Amen

A Hebrew word, which, when prefixed to an assertion, signifies assuredly, certainly, or emphatically, so it is; but when it concludes a prayer, so be it, or so let it be, is its manifest import. In the former case, it is assertive, or assures of a truth or a fact; and is an asseveration, and is properly translated verily, Joh 3:3. In the latter case, it is petitionary, and, as it were, epitomises all the requests with which it stands connected, Numb. 5: 25. Rev 22:20. This emphatical term was not used among the Hebrews by detached individuals only, but on certain occasions, by an assembly at large, Deu 27:14; Deu 27:20. It was adopted also, in the public worship of the primitive churches, as appears by that passage, 1Co 14:16. and was continued among the Christians in following times; yea, such was the extreme into which many run, that Jerome informs us, that, in his time, at the conclusion of every public prayer, the united amen of the people sounded like the fall of water, or the noise of thunder. Nor is the practice of some professors in our own time to be commended, who, with a low though audible voice, add their amen to almost every sentence, as it proceeds from the lips of him who is praying. As this has a tendency to interrupt the devotion of those that are near them, and may disconcert the thoughts of him who leads the worship, it would be better omitted, and a mental amen is sufficient. The term, as used at the end of our prayers, suggests that we should pray with understanding, faith, fervour, and expectation.

See Mr. Booth’s Amen to social prayer.

One of the distinguishing names of the Lord Jesus Christ, as Christ God - man Mediator. For so Jesus condescended to make use of it. (Rev. 3: 14.) And the meaning of it, in the original language, shews the great blessedness of it, as it concerns his people, in the Lord Jesus condescending to do so. For the word, in the original Greek, from whence it is taken, means verily, certain, sure, true, faithful. And surely, the Lord Jesus Christ is all these, and infinitely more, JEHOVAH’S Yea and Amen, as he saith himself; the Amen, thefaithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God; that is in his mediatorial character. And it is worthy our closest remark, that our Lord very frequently began his discourses with this word, and repeated it - "Verily, verily, I say unto you;" that is, in plain terms, (and indeed, it is the very word in the original) Amen, Amen. And it is yet worthy of farther remark, that none but the Lord Jesus ever did use such words, at the opening of the discourse, by way of confirmation. As if the use of it was particularly his,

And belonged to him only, as his name. All the gospels, indeed, end with Amen. But then, this seems to be but as a farther proof that they are his, and he puts, therefore, his name as a seal at the end of them, by way of establishing their truth. And I beg to remark yet farther, by way of shewing the sweetness and peculiar claim that the Lord Jesus hath to this name, that all the promises are Said to be, Yea and Amen in Christ Jesus, (2 Cor. i. 20.) that is, strictly and properly speaking, they areHis; for He himself is the One great promise of the Bible, and all are therefore, promises in and by Him. And the prophet Isaiah (chap. lxv. 16.) describes the believer in the gospel church, as saying, That he who blesseth himself in the earth shall bless himself in the God of truth; that is, the God Amen. It were devoutly to be wished, that whenever this sacred name is used, in our public worship, or private devotion, our minds were to recollect the person of the Lord Jesus. For certain it is, when we say Amen to the giving of thanks, (see 1 Cor. 14. 16.) we do, to allintents and purposes, use the name of Christ, however inattentively it be said. And, therefore, if this were rightly considered, we should use it with an eye of love, and faith, and thankfulness to him. I shall only beg to add, to what hath been offered on this precious name of our Lord Jesus, that as John is the only one of the Evangelists who hath recorded, so very particularly, our Lord’s discourses with those double Amens, or Verilys, it is plain, that he considered them very highly important. And the apostle Paul, in desiringthat no one should ignorantly say Amen in the church, at the assemblies of the faithful, seems to have same sentiment with John, that every one naming Christ should know Christ.

אמן , in Hebrew, signifies true, faithful, certain. It is used likewise in affirmation; and was often thus employed by our Saviour: “Amen, amen,” that is, “Verily, verily.” It is also understood as expressing a wish, “Amen! so be it!” or an affirmation, “Amen, yes, I believe it:” Num 5:22. She shall answer, “Amen! amen!” Deu 27:15-17, &c. “All the people shall answer, Amen! amen!” 1Co 14:16. “How shall he who occupieth the place of the unlearned, say, Amen! at thy giving of thanks? seeing he understandeth not what thou sayest.” “The promises of God are Amen in Christ;” that is, certain, confirmed, granted, 2Co 1:20. The Hebrews end the five books of Psalms, according to their distribution of them, with “Amen, amen;” which the Septuagint translate, Γενοιτο, γενοιτο, and the Latins, Fiat, fiat. The Gospels, &c, are ended with AMEN. The Greek, Latin, and other churches, preserve this word in their prayers, as well as alleluia and hosanna. At the conclusion of the public prayers, the people anciently answered with a loud voice, “Amen!” and Jerom says, that, at Rome, when the people answered, “Amen!” the sound was like a clap of thunder, in similitudinem caelestis tonitrui Amen reboat. [Amen rings again like a peal of thunder.] The Jews assert that the gates of heaven are opened to him who answers, “Amen!” with all his might.

The Jewish doctors give three rules for pronouncing the word:

1. That it be not pronounced too hastily and rapidly, but with a grave and distinct voice.

2. That it be not louder than the tone of him that blesses.

3. That it be expressed in faith, with a certain persuasion that God would bless them, and hear their prayers.

AMEN is a title of our Lord, “The Amen, the true and faithful witness,”

Rev 1:14.

This word is strictly an adjective, signifying ’firm,’and, metaphorically, ’faithful.’ Thus in Rev 3:14, our Lord is called ’the amen, the faithful and true witness.’ In Isa 65:16, the Hebrews has ’the God of amen,’ which our version renders ’the God of truth,’ i.e. of fidelity. In its adverbial sense Amen means certainly, truly, surely. It is used in the beginning of a sentence by way of emphasis—rarely in the Old Testament (Jer 28:6), but often by our Savior in the New, where it is commonly translated ’Verily.’ In John’s gospel alone it is often used by him in this way double, i.e.’verily, verily.’ In the end of a sentence it often occurs singly or repeated, especially at the end of hymns or prayers, as ’amen and amen’ (Psa 41:13; Psa 72:19; Psa 89:52). The proper signification of it in this position is to confirm the words which have preceded, and invoke the fulfillment of them: ’so be it.’ Hence in oaths, after the priest has repeated the words of the covenant or imprecation, all those who pronounced the amen bound themselves by the oath (Num 5:22; Deu 27:15; Deu 27:26; Neh 5:13; Neh 8:6; 1Ch 16:36; comp. Psa 106:48).

Strictly an adjective, signifying firm, and by a metaphor, faithful. So in Jer 3:14, our Lord is called "the Amen, the faithful and true Witness," where the last words explain the preceding appellation. In its adverbial use it means certainly, truly, surely. It is used at the beginning of a sentence by way of emphasis, frequently by our Savior, and is there commonly translated Verily. In John’s gospel alone, it is often used by him in this way double, Verily, verily. At the end of a sentence it is often used, singly or repeated, especially at the end of hymns and prayers; as "Amen and Amen," Psa 41:13 72:19 89:52. The proper signification of it here is, to confirm the words which have preceded, assert the sincerity and invoke the fulfilment of them: so it is, so be it, let it be done. Hence, in oaths, after the priest has repeated the words of the covenant or imprecation, all those who pronounce the Amen, bind themselves by the oath, Num 5:22 Deu 27:15 Neh 5:13 8:6 1Ch 16:36 . Compare Psa 106:48 .\par

A’men. Literally "true" and used as a substantive, "that which is true",. "truth", Isa 65:16, a word used in strong asseverations, fixing, as it were, the stamp of truth upon the assertion which it accompanied, and making it binding as an oath. Compare Num 5:22.

In the synagogues and private houses, it was customary for the people or members of the family who were present to say "Amen" to the prayers which were offered. Mat 6:13; 1Co 14:16. And not only public prayers, but those offered in private, and doxologies, were appropriately concluded with "Amen". Rom 9:5; Rom 11:36; Rom 15:33; Rom 16:27; 2Co 13:14; etc.

("firm", "faithful", else "verily".) Jesus is "the Amen, the, faithful and true witness" (Rev 3:14). Compare 2Co 1:20; Joh 1:14; Joh 1:17; Joh 14:6. "The God of Amen" (Hebrew for "truth") (Isa 65:16). Jesus alone introduces His authoritative declarations with Amen in the beginning; in Matthew, Mark, and Luke, singly, in John (Joh 3:3; Joh 3:5; Joh 3:11; Joh 10:1) always doubled. It is most marked how the apostles and others avoid the use of it in the beginning, which is His divine prerogative. Jer 28:6 is not an exception; it is praying for the divine ratification of what preceded. In oaths those who pronounce the "Amen" bind themselves by the oath (Num 5:22; Deu 27:15-26).

