What does חָנַן (ḥānan) mean in the Bible?
חָנַן is a verb meaning to show favor, be gracious, have mercy, or, in some forms and contexts, implore favor. It belongs to the חנן family with חֵן (H2580, favor) and חַנּוּן (H2587, gracious).
Hebrew · H2603
חָנַן
Properly, to bend or stoop in kindness to an inferior; to favor , bestow ; causatively to implore (i.e. move to favor by petition)
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חָנַן H2603
Pronunciation ḥānan
What does חָנַן (ḥānan) mean in the Bible?
חָנַן is a verb meaning to show favor, be gracious, have mercy, or, in some forms and contexts, implore favor. It belongs to the חנן family with חֵן (H2580, favor) and חַנּוּן (H2587, gracious).
Reader summary
Full entry for חָנַן (H2603) · Open the biblical lexicon
Questions this entry answers
How does the BSB render H2603?
The BSB source-word alignment has 78 aligned rows for this entry. Common renderings include Be merciful to me (5), be gracious to me (3), for mercy (3), and have mercy (2), and plead (2).
Where does חָנַן (ḥānan) appear in Scripture?
The source-word alignment first shows this entry at Genesis 33:5. Its strongest book concentrations include Psalms (33), Job (7), Isaiah (6), Proverbs (6).
Are there verse guides for חָנַן (ḥānan)?
This entry includes 1 verse guide that explain exact original-language forms in context.
What This Word Actually Means
חָנַן is a verb meaning to show favor, be gracious, have mercy, or, in some forms and contexts, implore favor. It belongs to the חנן family with חֵן (H2580, favor) and חַנּוּן (H2587, gracious). חֶסֶד (H2617, steadfast love or covenant loyalty) is a distinct root and must not be listed as a derivative of חנן, even though the concepts can appear together in prayer and divine self-disclosure.
The verb appears frequently in petitions such as “be gracious to me,” especially in the Psalms. Psalm 51:1 asks God to be gracious according to his steadfast love and abundant compassion. The appeal rests on God’s mercy while the psalm also contains confession, repentance, and a plea for cleansing. Numbers 6:25 uses the verb in the Aaronic blessing: “the Lord make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you.”
Exodus 34:6 uses the related adjective חַנּוּן, not this finite verb, in the Lord’s proclamation that he is merciful and gracious. That confession becomes important background for later prayers and calls to repentance, including Joel 2:13. Teachers may trace the family relationship while preserving which form appears in each text.
For pastoral use, חָנַן gives sufferers and penitents scriptural language for asking God’s favor without treating prayer as a claim of entitlement. The verb does not establish a universal social hierarchy in every occurrence, and a speculative “stooping” etymology should not govern its meaning.
Lexical sourcePassage contextBook contextCanonical parallelPastoral application
How the Bible Uses It
חָנַן is currently counted about 79 times in the local Hebrew index, with significant concentrations in the Psalms (especially lament psalms) and in the prophetic literature's divine self-descriptions. The verb is used both for divine favor shown to humans and for the human plea that implores such favor. Its adjectival form ḥannûn (gracious) appears about 13 times, usually as an attribute of God.
- Exod.34.6
Then the Lord passed in front of Moses and called out: “The Lord, the Lord God, is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in loving devotion and faithfulness,
Exodus 34:6 uses חַנּוּן, the related adjective “gracious,” rather than a finite occurrence of חָנַן. The verse is therefore a word-family anchor for the verb, not a direct verbal usage. Its setting after the golden calf shows God proclaiming graciousness within a confession that also includes mercy, patience, steadfast love, faithfulness, forgiveness, and justice.
- Ps.51.1
Have mercy on me, O God, according to Your loving devotion; according to Your great compassion, blot out my transgressions.
Psalm 51 opens with the plea “be gracious to me,” explicitly appealing to God’s steadfast love and abundant compassion. The petition does not present David’s merit as the basis for forgiveness, yet the psalm also contains confession, contrition, and requests for cleansing and renewal. The verb supports humble appeal without making repentance irrelevant.
