H5800 — עָזַב (azab)¶

Core Data¶

Strong's: H5800
Original: עָזַב
Transliteration: ʻâzab
Pronunciation: aw-zab'
Part of Speech: Verb (primitive root)
Root: Primitive root — "to loosen, relinquish"
Occurrences: 206 unique verses (249 tokens) across 29 books
First Occurrence: Gen 2:24 — "Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife"
Hapax Legomenon: No

Lexicon Definition¶

A primitive root; to loosen, i.e. relinquish, permit, etc.: — commit self, fail, forsake, fortify, help, leave (destitute, off), refuse, surely.

Verb Stem Distribution¶

Stem	Count	Typical Meaning
Qal	~208	forsake, leave, abandon (active)
Niphal	8	be forsaken, be abandoned (passive)
Pual	2	be forsaken (intensive passive)

Qal dominates at ~96%. The Niphal passive appears in key theological contexts: "the righteous forsaken" (Psa 37:25), "the land shall be forsaken" (Isa 7:16, Lev 26:43), and "not forsaken" (Isa 62:12 — reversal of Isa 62:4 name-change from "Forsaken" to "Sought out"). The Pual intensive passive occurs only in Isa 32:14 (palaces forsaken) and Jer 49:25 (city of praise not left).

Translation Distribution (KJV)¶

Translation	Verses	%
forsake / forsaken / forsook / forsaketh	~105	51%
leave / left / leaveth	~70	34%
fail / faileth	~5	2%
fortify / fortified	~2	1%
help	~2	1%
refuse / refuseth	~2	1%
commit (self)	~1	<1%
destitute	~1	<1%
Other fragments	~18	9%

The semantic field clusters around two primary senses: forsake (relational abandonment, dominant) and leave (physical departure or leaving behind).

Distribution by Book¶

Book	Count	Per 100 Verses
2 Chronicles	20	2.4
Jeremiah	23	1.7
Isaiah	21	1.6
1 Kings	12	1.5
2 Kings	11	1.5
Psalms	22	0.9
Proverbs	11	1.2
Deuteronomy	9	0.9
Nehemiah	9	2.2
Genesis	10	0.7
Job	8	0.7
Ezekiel	7	0.5
Judges	6	1.0
Joshua	5	0.8
1 Chronicles	5	0.5
1 Samuel	4	0.5
Ruth	4	—
Ezra	3	1.1
Exodus	3	0.2
Leviticus	3	0.3
2 Samuel	2	0.3
Daniel	1	0.3
Hosea	1	0.5
Jonah	1	2.1
Lamentations	1	0.6
Malachi	1	1.8
Numbers	1	0.1
Zechariah	1	0.5
Zephaniah	1	1.9

Heavily concentrated in historical narratives of covenant failure (2 Chronicles, Kings) and prophetic indictment (Jeremiah, Isaiah). Psalms usage is almost entirely lament/prayer — pleas that God not forsake the psalmist. Absent from Song of Solomon, Obadiah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Haggai, Joel, Amos, Micah.

Semantic Categories¶

1. Divine Abandonment / God Forsaking Israel¶

God's act of withdrawing his protective presence as judgment for covenant unfaithfulness. - Deut 31:17 — "I will forsake them, and I will hide my face from them" - Isa 54:7 — "For a small moment have I forsaken thee; but with great mercies will I gather thee" - Jer 12:7 — "I have forsaken mine house, I have left mine heritage" - 2 Chr 24:20 — "Because ye have forsaken the LORD, he hath also forsaken you"

2. Human Forsaking of God / Covenant¶

Israel's act of abandoning YHWH for other gods — the dominant prophetic accusation. - Judg 2:12–13 — "They forsook the LORD God of their fathers... and served Baal and Ashtaroth" - Jer 2:13 — "My people have committed two evils; they have forsaken me the fountain of living waters" - 1 Ki 19:10 — "The children of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thine altars" - 2 Chr 7:22 — "Because they forsook the LORD God of their fathers"

3. Cry of Dereliction / Lament of the Forsaken¶

Personal pleas — the psalmist (or sufferer) experiences or fears divine abandonment. - Psa 22:1 — "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?" - Psa 27:9 — "Leave me not, neither forsake me, O God of my salvation" - Psa 38:21 — "Forsake me not, O LORD: O my God, be not far from me" - Psa 71:9 — "Cast me not off in the time of old age; forsake me not when my strength faileth" - Isa 49:14 — "But Zion said, The LORD hath forsaken me, and my Lord hath forgotten me"