God alone can seal all His declarations of promise or threat with the "Amen," verily, in its fullest sense; our assertions mostly need some qualification. As John records Christ’s discourses on the deeper things of God, which man is slow to believe, the double Amen is appropriately found at the beginning of such discourses 25 times. Amen was the proper response to a prayer, an oath, or a solemn promise (1Ki 1:30; Neh 5:13; Neh 8:6; 1Ch 16:36; Jer 11:5); the God of Amen witnesses our covenants. Jewish tradition states that the people responded to the priest’s prayer not "Amen," but, "Blessed be the name of the glory of His kingdom for ever." But in synagogues, as in the Christian assemblies, and in family and private prayers, Amen was the response (Mat 6:13; 1Co 14:16).

(Hebrew amen’, אָמֵן, ἀμήν), a particle of attestation adopted into all the languages of Christendom.

I. This word is strictly an adjective, signifying "firm," and, metaphorically, "faithful." Thus, in Rev 3:14, our Lord is called "the amen, the faithful and true witness." In Isa 65:16, the Hebrew has "the God of amen," which our version renders "the God of truth," i e. of fidelity. In its adverbial sense amen means certainly, truly, surely. It is used in the beginning of a sentence- by way of emphasis — rarely in the Old Test. (Jer 28:6), but often by our Savior in the New, where it is commonly translated "verily." In John’s Gospel alone it is often used by him in this way double, i.e. "verily, verily." In the end of a sentence it often occurs singly or repeated, especially at the end of hymns or prayers, as "amen and amen" (Psalm 41:14; Psa 72:19; Psa 89:53). The proper signification of it in this position is to confirm the words which have preceded, and invoke the fulfillment of them: "so be it,! fiat; Sept. γένοιτο. Hence in oaths, after the priest has repeated the words of the covenant or imprecation, all those who pronounce the amen bind themselves by the oath (Num 5:22; Deu 27:15; Deu 27:17: Neh 5:13; Neh 8:6; 1Ch 16:36; comp. Psa 106:48). SEE OATH.

II. In the public worship of the primitive churches it was customary for the assembly at large to say Amen at the close of the prayer; a custom derived from apostolic times (1Co 14:16). Several of the fathers refer to it. Jerome says that in his time, at the conclusion of public prayer, the united voice of the people sounded like the fall of water or the noise of thunder. Great importance was attached to the use of this word at the celebration of the eucharist. At the delivery of the bread the bishop or presbyter, according to the Apostolical Constitutions, is directed to say, "The body of Christ;" at the giving of the cup the deacon is instructed to say, "The blood of Christ, the cup of life;" the communicant is directed on each occasion to say "Amen."’ This answer was universally given in the early Church. SEE RESPONSE.

III. It is used as an emphatic affirmation, in the Sense "so be it," at the end of all the prayers of the Church of England. It is sometimes said in token of undoubting assent, as at the end of the creed, Amen, "So I believe." The order of the Church of England directs that the people shall, at the end of all prayers, answer Amen." — Bingham, bk. 15, ch. 3, § 25.

Special treatises on the subject are Kleinschmidt, De particula Amen (Rint. 1696); Weber, De voce Amen. (Jen. 1734); Wernsdorf, De Amen, liturgico (Viteb. 1779); Brunner, De voce Amen (Helmst. 1678); Fogelmark, Potestas verbi אָמֵן (Upsal. 1761); Meier, Horoe philol. in Amen (Viteb. 1687); Treffentlich, De אָמֵן (Lips. 1700); Vejel, De vocula Amen (Argent. 1681); Bechler, Horoe philol. in Amen (Wittemb. 1687).

Amen (â-mĕn’), firm, faithful, verily. The proper signification of this word is that one person confirms the words of another, and expresses his wish for the success and accomplishment of the other’s vows and declarations. Thus it is used in Num 5:22; Deu 27:15-26; 1Ki 1:36; Jer 28:6. Also after ascriptions of praise, Psa 106:48; and in A. V. of Mat 6:12, but omitted in R. V. Again, we find it at the beginning of a sentence, to signify the firm certainty of what was about to be said, as very frequently in our Lord’s addresses (Mat 25:40; Joh 3:3; Joh 3:5; Joh 3:11, and in other places), where it is usually rendered "verily." The promises of the gospel, too, are said to be "yea, and amen," 2Co 1:20, to indicate their stability. And once the word is used as a proper name. Rev 3:14, applied to him from whose lips every syllable is assured truth; so that, though heaven and earth should pass, nothing that he has spoken can remain unaccomplished. Mat 24:35.

A strong assertion of affirmation and assent. The first time we read of its use was when a woman was supposed to have been unfaithful to her husband and was made to drink the bitter water. The priest pronounced a curse upon her if she had been guilty, and the woman had to answer Amen, Amen. Num 5:22. So when the priest upon mount Ebal rehearsed the various curses, it was appended to each "And all the people shall say, Amen." Deu 27:14-26.

When David declared that Solomon should be his successor, Benaiah said "Amen: the Lord God of my lord the king say so too." 1Ki 1:36. So when David brought up the ark, and delivered a psalm of thanksgiving, all the people said, Amen, and praised the Lord. 1Ch 16:36: cf. also Neh 5:13; Neh 8:6.

In one instance the exclamation does not signify more than ’may it be.’ Hananiah prophesied falsely that within two full years all the vessels of the Lord’s house would be returned from Babylon; Jeremiah said "Amen, the Lord do so;" though he knew it was a false prophecy he could well hope that such a thing might be. Jer 28:6.

At the end of each of the first four books of the Psalms Amen is added. Psa 41:13; Psa 72:19; Psa 89:52; Psa 106:48. In these instances it is not another acquiescing in what is said, but the writer adds Amen at the end, signifying ’may it so be,’ and three times it is repeated.

The Hebrew word is always translated ’Amen,’ except twice in Isa 65:16, where it is rendered ’truth.’ "He who blesseth himself in the earth, shall bless himself in the God of ’truth ;’ and he that sweareth in the earth, shall swear by the God of ’truth.’ " And in Jer 11:5, where it is translated ’So be it,’ God declared that He would perform the oath that He had sworn, and the prophet answered, "So be it, O Lord." A cognate Hebrew word signifies ’to believe:’ it is used in Gen 15:6.

In the N.T. it is often added to the ascription of praise and to benedictions, as in Heb 13:21; Heb 13:25. As a response see 1Co 14:16; Rev 5:14; Rev 7:12; Rev 22:20. There is another way in which the word is used, as in 2Co 1:20, "Whatever promises of God [there are], in him is the yea [the confirmation] and in him the Amen [the verification] for glory to God by us." And that Christ is the verification of all the promises is so true that He Himself is called ’the Amen:’ " These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God." Rev 3:14. As there are responses in heaven, as seen in some of the above texts, so there should be responses on earth in the assemblies of the saints, and not simply a hearing of prayer and praise. It is the word constantly used by the Lord, and translated ’verily.’

AMEN.—Like the Greek ἀμήν, this is practically a transliteration of the Heb. אָמִן, which itself is a verbal adjective connected with a root signifying make firm, establish. In the last instance, and as we are concerned with it, it is an indeclinable particle. Barth treats it as originally a substantive (= ‘firmness,’ ‘certainty’). For the derivation, cf. our English ‘yes,’ ‘yea,’ which is also connected with an old verbal root of similar significance.

As a formula of solemn confirmation, asseveration and assent, it was established in old and familiar usage amongst the Jews in the time of our Lord. Its function is specially associated with worship, prayer, the expression of will and desire, the enunciation of weighty judgments and truths. For modes in which Amen is used may be distinguished—(1) Initial, when it lends weight to the utterance following. (2) Final, when used by the speaker himself in solemn confirmation of what precedes. (3) Responsive, when used to express assent to the utterance of another, as in prayers, benedictions, oaths, etc. (4) Subscriptional, when used to mark the close of a writing, but hardly amounting to much more than a peculiar variant of ‘Finis.’

