### Core Meaning & Semantic Range
The Hebrew word **ʼôphel**, represented by `{{H652}}`, denotes **dusk** or **darkness**. It appears 9 times across 8 unique verses in the Bible. Its meaning extends from literal darkness to figurative concepts of obscurity and acting **privily**.
### Biblical Occurrences & Contextual Analysis
In the biblical narrative, `{{H652}}` is primarily used to convey profound gloom and calamity, particularly in the book of Job. Job describes a land of death where the light is "as **darkness**" [[Job 10:22]] and wishes for the night of his conception to be seized by **darkness** [[Job 3:6]]. When he waited for light, **darkness** came instead [[Job 30:26]]. The word also signifies concealment and treacherous action, as when the wicked prepare to "privily" shoot at the upright in heart [[Psalms 11:2]]. In a context of divine restoration, it represents an affliction to be overcome, with God promising that the blind will see out of **obscurity** [[Isaiah 29:18]].
### Related Words & Concepts
Several related words expand upon the concept of darkness and its opposite, light:
* `{{H2822}}` **chôshek** (the dark; ... darkness; figuratively, misery, destruction, death, ignorance, sorrow, wickedness): This is a common term for darkness, often appearing alongside `{{H652}}` to intensify the meaning, as in seeing out of obscurity and **darkness** [[Isaiah 29:18]] or being covered by it [[Job 23:17]].
* `{{H6757}}` **tsalmâveth** (shade of death, i.e. the grave; ... shadow of death): This term is paired with `{{H652}}` to convey a sense of ultimate dread, such as in the search for "stones of darkness, and the **shadow of death**" [[Job 28:3]].
* `{{H216}}` **ʼôwr** (illumination or ... luminary ... bright, clear, [phrase] day, light ...): As the direct antonym, this word for **light** is often contrasted with the gloom of `{{H652}}`. Job expresses this when he waited for **light**, but darkness came [[Job 30:26]].
* `{{H5890}}` **ʻêyphâh** (obscurity ... darkness): This word is used in parallel with `{{H652}}` to describe a land of profound gloom, a "land of **darkness**, as darkness itself" [[Job 10:22]].
* `{{H3313}}` **yâphaʻ** (to shine; be light, shew self, (cause to) shine (forth)): This verb for shining is contrasted with the state of `{{H652}}`. In the land of death, the possibility for light to **shine** is absent, as light itself is like darkness [[Job 10:22]].
### Theological Significance
The theological weight of `{{H652}}` is significant, representing various forms of physical and spiritual gloom.
* **Symbol of Calamity:** The word is used extensively in Job to symbolize deep personal suffering and the absence of divine favor. When Job waited for good, he received evil; when he waited for light, **darkness** came [[Job 30:26]].
* **State of Primal Disorder:** It can signify a chaotic, formless state outside of God's ordered creation. Job describes a land of death as being "without any order," where even the light is as **darkness** [[Job 10:22]].
* **Concealment for Evil:** `{{H652}}` describes the environment from which wickedness operates. The "pestilence that walketh in **darkness**" [[Psalms 91:6]] and the wicked who shoot "privily" [[Psalms 11:2]] both use darkness as their cover.
* **A Condition Awaiting Redemption:** While often negative, `{{H652}}` also represents a state that God can overcome. Isaiah prophesies a day when the blind will see out of **obscurity**, indicating that this darkness is not final [[Isaiah 29:18]].
### Summary
In summary, `{{H652}}` is a potent biblical term for more than just the absence of light. It encompasses the figurative darkness of sorrow, calamity, hidden evil, and a state of disorder. Its usage, primarily in the poetic and prophetic books, paints a vivid picture of both the depths of human suffering and the hope of divine intervention. From the depths of Job's despair to the secret plans of the wicked, `{{H652}}` illustrates the multifaceted nature of darkness in the biblical narrative.
TRV