בַּל

adv. not (Ph. id.; e.g. CISi. 165, 15 בל יכן לכהן shall not be for the priest; 3, 3 בל עתי = before my time) a poet. syn. of לֹא, of comparatively rare occurrence, Ho 7:2; 9:16 (Qr) Is 14:21; 35:9; 43:17 Pr 9:13; 14:7; 19:23; 22:29; 23:7, 35(×2) 24:23 1 Ch 16:30 (= ψ 96:10), only besides, except in the passages cited, in other Psalms: often repeated in the same context, as Is 26:10(×2), 11, 14(×2), 18(×2); 33:20(×2), 21, 23(×2), 24; 44:8, 9(×3) ψ 10:4, 6, 11, 15, 18; 16:2, 4(×2), 8; 17:3(×2), 5; 21:3, 8, 12; also used often with אֶמּוֹט, יִמּוֹט, תִּמּוֹט ψ 10:6; 16:8; 21:8; 30:7; 46:6; 93:1; 96:10; 104:5 Pr 10:30; 12:3 Jb 41:15. In Is 40:24 it is prob. that it acquires from the context the sense of hardly: yea, hardly are they planted, yea, hardly are they sown …, when he even bloweth upon them, and they wither; cf. לֹא 2 K 20:4. Joined anomalously with an infin., ψ 32:9 בַּל קְרוֹב אֵלֶיךָ (else) there is not coming nigh thee (i.e. else they will not approach thee).