The subscriptional Amen requires but a brief notice. No instance of it is found in the OT; and as regards the closing Amen in the several Scriptures of the NT there is for the most part a lack of textual authority. The Authorized Version , following the T^{R [Note: R Textus Receptus.]} , in most instances has it; the Revised Version NT 1881, OT 1885 in most instances omits it. Where it is found, in the Epistles and the Apocalypse, it is rather due to the fact that these writings close with a doxology, prayer, or benediction. The variations of authority in such cases seem to a large extent capricious: else why. e.g., Amen at the end of 1 Corinthians and not at the end of 2 Corinthians? The closing Amen in each of the Gospels, though without authority, is a genuine instance of the subscriptional use of later times. This use has a further curious illustration in the practice of copyists of MS^{S [Note: SS Manuscripts.]} who wrote 99 at the end of their work, this being the total numerical value of the characters in ἀμήν. For the purposes of the present article it will be necessary to examine the whole Biblical usage of ‘Amen.’

1. Amen in the OT.—The formula is found in (a) the Pentateuch (Num 5:22, Deuteronomy 27 passim) as a ritual injunction (LXX Septuagint γένοιτο throughout). (b) In 1Ki 1:36, 1Ch 16:36, Neh 5:13, Jer 11:5; Jer 28:6 it is mentioned as being actually used (LXX Septuagint in 1Ki 1:36 γένοιτο οὕτως, Jer 28:6 ἀληθῶς, elsewhere ἀμήν). (c) In the Psalms (Psa 41:13; Psa 72:19; Psa 89:52; Psa 106:48) we meet with its liturgical use (LXX Septuagint γένοιτο). The most common equivalent for Amen in the LXX Septuagint is γένοιτο; and with this may be compared St. Paul’s familiar μὴ γένοιτο, the negative formula of dissent and deprecation.

No clear instance of the use of an initial Amen occurs. Hogg thinks we have such in 1Ki 1:36, Jer 11:5; Jer 28:6; but in each of these cases it will be found that the Amen is a responsive assent to something that precedes. It is true that the LXX Septuagint rendering in Jer 28:6 (ἀληθῶς) shows that the translators were inclined to regard this as an instance of an initial Amen; but even here the term is really an ironical response to the false prophecy of Hananiah in Jer 28:2-4. Almost all the instances, indeed, in which Amen is met with in the OT are examples of the responsive use; the only considerable instances of the final use being found at the end of each of the first three divisions of the Psalter. In the Apocrypha we have further instances of the responsive Amen in Tob 8:8 and in Jdt 13:20; Jdt 15:10 (Authorized and Revised Versions in the latter book renders ‘So be it’). The doubled formula (‘Amen, Amen,’ cf. Jdt 13:20) thus used is naturally explained as an expression of earnestness. It may here be added that among the Jews at a much later period Amen has a responsive and desiderative use in connexion with every kind of expression of desire and felicitation; e.g. ‘May he live to see good days: Amen!’

2. Amen in the Gospels.—We must set aside the instances of subscriptional Amen (see above) as without authority. In Mat 6:13 some ancient authorities support the conclusion of the Lord’s Prayer with doxology and Amen; but it can hardly be doubted that Amen here, along with the doxology which it closes, is not original, but due to liturgical use (see ‘Notes on Select Readings’ in Westcott-Hort’s NT in Greek, ad loc.). In all the other instances in the Gospels it is the initial Amen that is found, given always and only as a usus loquendi of Christ in the formula, ἀμὴν λέγω ὑμῖν (σοι), according to the Synoptists, and ἀμὴν ἀμήν λέγω ὑμῖν (σοι), according to St. John.

Now, whilst final Amen as a formula of conclusion or response remains unaltered throughout in NT in the various versions, it is of interest to notice the different ways in which this initial Amen is treated. The Vulgate, e.g., invariably keeps the untranslated form, and reads Amen (or Amen, Amen) dico vobis. The modern Greek equivalent is ἀληθῶς (ἀληθῶς ἀληθῶς); and with this accords our Authorized and Revised Versions ‘Verily,’ and also Luther’s Wahrlich. And, indeed, among the Synoptists themselves there are indications that an initial Amen has sometimes been replaced by another term. This is specially so in the case of St. Luke, who has only 6 instances of ἀμήν as against 30 in St. Matthew , , 13 in St. Mark. We have, e.g., ναί in Luk 11:51 for ἀμήν in the parallel Mat 23:36; ἀληθῶς in Luk 9:27 (cf. Mat 16:28, Mar 9:1). All this goes to show that this use of Amen on the part of Jesus was quite a peculiarity.

The very λέγω ὑμῖν alone would have been noticeable as a mode of assertion: the addition of ἀμήν does but intensify this characteristic, as an enforcement and corroboration of the utterances that are thus prefaced. The Heb. אָמן, which in our Lord’s time was usual only in responses, thus appears to have been taken by Him as an expedient for confirming His own statement ‘in the same way as if it were an oath or a blessing.’ Formulae of protestation and affirmation involving an oath were in use among Rabbinical teachers to enforce teachings and sayings, and with these the mode of Jesus invites comparison and contrast.

The attempt of Delitzsch to explain this Amen (particularly in the double form) through the Aramaic אָמַינָא ‘I say,’ cannot be sustained. Jannaris, again (. Times, Sept^{. [Note: Septuagint.]} 1902, p. 564), has ventured the suggestion that ἀμήν thus used is a corruption of ἦ μήν (εἶ μήν); but interesting and ingenious as this may be, it lacks confirmation, and amongst the instances of the use of ἦ μήν which he adduces from the LXX Septuagint , the papyri, etc., not one suits the case here by showing any such construction as ἦ μὴν λέγω ὑμῖν in use.

A parallel between Amen and our ‘Yes’ has been already suggested: and in the NT we similarly find ἀμήν and ναί closely associated (2Co 1:20, Rev 1:7), whilst we have before noticed how in St. Luke ναί is found as a substitute for ἀμήν. It may not therefore be out of place here to suggest that we have an illustration and analogy as regards the use of an initial Amen in the use of an introductory ‘Yes’ sometimes found in English (see, e.g., Shakspeare, 2 Hen. IV. i. iii. 36; Pope, Moral Essays, i. 1).

The double Amen, which occurs 25 times in St. John, and is peculiar to that Gospel, has provoked much curiosity as to how it is to be explained. If Jesus used as a formula in teaching now ἀμὴν λέγω ὑμῖν and again ἀμὴν ἀμὴν λέγω ὑμῖν, it is very strange that the Synoptics should invariably represent Him as using the former, and the Fourth Gospel invariably as using the latter. Why not instances of both promiscuously through all the Gospels if the two were thus alike used?

The statement that the Johannine form ‘introduces a truth of special solemnity and importance’ (as Plummer in Camb. Gr. Test. for Schools, etc., ‘St. John,’ note on ch. Joh 1:51) is quite gratuitous, as a comparison of the sayings and discourses of our Lord will show. It is too obviously a dictum for the purpose of explanation. The truth is, if we have regard to the exclamatory character of ἀμήν as a particle in this special use, there is nothing surprising in its being thus repeated; and we have the analogy of the repeated Amen in responses, as noticed above. Why St. John alone should give the formula in this particular way is a further question. If a consideration of the phenomena connected with the composition of the Fourth Gospel leads to the conclusion that in the form in which the utterances of Jesus are there presented we have not His ipsissima verba, we may most naturally regard the repetition of ἀμήν as a peculiarity due to the Evangelist, and (taking the evidence of the Synoptists into account) not necessarily a form actually used by Jesus.

3. Amen in the rest of the NT.—In the numerous instances in which Amen occurs in the NT outside the Gospels, it is almost entirely found in connexion with prayers, doxologies, or benedictions, as a solemn corroborative conclusion (final use). In addition, we have the responsive use of Amen illustrated in 1Co 14:16 (see below, s. ‘Liturgical use’) and Rev 5:14: and ἀμήν in Rev 22:20 is responsive to the ἔρχομαι ταχύ preceding. Extra-canonical writings furnish plentiful examples of the same use. Two instances, again, of an introductory Amen in the Apocalypse (Rev 7:12; Rev 19:4), as a form of exultant acclamation, are interesting, but are quite distinct from the initial Amen in the utterances of Jesus in the Gospels.

Amen as a substantive appears in two forms: (1) τὸ ἀμήν, (2) ὁ ἁμήν. We meet with the former in 1Co 14:16 and 2Co 1:20. In both cases there appears to be a reference to a liturgical Amen. In the latter passage, indeed, it might be contended that ἀμήν is merely in correspondence with ναί, both simply conveying the idea of confirmation and assurance; but if we follow the better supported reading (as in Revised Version NT 1881, OT 1885 ) the presence of such a reference can hardly be denied.