4. Divine Promise Not to Forsake¶

Assurance of YHWH's continued presence — the theological counterweight. - Deut 31:6 — "He will not fail thee, nor forsake thee" - Josh 1:5 — "I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee" - 1 Ki 6:13 — "I will dwell among the children of Israel, and will not forsake my people Israel" - Psa 37:28 — "The LORD loveth judgment, and forsaketh not his saints" - Psa 94:14 — "The LORD will not cast off his people, neither will he forsake his inheritance"

5. Physical Departure / Leaving Behind¶

Concrete, non-theological usage: physically leaving a place, person, or object. - Gen 2:24 — "Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother" - Gen 39:12 — "He left his garment in her hand, and fled" - Ruth 1:16 — "Entreat me not to leave thee" - 2 Ki 7:7 — "Left their tents, and their horses, and their asses"

6. Forsaking Wisdom, Law, or Moral Path¶

Proverbs usage: abandoning the right way or clinging to the wrong one. - Pro 2:13 — "Who leave the paths of uprightness, to walk in the ways of darkness" - Pro 4:6 — "Forsake her not, and she shall preserve thee" (wisdom) - Pro 28:4 — "They that forsake the law praise the wicked" - Pro 28:13 — "Whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy"

7. Leaving for the Poor (Gleaning Law)¶

Agricultural-legal usage: intentionally leaving harvest remnants. - Lev 19:10 — "Thou shalt leave them for the poor and stranger" - Lev 23:22 — "Thou shalt leave them unto the poor, and to the stranger" - Ruth 2:16 — "Let fall also some of the handfuls of purpose for her, and leave them"

Common Collocations¶

Word	Strong's	Co-occurrences	Typical Pattern
יְהֹוָה (YHWH)	H3068	73x (35%)	"they have forsaken YHWH" / "YHWH will not forsake"
אֱלֹהִים (elohim)	H430	61x (30%)	"forsook the LORD God of their fathers"
אָמַר (amar)	H559	50x (24%)	Prophetic speech formula preceding accusation
עָשָׂה (asah)	H6213	27x (13%)	"done evil... have forsaken" consequence pattern
אֶרֶץ (erets)	H776	25x (12%)	"the land shall be forsaken" / exile context
אָב (ab)	H1	24x (12%)	"leave his father" / "God of their fathers"
עָבַד (abad)	H5647	17x (8%)	"forsaken me and served other gods" — paired antithesis

The dominant collocation pattern is covenantal: azab + YHWH/Elohim accounts for over 60% of theological occurrences, always describing the rupture of the God-Israel relationship.

Synonyms¶

H5203 נָטַשׁ (natash) — to forsake, scatter, spread (28v); overlaps with azab especially in prophetic judgment contexts; more physical/spatial than relational
H7503 רָפָה (raphah) — to slacken, let go, forsake (46v); broader semantic range including "be weak"; shares "forsake" translation in Deut 31:6, 8

Antonyms¶

H6113 עָצַר (atsar) — to restrain, retain, hold back; semantic opposite of "loosening/releasing"
H982 בָּטַח (batach) — to trust, confide; relational opposite — forsaking is the rupture of the trust-bond
H1692 דָּבַק (dabaq) — to cleave, cling to; direct antonym in Gen 2:24 ("leave... and cleave") and covenantal "cleave to the LORD"

Easily Confused Words¶

Word	Strong's	Shared Translation	Key Difference
שָׁאַר (shaar)	H7604	"left" (18v)	shaar = remain/be left over (remnant); azab = actively leave behind
יָתַר (yathar)	H3498	"left" (14v)	yathar = exceed, be surplus, remain; azab = deliberate departure
יָנַח (yanach)	H3240	"left" (5v)	yanach = set down, deposit in place; azab = abandon/relinquish
נָטַשׁ (natash)	H5203	"forsake" (2v)	natash = spatial scattering; azab = relational abandonment

LXX Mapping¶

Greek Equivalent	Strong's	Co-occurrences	PMI	Notes
ἐγκαταλείπω (enkataleipo)	G1459	123	6.60	Primary — "leave behind in, abandon." This is the word used in Matt 27:46 / Mark 15:34 quoting Psa 22:1
καταλείπω (kataleipo)	G2641	47	4.68	"Leave behind" — neutral physical departure
ἀφίημι (aphiemi)	G863	9	3.78	"Let go, release" — broader semantic range
ἀπολείπω (apoleipo)	G620	3	4.92	"Leave behind" — rare

The LXX strongly prefers ἐγκαταλείπω (G1459) — a compound of ἐν + κατά + λείπω literally "leave down in (a place)" — for the covenantal/relational sense of azab. This word carries the specific overtone of abandonment-in-distress, not merely physical departure. It is the verb quoted by Jesus on the cross (Matt 27:46 / Mark 15:34 ← Psa 22:1 LXX).