The Hebrew bohu (H922) denotes emptiness, void, or waste. It appears almost exclusively paired with tohu (H8414) — together forming the phrase tohu wabohu, describing primordial chaos before creation took shape.
The pairing of tohu wabohu in Genesis 1:2 became a foundational image of the pre-creation state. Theologically, creation ex nihilo is the reversal of bohu: God speaks order and life into emptiness. Jeremiah uses the same pairing (4:23) to describe covenant-breaking Israel as a return to chaos. Bohu underscores that meaning and life come only from God's active, creative presence.