The use of ὁ ἀμήν as a name for our Lord in Rev 3:14 is striking and peculiar. The attempt, however, to explain it by reference to 2Co 1:20 is not satisfactory. The curious expression ‘the God of Amen’ (Authorized and Revised Versions ‘the God of truth’) in Isa 65:16 is not sufficiently a parallel to afford an explanation, for the Amen in this case is not a personal name, but the Authorized and Revised Versions furnishes a satisfactory equivalent in the rendering ‘truth.’ Surely, however, there need be little difficulty about the use of such a term as a designation of Jesus. Considering the wealth of descriptive epithets applied to Him in the NT and other early Christian writings, and also the terminology favoured by the author of the Apocalypse, we must feel that this use of Amen, if bold, is not unnatural or unapt, so suggestive as the term is of truth and firmness. Another but very different use of Amen as a proper name may be mentioned. Among certain of the Gnostics ἈΜήΝ figured as the name of an angel (Hippolytus, Philosophumena, ccxviii. 79, ccciv. 45).

4. Amen in liturgical use

(a) Jewish.—In the Persian period Amen was in use as ‘the responsory of the people to the doxology of the Priests and the Levites’ (see Neh 8:6, 1Ch 16:36, Psa 106:48). In the time of Christ it had become an established and familiar formula of the synagogue worship in particular, the response used in the Temple being a longer form: ‘Blessed be the Name of the glory of His kingdom for ever and ever!’ In still later times a formula of response was used which was apparently a combination of the synagogue Amen with the Temple responsory: ‘Amen: praised be the great Name for ever and ever!’ In the synagogue service the Amen was said by the people in response to the reader’s doxology. (In the great synagogue of Alexandria the attendant used to signal the congregation with a flag when to give the response). Amen was also the responsory to the priestly blessing.

Responsive Amen at the end of prayers was evidently an old custom among the Jews. In later times they are said to have discouraged this, because Amen at the end of every prayer had become the habit of Christians. The use of Amen in this connexion was thus considerably restricted; but certain synagogue prayers were still specified as to be followed by the Amen.

The Rabbis in their liturgical exactness rigorously determined the sense of Amen, and, among other things, enjoined that every doxology, on whatever occasion, must be followed by this response. Curious sayings were current among them, emphasizing the significance and value of Amen. Should, e.g., the inhabitants of hell exclaim ‘Amen!’ when the holy Name of God is praised, it will secure their release (Yalk. ii. 296 to Isa 26:2).

(b) Christian.—This use of Amen was undoubtedly borrowed by the Christians from the Jewish synagogue, as, indeed, other liturgical features were. St. Paul’s words in 1Co 14:16 are of special interest here. The reader is so to recite his prayers that the ignorant should have the boon of answering the Amen to the doxology. The ἰδιώτης (הֶדִיוֹמ) for whom he pleads is similarly considered by the Rabbis, and they give the same instruction. It cannot be maintained that the term εὐχαριστία used here by St. Paul has that special and, so to speak, technical sense which it afterwards acquires as applied to the Lord’s Supper, and that so ‘the Amen’ (τὸ ἀμήν) intended is specifically the response connected with the observance of that institution. At the same time, the whole reference clearly indicates that Amen as a responsory in Christian worship was already a regular and familiar usage.

It is, however, in connexion with the Eucharist, in the special sense of the term, that the Fathers particularly mention the responsive Amen, and refer to it as said after the doxology with which the long Prayer of Consecration closed. Justin Martyr (Apol. 2), Tertullian (de Spectaeul. 25), Dionysius of Alexandria (ap. Euseb. Historia Ecclesiastica ), and Chrysostom (Hom. 35 in 1 Cor.) make such reference. This prayer, of course, was at first said aloud, so as to be heard by all; but in the course of time (after the 8th cent.) the custom grew for the officiating minister to say it sotto vocc. Even then, such importance was attached to the response of the people that the priest was required to say the closing words (‘world without end’) aloud, so that then the ‘Amen’ might be said. This in the West: in the Greek Church it was similarly required that the words of the institution should be said aloud, though the first part of the prayer was said inaudibly, so that the people might hear them and make their response. A writer of the 9th cent. (Florus Magister), referring to this usage, says: ‘Amen, which is responded by the whole church, means It is true. This, therefore, the faithful respond at the consecration of so great a mystery, as also in every prayer duly said, and by responding declare assent.’ A similar use of Amen at the end of the Exhortation (which is not a prayer), commencing the second part of the eucharistic service (see Book of Common Prayer), and at the end of the corresponding ‘Preface’ in the old Gallican Liturgy, may also be pointed out.

Jerome has an interesting reference to the loud congregational Amen, which he describes as resounding like thunder (‘ad similitudinem cœlestis tonitrui’—Com. ad Galat.). This corresponds to a synagogue custom of uttering the ‘Amen with the full power’ of the voice (Shab. 119b).

The modern practice of singing Amen at the close of hymns in public worship is partly due to a musical demand for a suitable cadence to conclude the tune: but it is also in harmony with the most ancient practice of closing hymns with doxologies, which naturally carried an Amen with them. The discrimination observable in some hymnals, whereby hymns containing a prayer or a doxology are closed with Amen and others not, arises from misapprehension. Amen not only means ‘So be it,’ but equally ‘So it is,’ and should thus be suitable as a conclusion to all hymns that are appropriate for Christian worship.

(c) Mohammedan.—Among the Mohammedans Amen is used liturgically, but only to a slight extent. It is universally used by them after every recital of the first Sura of the Koran—the so-called Surat al-Fâtihat (= Preface or Introduction). This brief, prayer-like form is held in great veneration, and has among them a place corresponding to that of the Paternoster amongst Christians.

Literature.—The Bible Dictionaries, s.v.; Jewish Encyclopedia, s.v.; Berakhoth i. 11–19; H. W. Hogg, Jewish Quart. Review, Oct. 1896; articles in Expository Times, by Nestle (Jan. 1897), and Jannaris (Sept^{. [Note: Septuagint.]} 1902); Dalman, Die Worte Jesu (English translation 1902, p. 226ff.); Scudamore, Notitia Eucharistica.

J. S. Clemens.

("So is it," or "So shall it be"):

A word used at the conclusion of a prayer, or in other connections, to express affirmation, approval, or desire. It is derived from the Old Testament Hebrew, and is perhaps the most widely known word in human speech; being familiar to Jews, Christians, and Mohammedans. It occurs thirteen times in the Masoretic text of the Old Testament, and in the Septuagint in three additional passages (Jer. iii. 19, xv. 11, Isa. xxv. 1). From these passages it is possible to trace in part the gradual development of Amen from an adjective (or, according to Barth, "Die Nominalbildung in den Semitischen Sprachen," 5c, 7b, a noun, meaning "firmness," "certainty") into an indeclinable interjection.

The primitive use of Amen is in I Kings, i. 36, where also it serves to introduce an affirmative answer. This introductory Amen occurs also in Jer. xxviii. 6; but in another passage (xi. 5) Jeremiah shows familiarity with the detached Amen. The detached Amen is that use of the Amen in which the expected answer is omitted and left to be inferred from the context. Num. v. 22 (in which Amen is repeated twice), Deut. xxvii. 15 et seq., and Neh. v. 13, show that the detached Amen was employed in solemn oaths for which the brief Amen was more effective than a whole sentence.

Liturgical Amen.

Similar to the detached Amen is the use of the Amen in Neh. viii. 6, I Chron. xvi. 36, and Ps. cvi. 48, from which it is learned that during the Persian epoch Amen was the responsory of the people to the doxology of the priests and the Levites. Too little is known, however, of the Temple worship of that period to make it possible to determine whether, as Graetz holds, Amen and Amen Halleluiah were the only responsories used. The passages in Psalms parallel to that cited above (xli. 14, lxxii. 18-19, lxxxix. 53) make it apparent that the responsory was longer; and there exists a reliable tradition (Tosef., Ber. vii. 22; Ta'anit, i. 11, 16b; Yer. Ber. 14c, end; Soṭah, 40b) that at a period not far removed from the oldest Pharisaic traditions Amen was not generally employed in the Temple liturgy. The opposite view of Graetz in his attempt to distort the evident meaning of the text in this Tosefta is disproved by Sifre, Deut. xxxii. 3, 306, which clearly shows that in ancient times the usual responsive formula in the synagogue and the Temple was: "Blessed be the name of the glory of his kingdom for ever and ever" () . Thus the statement in the Tosefta becomes intelligible: while synagogues adopted the Amen, the Temple preserved the longer form. Even in later times—at least during the existence of the Temple—the Amen could not entirely supplant the longer responsory ; and the ( ("Praised be the great Name [that is, the Tetragrammaton] for ever and ever") is a combination of the synagogue Amen with the Temple formula , the Aramaic equivalent of which is . This explains the great significance which the Talmud (Shab. 119b) and the Midrash (Eccl. R. on ix. 14, 15) attaches to the blessing, a remnant of the Temple liturgy.