- Num.6.25
May the Lord cause His face to shine upon you and be gracious to you;
The Aaronic blessing asks the Lord to make his face shine on the people and be gracious to them. The priest pronounces the blessing the Lord commanded in Numbers 6:22-27; the text concludes that God himself will bless Israel. This is authorized covenant blessing, not a grammatical proof that favor automatically belongs to every hearer apart from the passage’s setting.
- Ps.103.8
The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in loving devotion.
The Exodus 34:6 formula echoed in the most comprehensive praise Psalm of the OT. The ḥannûn attribute appears here as the ground of the entire Psalm's celebration: God forgives iniquities, heals diseases, redeems from destruction — all because ḥannûn is who he is. The practical consequence (full forgiveness, full restoration) flows from the character claim.
- Joel.2.13
So rend your hearts and not your garments, and return to the Lord your God. For He is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger, abounding in loving devotion. And He relents from sending disaster.
Joel's call to repentance is grounded in the ḥannûn formula: 'for he is gracious and merciful.' The reason to return is not merely fear of punishment but confidence in the character of the God to whom they are returning. The ḥannûn declaration is simultaneously a description of who God is and an invitation to test that description through actual repentance.
Source Word Evidence
BSB source-word alignment connects this entry to exact verse rows, English rendering, source form, transliteration, and parsing.
How English Renders It Be merciful to me 5× Psalms 6:2, Psalms 9:13, Psalms 31:9, Psalms 56:1
be gracious to me 3× Psalms 41:4, Psalms 41:10, Psalms 119:58
for mercy 3× Job 8:5, Job 9:15, Psalms 142:1
and have mercy 2× Psalms 30:10, Psalms 86:16
and plead 2× 1 Kings 8:47, 2 Chronicles 6:37
and pleading 2× 1 Kings 8:33, 2 Chronicles 6:24
be gracious to us 2× Psalms 67:1, Isaiah 33:2
favor 2× Isaiah 27:11, Lamentations 4:16
have mercy 2× Psalms 57:1, Psalms 123:3
Have mercy on me 2× Psalms 51:1, Psalms 57:1
mercy 2× Deuteronomy 7:2, Psalms 59:5
to be gracious 2× Job 33:24, Psalms 77:9
- 1× 1 Kings 9:3
. . . 1× Isaiah 30:19
and be gracious 1× Psalms 25:16
and be gracious to you 1× Numbers 6:25
and be merciful to me 1× Psalms 26:11
and begged 1× Esther 8:3
and begged him 1× 2 Kings 1:13
and graciously grant me 1× Psalms 119:29
and I am loathsome 1× Job 19:17
and show me mercy 1× Psalms 119:132
and sought His favor 1× Hosea 12:4
are gracious 1× Psalms 37:21
be gracious to you 1× Genesis 43:29
be merciful 1× Psalms 27:7
but whoever is kind 1× Proverbs 14:31
Do us a favor 1× Judges 21:22
finds no favor 1× Proverbs 21:10
for one who is kind 1× Proverbs 28:8
generous 1× Psalms 37:26
graciously 1× Proverbs 26:25
has been gracious 1× Genesis 33:11
has graciously given 1× Genesis 33:5
Have mercy on us 1× Psalms 123:3
have pity 1× Job 19:21
Have pity on me 1× Job 19:21
He shows us mercy 1× Psalms 123:2
he who shows kindness 1× Proverbs 14:21
He will surely be gracious 1× Isaiah 30:19
I also pleaded 1× Deuteronomy 3:23
I begged 1× Psalms 30:8
I have made my petition 1× 1 Kings 8:59
I have mercy 1× Exodus 33:19
I will have mercy 1× Exodus 33:19
implore his favor 1× Esther 4:8
Kindness 1× Proverbs 19:17
may be gracious 1× 2 Samuel 12:22
pity 1× Deuteronomy 28:50
show me grace 1× Psalms 4:1
take pity 1× Psalms 102:14
Though grace is shown 1× Isaiah 26:10
though I implore 1× Job 19:16
to be gracious to you 1× Isaiah 30:18
