הֶבֶל

“Vanity” in Hebrew is Hevel (הֶבֶל), pronounced “HEH-vel.” Hevel literally means 'breath, vapor, mist.' It describes something that is real but fleeting — you can see it on a cold morning but cannot grasp it. The word became Abel's name (Hevel) in Genesis 4, perhaps foreshadowing his brief life.

Hevel (הֶבֶל) means “Vanity, breath, vapor, meaninglessness” in Biblical Hebrew. Hevel appears 73 times in the Hebrew Bible, with 38 occurrences in Ecclesiastes alone. It is Abel's name (Genesis 4:2), the Ecclesiastes refrain (1:2), a description of idols as 'empty breath' (Jeremiah 10:15), and a metaphor for the brevity of life (Psalm 39:5-6).

Hevel is pronounced “HEH-vel.” The word comes from the Hebrew root ה-ב-ל.

Not exactly. Hevel means 'vapor' — real but fleeting, not permanently graspable. Ecclesiastes teaches that nothing 'under the sun' (apart from God) provides lasting meaning. The book's conclusion is not despair but redirection: since everything is hevel, fear God and keep His commandments (12:13). It's a call to find meaning in the Eternal, not the temporary.

Abel (Hevel, הֶבֶל) means 'breath' or 'vapor.' His name may reflect the fragility of life — he was murdered by his brother in Genesis 4, his life cut short like a breath in winter air. Some scholars see a thematic connection: Abel's brief life and unjust death foreshadow the themes of Ecclesiastes — the vapor-like nature of human existence.

Ecclesiastes' honesty about hevel is a gift. It prevents us from placing ultimate hope in career, wealth, relationships, or even wisdom. Instead, it drives us to God — the only non-hevel reality. Paul echoes this in Romans 8:20: 'Creation was subjected to futility (mataiotes — the Greek equivalent of hevel).' But he adds: 'in hope' — the vapor has an endpoint when God makes all things new.