Since the rabbis paid strict regard to precise arrangement of prayer-formulas, naturally the use of Amen in the liturgy was rigorously determined by them. The Amen as a responsory of the people is already spoken of by the rabbis, but it is to be noted that Amen was only the responsory to the reader's doxology ("Blessed art thou, O Lord!" Mishnah Ta'anit, ii. 5; Suk. 51b. It is here recorded that in the great synagogue of Alexandria the attendant, at the conclusion of the reader's doxology, signaled the congregation with a flag to respond Amen). Of equal importance with this doxology was the priestly blessing, to each verse of which the congregation responded Amen (Mishnah Soṭah, vii. 3). As expressly stated in a Baraita (Ber. 45a), the use of Amen at the conclusion of a prayer, mentioned in Tobit, viii. 8, must have been very common among Jews in ancient times. Still, the Christian custom of concluding every prayer with Amen seems to have brought this use of Amen into bad repute among the Jews (Ber. l.c.); and it was decided in Babylonia, about 400, that only at grace after meals the third benediction (originally the last) should conclude with Amen (Ber. l.c.), while in Palestine (Yer. Ber. v. 4) Amen was used at the end of the last doxology. In the Middle Ages the Spanish ritual followed the Palestinian custom; the German and Polish Jews conforming to the Babylonian usage (compare "ShulḦan 'Aruk," § 1, 136, end, and the commentaries thereon).

Desiderative and Responsive Amen.

The use of Amen in response to the expression of a good wish can be traced back to the first century of the Christian era (Ket. 66b); whence is derived the medieval custom of suffixing an Amen to every possible expression of a desire. Especially favorite phrases are ("Amen! may this be the will" [of God]) generally used after prayers which do not conclude with a doxology; ("May he live to see good days, Amen!"), a formula usually appended to the name in letters; and ("And let us say Amen!"), with whichthe reader concludes a special prayer or a prayer for a private person. The later responsive Amen is employed at the beginning and the conclusion of grace after meals (Ber. 47a); for, according to the rabbis, every doxology must be responded to with an Amen.

The meaning of Amen is discussed by Rabbis Eliezer ben Hyrcanus and Simon ben YoḦai. The former, a younger contemporary of the Apostles, says: "When the dwellers of Gehenna chant their Amen at the very time that the holy name of God is praised by the congregations . . . the doors of hell yield and angels carry them in white robes into paradise on the last day" (Eliyahu Zuṭṭa xx.). That this utterance is not a later invention, is proved by the kindred sayings of Simon ben YoḦai (Shab. 119b, Midr. Tehil., xxxi. 22). A poetical account of the power of Amen is given in Yalḳ. ii. 296 to Isa. xxvi. 2, in which the final release from hell is described as follows:

"After God shall have publicly revealed the new Messianic Torah, Zerubbabel will recite the Ḳaddish. His voice will be heard throughout the world, so that all dwellers upon earth, as well as Jewish sinners and righteous heathens in hell, will exclaim, 'Amen!' Moved to pity by this Amen from the dwellers of hell, God will bid the angels Michael and Gabriel release them from hell and place them in paradise; which command the angels will forthwith proceed to carry out."

A similar Haggadah occurs in Siddur R. Amram (13b, foot), which is referred to by Hogg ("Jew. Quart. Rev." ix. 17). The legend regarding a pious Jew who once neglected to answer Amen to the doxology, recounted by Jaffe in his introduction to "Lebush," i., belongs to the Middle Ages.

Amen in the New Testament.

As the Amen was widely employed in the Jewish liturgy in the time of Jesus and the New Testament authors, Amen occurs extensively in the New Testament. But the use of almost one half the number of Amens found therein (fifty-two out of one hundred and nineteen) is peculiar to the New Testament writings, having no parallel in Hebrew (see however, Dalman, "Worte Jesu," p. 186); for, as is never the case in Hebrew, the Amen is sometimes found at the beginning of a sentence without reference to what precedes. The explanation of Delitzsch that this Amen is an erroneous form of the Aramaic ("I say"), is disproved not only by the fact that is exclusively Babylonian-Aramaic, but by the further fact that is used exclusively in a hypothetic sense (against 'Er. 32a), while in the New Testament, Amen expresses certainty. Another peculiarity is the use of ὁ Aμην in Rev. iii. 14 as a designation of Jesus. The attempted explanation of this use from II Cor. i. 20 is altogether unsatisfactory.

The primitive Christian Church borrowed the Amen, as it did most of its liturgy, from the Jewish synagogue. Of especial interest is the following passage of Paul (I Cor. xiv. 16), "When thou shalt bless with the spirit (), how shall he that occupieth the room of the unlearned (ἰδιώτου ) say Amen?" Paul here speaks of the reader's duty to recite his prayers aloud in order that the ignorant people might have compensation in answering the Amen to the doxology. The very same teachings are given by the rabbis (Tosef., R. H. iv. [ii.] 12; Gemara, ib. ἰδιώτου ; compare also "ShulḦan 'Aruk OraḦ Ḥayyim," § 124, 4-6; § 139, 6). It is known that in the time of Justin Martyr (about second century) Amen was pronounced after prayer and the Eucharist ("Apologia," i § 65, 67). Jerome shows by his "ad similitudinem cœlestis tonitrui Amen reboat" ("Commentarius ad Galatas," preface to book ii.) that the Church had adopted from the Synagogue even the practise of enunciating the "Amen with the full power"—of the voice (Shab. 119b).

In accordance with the less public character of Mohammedan worship, Amen is very little used among the followers of Islam. Still it is universally employed by them after every recital of the first sura, the so-called Surat al-fatiḦa.

Bibliography:

Ber. i. 11-19;

Blau, Rev. Ét. Juives, xxxi. 179-201;

Brunner, De Voce Amen, Helmstadt, 1678;

Dalman, Die Worte Jesu, pp. 185-187;

Delitzsch, Zeitschrift für Lutherische Theologie, 1856, pp. 422 et seq.;

Grätz, in Monatsschrift, 1872, pp. 481-496;

Hogg, Jew. Quart. Rev. ix. 1-23;

J. Caro, ShulḦan 'Aruk, i. § 54, 2; § 56, 2; § 129, 6-10; § 215;

Lane, Arabic-English Lexicon, s.v.;

Baidawi and Zamakt Shari on first sura;

Maimonides, Yad ha-Ḥazaḳah, i., Tefillah, viii. 9, ix. 1-4;

Nestle, Expository Times, January, 1897, pp. 190 et seq.;

Ps. lxii. et seq., xci. et seq.;

Weber, De Voce Amen, Jena, 1734;

Wernsdorf, De Amen Liturgica;

Wolf, Curæ Phil. in N. T. on Matt. vi. 13, and I Cor. xiv. 16.

AMEN.—A Hebrew form of affirmation usually translated in the LXX [Note: Septuagint.] by an equivalent Greek expression (Num 5:22, Deu 27:15 ‘so be it,’ Jer 28:6 (Jer 36:6) ‘truly’), but sometimes transliterated (1Ch 16:36) as in English. It is an indication of solemn assent, chiefly in prayer, to the words of another, on the part either of an individual (Num 5:22) or of an assembly (Deu 27:15); sometimes reduplicated (Psa 41:13), sometimes accompanied by a rubrical direction (Psa 106:48). From the synagogue it passed into the liturgical use of Christian congregations, and is so referred to in 1Co 14:16—‘the (customary) Amen at thy giving of thanks’ (? Eucharist). The use peculiar to the NT is that ascribed to our Lord in the Gospels, where the word—‘verily’ followed by ‘I say’—introduces statements which He desires to invest with special authority (Mat 5:18, Mar 3:28, Luk 4:24 etc.) as worthy of unquestioning trust. The Fourth Gospel reduplicates—a form which, though Christ may Himself have varied the phrase in this manner, is nevertheless stereotyped by this Evangelist (Joh 1:51; Joh 1:24 other places), and marks the peculiar solemnity of the utterances it introduces. The impression created by this idiom may have influenced the title of ‘the Amen’ given to the Lord in the Epistle to Laodicea (Rev 3:14). A strikingly similar phrase is used by St. Paul in 2Co 1:20—‘through him (i.e. Jesus Christ as preached) is the Amen’—the seal of God’s promises. Its use in doxologies is frequent.

J. G. Simpson.

(Hebrew: aman, strengthen) A word in scriptural and liturgical use, meaning "so be it." It is used as an acclamation which indicates that the speaker adopts for his own what has been said by another (Deuteronomy 27), as an affirmation of the speaker’s own thought, and as a formula of conclusion at the end of prayers. It was often spoken by Our Lord, and is given as one of His names (Apocalypse 3:14).