to favor 1× Psalms 109:12
to show her favor 1× Psalms 102:13
was gracious 1× 2 Kings 13:23
when he pleaded 1× Genesis 42:21
who is generous 1× Psalms 112:5
will be gracious 1× Amos 5:15
Will He be gracious 1× Malachi 1:9
Show sample aligned rows
Genesis 33:5 חָנַ֥ן to has graciously given Verb - Qal - Perfect - third person masculine singular Genesis 33:11 חַנַּ֥נִי to has been gracious Verb - Qal - Perfect - third person masculine singular | first person common singular Genesis 42:21 בְּהִתְחַֽנְנ֥וֹ to when he pleaded Preposition-b | Verb - Hitpael - Infinitive construct | third person masculine singular Genesis 43:29 יָחְנְךָ֖ to be gracious to you Verb - Qal - Imperfect - third person masculine singular | second person masculine singular Exodus 33:19 וְחַנֹּתִי֙ to I will have mercy Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Conjunctive perfect - first person common singular Exodus 33:19 אָחֹ֔ן to I have mercy Verb - Qal - Imperfect - first person common singular Numbers 6:25 וִֽיחֻנֶּֽךָּ׃ס to and be gracious to you Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Conjunctive imperfect - third person masculine singular | second person masculine singular Deuteronomy 3:23 וָאֶתְחַנַּ֖ן to I also pleaded Conjunctive waw | Verb - Hitpael - Consecutive imperfect - first person common singular Deuteronomy 7:2 תְחָנֵּֽם׃ to mercy Verb - Qal - Imperfect - second person masculine singular | third person masculine plural Deuteronomy 28:50 יָחֹֽן׃ to pity Verb - Qal - Imperfect - third person masculine singular
Usage map
A compact distribution from source-word alignment before the full evidence tables.
First aligned row Genesis 33:5
Aligned rows 78
Books represented 18
Genesis 4 Exodus 2 Numbers 1 Deuteronomy 3 Judges 1 2 Samuel 1 1 Kings 4 2 Kings 2 2 Chronicles 2 Esther 2 Job 7 Psalms 33 Proverbs 6 Isaiah 6 Lamentations 1 Hosea 1 Amos 1 Malachi 1
Source forms
חָנֵּ֥נִי 4x ḥān·nê·nî Psalms 6:2, Psalms 31:9, Psalms 41:10, Psalms 86:3
אֶתְחַנָּֽן׃ 3x ’eṯ·ḥan·nān Job 9:15, Psalms 30:8, Psalms 142:1
וְחָנֵּ֑נִי 3x wə·ḥān·nê·nî Psalms 25:16, Psalms 30:10, Psalms 119:132
וְהִֽתְחַנְּנ֛וּ 2x wə·hiṯ·ḥan·nə·nū 1 Kings 8:33, 2 Chronicles 6:24
וְהִֽתְחַנְּנ֣וּ 2x wə·hiṯ·ḥan·nə·nū 1 Kings 8:47, 2 Chronicles 6:37
חוֹנֵ֣ן 2x ḥō·w·nên Psalms 37:26, Psalms 112:5
חָ֝נֵּ֗נִי 2x ḥān·nê·nî Psalms 4:1, Psalms 119:58
חָנֵּ֣נִי 2x ḥān·nê·nî Psalms 51:1, Psalms 56:1
Parsing patterns
Verb - Qal - Imperative - masculine singular | first person common singular 13x Psalms 4:1, Psalms 6:2, Psalms 9:13, Psalms 31:9
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Imperative - masculine singular | first person common singular 6x Psalms 25:16, Psalms 26:11, Psalms 27:7, Psalms 30:10
Verb - Qal - Participle - masculine singular 6x Psalms 37:21, Psalms 37:26, Psalms 109:12, Psalms 112:5
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Hitpael - Conjunctive perfect - third person common plural 4x 1 Kings 8:33, 1 Kings 8:47, 2 Chronicles 6:24, 2 Chronicles 6:37
Verb - Hitpael - Imperfect - first person common singular 4x Job 9:15, Job 19:16, Psalms 30:8, Psalms 142:1
Verb - Qal - Imperative - masculine singular | first person common plural 3x Psalms 123:3, Isaiah 33:2
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Hitpael - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine singular 2x 2 Kings 1:13, Hosea 12:4
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Conjunctive perfect - first person common singular 2x Exodus 33:19, Job 19:17
Using This Word Well
Be careful not to...
