comforters ×5
• comforts ×4
• I am sorry ×2
• comforter ×2
• others ×15

Related words

Words of the same family, by Strong’s numbering.

Where it appears

• Genesis×9
• Exodus×3
• Numbers×1
• Deuteronomy×1
• Judges×3
• Ruth×1
• 1 Samuel×4
• 2 Samuel×5
• 1 Chronicles×5
• Job×7
• Psalms×12
• Ecclesiastes×2
• Isaiah×17
• Jeremiah×14
• Lamentations×6
• Ezekiel×7
• Joel×2
• Amos×2
• Jonah×3
• Nahum×1
• Zechariah×3

• Genesis 5:29

  And he called his name Noah, saying, “This one will comfort us from our work and from the toil of our hands, from the ground that YHWH has cursed.”

• Genesis 6:6

  And YHWH was sorry that he had made the human being on the earth, and he was grieved in his heart.

• Genesis 6:7

  And YHWH said, “I will wipe out the human being whom I have created from the face of the ground, from human being to livestock, to creeping things and to the birds of the sky, for I am sorry that I made them.”

• Genesis 24:67

  Isaac brought her into the tent of Sarah his mother, and he took Rebekah, and she became his wife, and he loved her. So Isaac was comforted after the death of his mother.

• Genesis 27:42

  The words of Esau her older son were told to Rebekah, and she sent and called Jacob her younger son and said to him, “Look, Esau your brother is consoling himself about you by planning to kill you.

• Genesis 37:35

  All his sons and all his daughters rose up to comfort him, but he refused to be comforted, and said, “Indeed, I will go down to my son mourning, to Sheol.” Thus his father wept for him.

• Genesis 38:12

  Many days passed, and the daughter of Shua, Judah’s wife, died; and when Judah was comforted, he went up to his sheepshearers at Timnah, he and Hirah his friend the Adullamite.

• Genesis 50:21

  So now, do not be afraid; I will provide for you and your little ones.” Thus he comforted them and spoke to their heart.

• Exodus 13:17

  When Pharaoh let the people go, Elohim did not lead them by the way of the land of the Philistines, although it was near; for Elohim said, “Lest the people relent when they see war and return to Egypt.”

• Exodus 32:12

  Why should the Egyptians say, ‘With evil intent he brought them out, to kill them in the mountains and to consume them from the face of the ground’? Turn from the heat of your anger and relent concerning the evil planned against your people.

• Exodus 32:14

  And YHWH relented concerning the evil that he had said he would do to his people.

• Numbers 23:19

  El is not a man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should relent. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it?

• Deuteronomy 32:36

  For YHWH will judge his people and have compassion on his servants, when he sees that their strength is gone and there is no one restrained or left.

• Judges 2:18

  Whenever YHWH raised up judges for them, YHWH was with the judge and saved them from the hand of their enemies all the days of the judge; for YHWH was moved to pity by their groaning because of those who oppressed them and harassed them.

• Judges 21:6

  And the sons of Israel had compassion on Benjamin their brother and said, “One tribe is cut off today from Israel.

• Judges 21:15

  And the people had compassion on Benjamin, for YHWH had made a breach in the tribes of Israel.

• Ruth 2:13

  And she said, “May I find favor in your eyes, my lord, for you have comforted me and because you have spoken to the heart of your servant, though I am not like one of your servants.”

• 1 Samuel 15:11

  “I am sorry that I made Saul king, for he has turned back from following me and has not carried out my words.” Samuel was incensed, and he cried out to YHWH all night.

• 1 Samuel 15:29

  And also the Splendor of Israel does not lie and does not relent, for he is not a human being that he should relent.”

• 1 Samuel 15:35

  Samuel did not see Saul again until the day of his death, for Samuel mourned for Saul; and YHWH was sorry that he had made Saul king over Israel.

• 2 Samuel 10:2

  David said, “I will do loyal love with Hanun son of Nahash, as his father did loyal love with me.” So David sent by the hand of his servants to comfort him concerning his father. And the servants of David came into the land of the sons of Ammon,

• 2 Samuel 10:3

  and the commanders of the sons of Ammon said to Hanun their lord, “Is David honoring your father in your eyes because he has sent comforters to you? Is it not in order to explore the city, to spy it out and to overthrow it, that David has sent his servants to you?”

• 2 Samuel 12:24

  David comforted Bathsheba his wife; and he went in to her and lay with her, and she bore a son, and she called his name Solomon. And YHWH loved him,

• 2 Samuel 13:39

  King David longed to go out to Absalom, for he had been comforted about Amnon, that he was dead.

• 2 Samuel 24:16

  When the angel stretched out his hand toward Jerusalem to destroy it, YHWH relented concerning the evil and said to the angel who was destroying among the people, “Enough! Now withdraw your hand.” And the angel of YHWH was by the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.

• 1 Chronicles 7:22

  And Ephraim their father mourned many days, and his brothers came to comfort him.

• 1 Chronicles 19:2

  David said, “I will do loyal love with Hanun son of Nahash, because his father did loyal love with me.” So David sent messengers to comfort him concerning his father. And the servants of David came to the land of the sons of Ammon, to Hanun, to comfort him,

• 1 Chronicles 19:3

  and the commanders of the sons of Ammon said to Hanun, “Is David honoring your father in your eyes because he has sent comforters to you? Is it not in order to explore and to overthrow and to spy out the land that his servants have come to you?”

• 1 Chronicles 21:15

  Elohim sent an angel to Jerusalem to destroy it; and as he was destroying it, YHWH saw and relented concerning the evil, and said to the angel who was destroying, “Enough! Now drop your hand.” And the angel of YHWH was standing by the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite.

• Job 2:11

  When Job’s three companions heard all this evil that had come upon him, they came, each from his place, Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite, and Zophar the Naamathite; they arranged to meet together to come to show him sympathy and to comfort him.

• Job 7:13

  When I say, ‘My bed will comfort me, my couch will help bear my complaint,’

• Job 16:2

  “I have heard many things like these; comforters of suffering are you all.

• Job 21:34

  How, then, do you comfort me in vain, and of your answers there remains unfaithfulness?”

• Job 29:25

  I chose their way and sat as head, and dwelt like a king among the troops, like one who comforts mourners.

• Job 42:6

  Therefore I despise what I said, and I repent on dust and ashes.”

• Job 42:11

  Then there came to him all his brothers and all his sisters and all who had known him before, and they ate bread with him in his house; and they showed him sympathy and comforted him for all the evil that YHWH had brought upon him; and they gave him each one a qesita and each one a ring of gold.

• Psalms 23:4

  Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will not fear evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.

• Psalms 69:20

  Reproach has broken my heart, and I am sick; I waited for someone to grieve with me, but there was none, and for comforters, but I did not find any.

• Psalms 71:21

  You will increase my greatness, and turn again and comfort me.

• Psalms 77:2

  In the day of my distress I sought Adonai; my hand by night was stretched out and did not grow numb; my soul refused to be comforted.

And 68 more times.