The word Amen is one of a small number of Hebrew words which have been imported unchanged into the liturgy of the Church, propter sanctiorem as St. Augustine expresses it, in virtue of an exceptionally sacred example. "So frequent was this Hebrew word in the mouth of Our Saviour", observes the Catechism of the Council of Trent, "that it pleased the Holy Ghost to have it perpetuated in the Church of God". In point of fact St. Matthew attributes it to Our Lord twenty-eight times, and St. John in its doubled form twenty-six times. As regards the etymology, Amen is a derivative from the Hebrew verb aman "to strengthen" or "Confirm". SCRIPTURAL USEI. In the Holy Scripture it appears almost invariably as an adverb, and its primary use is to indicate that the speaker adopts for his own what has already been said by another. Thus in Jer., xxviii, 6, the prophet represents himself as answering to Hananias’s prophecy of happier days; "Amen, the Lord perform the words which thou hast prophesied". And in the imprecations of Deut., xxvii, 14 sqq. we read, for example: "Cursed be he that honoureth not his father and mother, and all the people shall say Amen". From this, some liturgical use of the word appears to have developed long before the coming of Jesus Christ. Thus we may compare I Paralipomenon, xvi, 36, "Blessed be the Lord God of Israel from eternity; and let the people say Amen and a hymn to God", with Ps., cv, 48, "Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel from everlasting: and let all the people say: so be it" (cf. also Nehemiah 8:6), these last words in the Septuagint being represented by genoito, genoito, and in the Vulgate, which follows the Septuagint by fiat, fiat; but the Massoretic text gives "Amen, Alleluia". Talmudic tradition tells us that Amen was not said in the Temple, but only in the synagogues (cf. Edersheim, The Temple, p. 127), but by this we probably ought to understand not that the saying Amen was forbidden in the Temple, but only that the response of the congregation, being delayed until the end for fear of interrupting the exceptional solemnity of the rite, demanded a more extensive and impressive formula than a simple Amen. The familiarity of the usage of saying Amen at the end of all prayers, even before the Christian era, is evidenced by Tobias, ix, 12.II. A second use of Amen most common in the New Testament, but not quite unknown in the Old, has no reference to the words of any other person, but is simply a form of affirmation or confirmation of the speaker’s own thought, sometimes introducing it, sometimes following it. Its employment as an introductory formula seems to be peculiar to the speeches of Our Saviour recorded in the Gospels, and it is noteworthy that, while in the Synoptists one Amen is used, in St. John the word is invariably doubled. (Cf. the double Amen of conclusion in Num., v, 22, etc.) In the Catholic (I. e. the Reinas) translation of the Gospels, the Hebrexv word is for the most part retained, but in the Protestant "Authorized Version" it is rendered by "Verily". When Amen is thus used by Our Lord to introduce a statement He seems especially to make a demand upon the faith of His hearers in His word or in His power; e.g. John, viii, 58, "Amen, Amen, I say unto you, before Abraham was made, I am". In other parts of the New Testament, especially in the Epistles of St. Paul, Amen usually concludes a prayer or a doxology, e.g. Rom., xi, 36, "To Him be glory for ever. Amen." We also find it sometimes attached to blessings, e.g. Rom., xv, 33, "Now the God of peace be with you all. Amen"; but this usage is much rarer, and in many apparent instances, e.g. all those appealed to by Abbot Cabrol, the Amen is really a later interpolation.III. Lastly the common practice of concluding any discourse or chapter of a subject with a doxology ending in Amen seems to have led to a third distinctive use of the word in which it appears as nothing more than a formula of conclusion -- finis. In the best Greek codices the book of Tobias ends in this way with Amen, and the Vulgate gives it at the end of St. Luke’s Gospel. This seems to be the best explanation of Apoc., iii, 14: "These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness who is the beginning of the creation of God". The Amen who is also the beginning would thus suggest much the same idea as "I am Alpha and Omega" of Apoc., I, 5, or "The first and the last" of Apoc., ii, 8. LITURGICAL USEThe employment of Amen in the synagogues as the people’s answer to a prayer said aloud by a representative must no doubt have been adopted in their own worship by the Christians of the Apostolic age. This at least is the only natural sense in which to interpret the use of the word in I Cor., xiv, 16, "Else if thou shall bless with the spirit, how shall he that holdeth the place of the unlearned say Amen to thy blessing?" (pos erei to amen epi te se eucharistia) where to amen seems clearly to mean "the customary Amen". In the beginning. however, its use seems to have been limited to the congregation, who made answer to some public prayer, and it was not spoken by him who offered the prayer (see yon der Goltz, Das Gebet in der ltesten Christenheit, p. 160). It is perhaps one of the most reliable indications of the early data of the "Didache" or "Teaching of the Twelve Apostles", that, although several short liturgical formul are embodied in this document, the word Amen occurs but once, and then in company with the word maranatha, apparently as an ejaculation of the assembly. As regards these liturgical formul in the "Didache", which include the Our Father, we may, however, perhaps suppose that the Amen was not written because it was taken for granted that after the doxology those present would answer Amen as a matter of course. Again, in the apocryphal but early "Acta Johannis" (ed. Bonnet, c. xciv, p. 197) we find a series of short prayers spoken by the Saint to which the bystanders regularly answer Amen. But it cannot have been very long before the Amen was in many cases added by the utterer of the prayer. We have a noteworthy instance in the prayer of St. Polycarp at his martyrdom, A.D. 155, on which occasion we are expressly told in a contemporary document that the executioners waited until Polycarp completed his prayer, and "pronounced the word Amen", before they kindled the fire by which he perished. We may fairly infer from this that before the middle of the second century it had become a familiar praclice for one who prayed alone to add Amen by way of conclusion. This usage seems to have developed even in public worship, and in the second half of the fourth century, in the earliest form of the liturgy which affords us any safe data, that of the Apostolic Constitutions, we find that in only three instances is it clearly indicated that Amen is to be said by the congregation (i.e. after the Trisagion, after the "Prayer of Intercession", and at the reception of Communion); in the eight remaining instances in which Amen occurs, it was said, so far as we can judge, by the bishop himself who offered the prayer. From the lately-discovered Prayer Book of Bishop Serapion, which can be ascribed with certainty to the middle of the fourth century, we should infer that, with certain exceptions as regards the anaphora of the liturgy, every prayer consistently ended in Amen. In many cases no doubt the word was nothing more than a mere formula to mark the conclusion, but the real meaning was never altogether lost sight of. Thus, though St. Augustine and Pseudo-Ambrose may not be quite exact when they interpret Amen as verum est (it is true), they are not very remote from the general sense; and in the Middle Ages, on the other band, the word is often rendered with perfect accuracy. Thus, in an early "Expositio Missæ" published by Gerbert (Men. Lit. Alere, II, 276), we read: "Amen is a ratification by the people of what has been spoken, and it may be interpreted in our language as if they all said: May it so be done as the priest has prayed".General as was the use of the Amen as a conclusion, there were for a long time certain liturgical formulas to which it was not added. It does not for the most part occur at the end of the early creeds, and a Decree of the Congregation of Rites (n. 3014, 9 June, 1853) has decided that it should not be spoken at the end of the form for the administration of baptism, where indeed it would be meaningless. On the other hand, in the Churches of the East Amen is still commonly said after the form of baptism, sometimes by the bystanders, sometimes by the priest himself. In the prayers of exorcism it is the person exorcised who is expected to say "Amen", and in the conferring of sacred orders, when the vestments, etc., are given to the candidate by the bishop with some prayer of benediction, it is again the candidate who responds, just as in the solemn blessing of the Mass the people answer in the person of the server. Still we cannot say that any uniform principle governs liturgical usage in this matter, for when at a High Mass the celebrant blesses the deacon before the latter goes to read the Gospel, it is the priest himself who says Amen. Similarly in the Sacrament of Penance and in the Sacrament of Extreme Unction it is the priest who adds Amen after the essential words of the sacramental form, although in the Sacrament of Confirmation this is done by the assistants. Further, it may be noticed that in past centuries certain local rites seem to have shown an extraordinary predilection for the use of the word Amen. In the Mozarabic ritual, for example, not only is it inserted after each clause of the long episcopal benediction, but it was repeated after each petition of the Pater Noster. A similar exaggeration may be found in various portions of the Coptic Liturgy.Two special instances of the use of Amen seem to call for separate treatment. The first is the Amen formerly spoken by the people at the close of the great Prayer of Consecration in the liturgy. The second is that which was uttered by each of the faithful when he received the Body and Blood of Christ.(1) Amen after the ConsecrationWith regard to what we have ventured to call the "great Prayer of Consecration" a few words of explanation are necessary. There can be no doubt that by the Christians of the earlier ages of the Church the precise moment of the conversion of the bread and wine upon the altar into the Body and Blood of Christ was not so clearly apprehended as it is now by us. They were satisfied to believe that the change was wrought in the course of a long "prayer of thanksgiving" (eucharistia), a prayer made up of several elements -- preface, recitation of the words of institution, memento for living and dead, invocation of the Holy Ghost, etc. -- which prayer they nevertheless conceived of as one "action" or consecration, to which, after a doxology, they responded by a solemn Amen. For a more detailed account of this aspect of the liturgy the reader must be referred to the article EPICLESIS. It must be sufficient to say here that the essential unity of the great Prayer of Consecration is very clearly brought before us in the account of St. Justin Martyr (A.D. 151) who, describing the Christian liturgy, says: "As soon as the common prayers are ended and they (the Christians) have saluted one another with a kiss, bread and wine and water are brought to the president, who receiving them gives praise to the Father of all things by the Son and Holy Spirit and makes a long thanksgiving (eucharistian epi poly) for the blessings which He has vouchsafed to bestow upon them, and when he has ended the prayers and thanksgiving, all the people that are present forthwith answer with acclamation ’Amen’ ". (Justin, I Apol., lxv, P.G., VI, 428). The existing liturgies both of the East and the West clearly bear witness to this primitive arrangement. In the Roman Liturgy the great consecrating prayer, or "action", of the Mass ends with the solemn doxology and Amen which immediately precede the Pater Noster. The other Amens which are found between the Preface and the Pater Noster can easily be shown to be relatively late additions. The Eastern liturgies also contain Amens similarly interpolated, and in particular the Amens which in several Oriental rites ape spoken immediately after the words of Institution, are not primitive. It may be noted that at the end of the seventeenth century the question of Amens in the Canon of the Mass acquired an adventitious importance on account of the controversy between Dom Claude de Vert and Père Lebrun regarding the secrecy of the Canon. It is now commonly admitted that in the primitive liturgies the words of the Canon were spoken aloud so as to be heard by the people. For some reason, the explanation of which is not obvious, the Amen immediately before the Pater Noster is omitted in the solemn Mass celebrated by the Pope on Easter day.(2) Amen after CommunionThe Amen which in many liturgies is spoken by the faithful at the moment of receiving Holy Communion may also be traced back to primitive usage. The Pontificale Romanum still prescribes that at the ordination of clerics and on other similar occasions the newly-ordained in receiving Communion should kiss the bishop’s hand and answer Amen when the bishop says to them: "May the Body of Our Lord Jesus Christ keep thy soul unto everlasting life" (Corpus Domini, etc.). It is curious that in the lately-discovered Latin life of St. Melania the Younger, of the early fifth century, we are told how the Saint in receiving Communion before death answered Amen and kissed the hand of the bishop who had brought it (see Cardinal Rampella, Santa Melania Giuniore, 1905, p. 257). But the practice of answering Amen is older than this. It appears in the Canons of Hippolytus (No. 146) and in the Egyptian Church Order (p. 101). Further, Eusebius (Hist. Eccl., VI, xliii) tells a story of the heretic Novatian (c. 250), how, at the time of Communion, instead of Amen he made the people say "I will not go back to Pope Cornelius". Also we have evidently an echo of the same practice in the Acts of St. Perpetua, A.D. 202 (Armitage Robinson, St. Perpetua, pp. 68, 80), and probably in Tertullian’s phrase about the Christian profaning in the amphitheatre the lips with which he had spoken Amen to greet the All-Holy (De Spect., xxv). But nearly all the Fathers supply illustrations of the practice, notably St. Cyril of Jerusalem (Catech., v, 18, P.G., XXIII, 1125). OTHER USESFinally, we may note that the word Amen occurs not infrequently in early Christian inscriptions, and that it was often introduced into anathemas and gnostic spells. Moreover, as the Greek letters which form Amen according to their numerical values total 99 (alpha=1, mu=40, epsilon=8, nu=50), this number often appears in inscriptions, especially of Egyptian origin, and a sort of magical efficacy seems to have been attributed to its symbol. It should also be mentioned that the word Amen is still employed in the ritual both of Jews and Mohammedans.-----------------------------------HERBERT THURSTON Transcribed by Carl Horst The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume ICopyright © 1907 by Robert Appleton CompanyOnline Edition Copyright © 2003 by K. KnightNihil Obstat, March 1, 1907. Remy Lafort, S.T.D., CensorImprimatur. +John Cardinal Farley, Archbishop of New York