- The ḥānan texts are most pastorally useful when they are applied directly to the question of prayer-worthiness: biblical prayer is consistently grounded in God's character, not the petitioner's qualifications. The Psalms teach us to appeal to God's own nature as the reason he will hear — not our sincerity, not our consistency in prayer, not our emotional intensity. 'Be gracious to me' is the grammar of every legitimate petition.
Avoid claiming...
- Do not claim that ḥānan means God has no standards for relationship — the grace of ḥānan is free but not indiscriminate; the OT consistently pairs divine graciousness with calls to repentance, covenant faithfulness, and the recognition of human sinfulness.
- Do not claim that Luke's kecharitōmenē ('highly favored') applied to Mary means she was sinless from birth — the term describes God's free bestowal of favor on her, not an ontological description of her moral state.
Key Verse and Form Guides
Verse-level guides showing how this original-language form works in its specific context, including grammar, verse function, and guarded interpretation.
Evidence Summary
Hebrew word. Condescending benevolence from superior to inferior; foundational to covenant grace and intercessory prayer in Hebrew theology.
Source Gloss
properly, to bend or stoop in kindness to an inferior; to favor , bestow ; causatively to implore (i.e. move to favor by petition)
Extended definition Source: Open Scriptures Hebrew Lexicon + Brown-Driver-Briggs
Condescending benevolence from superior to inferior; foundational to covenant grace and intercessory prayer in Hebrew theology.
properly, to bend or stoop in kindness to an inferior; to favor, bestow; causatively to implore (i.e. move to favor by petition) BDB: be loathsome Usage: beseech, × fair, (be, find, shew) favour(-able), be (deal, give, grant (gracious(-ly), intreat, (be) merciful, have (shew) mercy (on, upon), have pity upon, pray, make supplication, × very.
Grammatical Forms
How the stem changes the meaning of this verb across the biblical text.
This verb appears through different tense, voice, mood, or stem patterns. Those forms help readers see how the action is presented in context.
Form groups 6 Aligned forms 25
Qal basic active stem — the word in its most common, direct sense 13×
Participle active Prov 14:31 · Prov 19:17 · Ps 37:21 · Ps 37:26 · Ps 109:12 · Ps 112:5 6×
Imperfect Amos 5:15 · Deut 28:50 · Exod 33:19 3×
Perfect Gen 33:5 · Lam 4:16 2×
Infinitive absolute Isa 30:19 1×
Jussive Ps 59:6 1×
Hithpael reflexive or reciprocal — the subject acts on itself or mutually with others 7×
Imperfect Job 9:15 · Job 19:16 · Ps 30:9 · Ps 142:2 · Job 8:5 5×
Perfect 1Kgs 8:59 · 1Kgs 9:3 2×
Hophal causative passive — the subject is caused to perform the action 2×
Imperfect Isa 26:10 · Prov 21:10 2×
Niphal passive or reflexive — the subject receives or experiences the action 1×
Perfect Jer 22:23 1×
Piel intensive active — emphasizes thoroughness or repeated action 1×
Imperfect Prov 26:25 1×
Poel 1×
Imperfect Ps 102:15 1×
Selected Scripture Witnesses
Selected passage-level study witnesses for this word. This section is not the full occurrence list.