ā-men´ (in ritual speech and in singing a-men’, a’men) (אמן, ’āmēn; ἀμήν, amḗn, = “truly,” “verily”): Is derived from the reflexive form of a verb meaning “to be firm,” or “to prop.” It occurs twice as a noun in Isa 65:16, where we have (the King James Version, the Revised Version (British and American)) “God of truth.” This rendering implies the pointing ’ōmēn or ’ēmūn i.e. “truth,” or “faithfulness,” a reading actually suggested by Cheyne and adopted by others. “Amen” is generally used as an adverb of assent or confirmation - fiat, “so let it be.” In Jer 28:6 the prophet endorses with it the words of Hananiah. Amen is employed when an individual or the whole nation confirms a covenant or oath recited in their presence (Num 5:22; Deu 27:15; Neh 5:13, etc.). It also occurs at the close of a psalm or book of psalms, or of a prayer.

That “Amen” was appended to the doxology in the early church is evident both from Paul and Rev, and here again it took the form of a response by the hearers. The ritual of the installation of the Lamb (Rev 5:6-14) concludes with the Amen of the four beasts, and the four and twenty elders. It is also spoken after “Yea: I come quickly” (Rev 22:20). And that Revelation reflects the practice of the church on earth, and not merely of an ideal, ascended community in heaven, may be concluded from 1Co 14:16, whence we gather that the lay brethren were expected to say “Amen” to the address. (See Weizsäcker’s The Apostolic Age of the Christian Church, English translation, II, 289.)

The lack of a common language has always been a barrier to the mutual knowledge and intercourse of the great nations of mankind, all the more that the days when the educated men of all European nations were wont to converse in Latin have long since passed away. To a certain extent the gulf has been bridged for men of science by a newly-invented vocabulary of their own, and a general use of Latin and Greek names for all the objects of their study. In the world of religion it still remains a great obstacle to all attempts to realize a truly catholic and universal Church. The Latin of the Roman Catholic missal, which seems so unintelligible to the mass of the worshippers that a sign language (of ritual) is largely the medium by which they follow the services when not absorbed in the reading of devotional manuals in their own mother tongue, is but a caricature of such a general medium of interpretative forms of worship. It is, therefore, a matter of great interest to study the use of those few words of ancient origin which have taken root in the religions language of so many great Christian nations, and have come to convey, in all the services where they are used, the same or a similar meaning. Of these, perhaps the most familiar are the words ‘Amen’ and ‘Hallelujah.’ These old Heb. phrases were taken, of course, from the Bible, where, save in the case of Luther’s edition and the Septuagint version of the earlier books of the OT, no attempt has been made to replace them by foreign equivalents. They have a deep interest for Christians, not merely as a reminder of their essential unity and their ancient history, and as a recollection of the debt which we owe to a race so often despised, but as a reminiscence of the very words which came from our Lord’s own mouth, in the days when He was sowing the seed of which we are reaping the fruits.

A brief examination of the history of the word ‘Amen’ will be sufficient to prove the meaning which it had, the way in which it acquired this meaning, and the certainty that it was one of the very words which fell from the Master and had for Him a message of rare and unusual significance. The original use of the word (derived from a Heb. root àîï, meaning ‘steadfast,’ and a verb, ‘to prop,’ akin to Heb. àֱîֶç, ‘truth,’ Assyrian temenû, ‘foundation,’ and Eth. amena, ‘trust’ [Arab. aminun = ‘secure’]) was intended to express certainty. In the mouth of Benaiah (1Ki_1:36) and Jeremiah (Jer_28:6) it appears as first word in the sentence, as a strong form of assent to a previous statement. It was not till after the Exile that it assumed its far commoner place as the answer, or almost the refrain in chorus, to the words of a previous speaker, and as such took its natural position at the close of the five divisions of the Psalms. It is uncertain how far this formed part of the people’s response in the ritual of the Temple, but it is certain that it acquired a fixed place in the services of the synagogues, where it still forms a common response of the congregation. This was sometimes altered later, in opposition to the Christian practice, and ‘God Faithful King’ was used instead. The object of this use of ‘Amen’ was, in Massie’s words, ‘to adopt as one’s own what has just been said’ (Hasting's Dictionary of the Bible (5 vols) i. 80), and it thus finds a fitting place in the mouth of the people to whom Nehemiah promulgated his laws (Neh_5:13). To express emphasis, in accordance with Hebrew practice the word was often doubled, as in the solemn oath of Num_5:22 (cf. Neh_8:6). This was further modified by the insertion of ‘and’ in the first three divisions of the Psalter. ‘Amen’ later became the last word of the first speaker, either as simple subscription-as such it stands appended to three of the Psalms (41, 72, 89), and in many NT Epistles, after both doxologies (15 times) and benedictions (6 timed in Revised Version )-or as the last word of a prayer (Revised Version only in Prayer of Manasses; but 2 others in Vulgate, viz. Neh_13:31, Tob_13:18). In two old Manuscripts of Tobit (end), as in some later Manuscripts of the NT, it appears by itself without a doxology. The later Jews were accustomed to use ‘Amen’ frequently in their homes (e.g. after grace before meals, etc.), and laid down precise rules for the ways of enunciating and pronouncing it. These are found in the Talmudic tract Berâkhôth (‘Blessings’), and are intended to guard against irreverence, haste, etc. So great was the superstition which attached to it that many of the later Rabbis treated it almost as a fetish, able to win blessings not only in this life but in the next; and one commentator, Eliezer ben Hyrcanus, went so far as to declare that by its hearty pronunciation in chorus the godless in Israel who lay in the penal fires of Gehenna might one day hope for the opening of their prison gates and a free entrance into the abode of the blessed, though Hogg suggests that this sentiment was extracted from a pun on Isa_26:2 (Elijahu Zutta, xx.; Shab. 119b; Siddur R. Amram, 13b; cf. Yalk. ii. 296 on Isa_26:2).

‘Amen’ would naturally have passed from the synagogues to the churches which took their rise among the synagogue-worshippers, but the Master Himself gave a new emphasis to its value for Christians by the example of His own practice. In this, as in all else, He was no slavish imitator of contemporary Rabbis, He spoke ‘as having authority and not as the scribes’ (Mar_1:22), and in this capacity it is not surprising that He found a new use for the word of emphasis, which neither His predecessors nor His followers have ventured to imitate, though the title applied to Him in Rev_3:14 is founded upon His own chosen practice. In His mouth, by the common evidence of all the Gospels (77 times), the word is used to introduce His own words and clothe them with solemn affirmation. He plainly expressed His dislike for oaths (Mat_5:34), and in Dalman’s view (Words of Jesus, 229)-and no one is better qualified to speak on the subject-He found here the word He needed to give the assurance which usually came from an oath. But in doing this ‘He was really making good the word, not the word Him,’ and it is therefore natural that no other man has ever ventured to follow His custom. That it was His habitual way of speaking is doubly plain from a comparison of all four Gospels, even though St. Luke, who wrote for men unacquainted with Hebrew, has sought where possible to replace the word by a Greek equivalent (ἀëçèῶò, etc.). St. John has always doubled the word, probably for emphasis, since Delitzsch’s explanation from a word àֶîַéðֶà = ‘I say’ is shown by Dalman (p. 227f.) to be wrong and based on a purely Babylonian practice.

The rest of the NT presents examples of all the older uses of the phrase, though the earliest is found only in the Jewish Apocalypse (Rev_7:12; Rev_19:14) which has probably been worked up into the Christian Book of ‘Revelation,’ and in one passage (Rev_22:20) christianized from it. Here it is perhaps a conscious archaic form, brought in to add to the mysterious language of the vision, which may originally, like the Book of Enoch or Noah, have been ascribed to some earlier seer. The language of St. Paul in 1Co_14:16 shows that the synagogue practice of saying ‘Amen’ as a response early became habitual among the worshippers of ‘the Nazarene,’ even if we had not been led to infer this by the growing reluctance of the Jews to emphasize this feature of their service. The use (? Jewish) in Rev_5:14 corresponds with this custom (cf. Psa_106:48). It is plain that the complete absence of the word in Acts-itself a link with the Third Gospel-must be ascribed to the peculiar style and attitude of the author, and not at all to the actual practice in the churches.

Twice in the NT (2Co_1:20, Rev_3:14) the word ‘Amen’ is used as a noun implying the ‘Faithful God,’ but it is hard to tell whether this is to be understood as a play on words based on Isa_65:16 (àֱîֶú, ‘truth,’ being read as àָîֶï, ‘Amen’), or whether it is connected with the manner in which the Master employed the phrase as guaranteed by His own authority and absolute ‘faithfulness.’

The Church of the fathers made much of the word ‘Amen’ in all its OT uses, and introduced it into their services, not only after blessings, hymns, etc. (cf. Euseb. iv. 15, vii. 9), but after the reception of the Sacrament-a custom to which Justin refers in his [the earliest] account of the manner in which this service was conducted (Apol. i. 64, 66). This is confirmed by Ambrose. The practice is still in vogue in the Eastern Church, was adopted in the Scottish Liturgy of 1637, and dropped only in the 6th cent. by the Western Church. Sometimes the ‘Amen’ was even repeated after the lesson had been read. From the Jews and the Christians it passed over to the Muhammadan ritual, where it is still repeated after the first two sûras of the Qur’ân, even though its meaning is wholly misunderstood by the Muslim imâms who guess at various impossible explanations. In the Book of Common Prayer it appears in various forms-as the end of the priest’s prayer, as the response of the people, or as the unanimous assent of both priest and people. Curiously enough, among Presbyterians it is said by the minister only. One relic of the Gospel language is retained in the Bishops’ Oath of Supremacy, which commences almost in the style of one of Christ’s famous declarations. In legal terminology the term has been introduced to strengthen affirmation, and formed an item in the ‘style’ of proclamations until the 16th century. Hogg notes that in English, as in Syriac, it has come to mean ‘consent,’ and has been enabled thus to acquire the sense of ‘the very last,’ even though it commenced its career as first word in the sentence.

The foregoing remarks may enable the reader to judge of the strange changes to which the meaning of this word has been subjected, the important part it has played, and the historical interest which attaches to its every echo.

Literature.-The articles in Hasting's Dictionary of the Bible (5 vols) , Dict. of Christ and the Gospels , Encyclopaedia Biblica , and Jewish Encyclopedia ; G. Dalman, The Words of Jesus, Eng. translation , Edinb. 1902, p. 226ff.; H. W. Hogg, in Jewish Quarterly Review ix. [1896] 1-23; Oxf. Heb. Lex., s.v. àîï; Thayer Grimm’s Gr.-Eng. Lexicon of the NT, tr. Thayer , s.v. ἀìÞí; articles in Expository Times viii. [1897] 190, by Nestle, and xiii. [1902] 563, by Jannaris.

L. St. Alban Wells.

Rev 3:14 (a) This word is a word of finality. Its actual meaning is "so be it." CHRIST takes this name to indicate the permanence of His decisions, the certainty of His program, and the finality of His judgment. The angels sang a song which begins and ends with this word. It is found in Rev 7:12. There are seven glories in this prayer or song, and these describe the perfections of GOD. Nothing can be added to this revelation, and certainly nothing may be taken from it.

‘Amen’ is a transliteration from a Hebrew word meaning ‘surely, truly, certainly, trustworthily’. It was used as a formula expressing agreement to a variety of statements or announcements; for example, an oath (Num 5:19-22), a blessing or curse from God (Deu 27:11-26; Jer 11:5), an announcement (1Ki 1:36), a prophecy (Jer 28:6), an expression of praise (1Ch 16:36; Psa 41:13; Jud 1:24-25), a prayer (1Co 14:16), a statement (Rev 1:7) or a promise (Rev 22:20).

Since the promises of God find their true fulfilment (their ‘yes’, their ‘amen’) in Jesus Christ, he may be called ‘the Amen’. He is what the Old Testament calls ‘the God of truth’, ‘the God of the amen’ (2Co 1:20; Rev 3:14; cf. Isa 65:16). Christians acknowledge this by adding their own ‘amen’ (2Co 1:20). Jesus, by introducing many of his statements with ‘Amen’ (i.e. ‘Verily’ or ‘Truly’), guaranteed that those statements were true, certain, reliable and authoritative (Mat 8:10; Mat 10:15; Mat 10:23; Mat 10:42; Mat 11:11; Mat 13:17; etc.). (See also TRUTH.)

A Hebrew word meaning “That’s

right,” “True,” or “Yes.” It is used to

express strong agreement with what has

been said.