Old Testament Witnesses
To show favor or mercy.
Be gracious to me; show me unmerited favor or mercy
Showing 2 selected witnesses from 79 lexical occurrence verses.
Word Origins
Why This Word Matters
Reveals God’s posture toward repentant people. Isaiah 30:18-26
Part of These Phrases
Compound and idiomatic phrases that include this word. Follow a link to study the phrase and how its parts work together.
For the Preacher and Teacher
חָנַן supplies a recurring grammar of petition: worshipers ask the Lord to show favor because they are needy and because he has revealed himself as gracious. Psalm 51:1 joins this plea to God’s steadfast love and compassion, while Numbers 6:25 places the verb within the blessing God commands the priests to pronounce. These settings ground prayer in God’s character without turning confession, repentance, or covenant context into irrelevant details.
The form distinctions matter. Exodus 34:6 uses חַנּוּן, the adjective “gracious,” and Psalm 51:1 uses the verb חָנַן. חֵן is the related noun “favor,” while חֶסֶד comes from a different root. Teaching the family accurately lets readers see connection without manufacturing an etymology or claiming that grace always “flows downward” through a fixed social hierarchy.
Christian prayer may confidently appeal to God’s grace through Christ because the New Testament explicitly grounds access and salvation in him. That gospel confidence is a canonical development stated by the New Testament, not a complete doctrine hidden inside one Hebrew verb.
Anchor passage
Exod.34.6
Doctrinal connections
- H5162 נָחַם — to comfort/relent; companion in this session; nāḥam and ḥānan appear together in the Exodus 34 divine character formula
- H2617 חֶסֶד — lovingkindness; companion already live; ḥānan and ḥesed constantly appear together as the twin foundations of divine mercy
- H2580 חֵן — grace/favor (noun); the primary derivative of ḥānan; 'Noah found grace (ḥēn) in the eyes of the Lord'
- G5485 χάρις — grace; companion already live; the NT word for grace is the direct functional equivalent of the ḥānan/ḥēn cluster
- Exod 34:6 — the foundational divine self-declaration; ḥannûn as the first named attribute; quoted in at least 12 OT texts
- Luke 1:28 — 'Hail, highly favored one' (kecharitōmenē); the angelic greeting to Mary echoes the ḥānan structure: divine favor freely bestowed
- Eph 2:8-9 — 'by grace you have been saved through faith... it is the gift of God'; the NT ḥānan principle fully stated
The חנן root produces the verb חָנַן, the noun חֵן (H2580), the adjective חַנּוּן (H2587), and related terms for supplication. The verb can describe showing favor or mercy and can also occur in forms concerned with seeking favor. חֶסֶד (H2617) is not part of this root family. Claims that the root literally means to bend or stoop toward an inferior are disputed and should not replace the attested contextual senses.
From Old to New Testament
The Septuagint often renders חֵן and related favor language with χάρις vocabulary, providing an important linguistic bridge to the New Testament. Ephesians 2:8-9 explicitly teaches salvation by grace as God’s gift, and Hebrews 4:16 invites believers to approach the throne of grace through Christ. Those passages develop the canonical theology of grace in their own contexts.
Luke 1:28 describes Mary as one who has been favored, but the Greek form should not be loaded with a claim that she had “no claim” on favor merely to reproduce a proposed Hebrew social hierarchy. Continuity should be traced through usage and theology, not through speculative etymology.
Passage contextBook contextLexical sourceCanonical parallelPastoral application
Sources
MorphGNT Strong's Dictionary XML — CC0 1.0 Public Domain
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible (morphhb/OSHB) — CC BY 4.0
Open Scriptures Hebrew Lexicon — CC BY 4.0
Berean Standard Bible (BSB) source-word alignment - CC0 Public Domain