Hebrew word · H3243

יָנַק

yonek

to suck

Hiphil (causative) participle of ינק 'to suck': 'one who causes to suck', a wet-nurse. It can mean a mother nursing her own child (Gen 21:7; 1 Sam 1:23), but as a noun it usually means a hired or household wet-nurse.

Appears 33 times in 30 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

1) to suckle, nurse, suck

1a) (Qal)

1a1) to suck

1a2) suckling, babe (subst)

1b) (Hiphil)

1b1) to give suck to, nurse

1b2) nursing, nursing woman, nurse (participle)

Abridged from Brown, Driver and Briggs, A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament (1906), via STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0).

In depth

From the study of Isaiah 49:23

Range of meaning

Hiphil (causative) participle of ינק 'to suck': 'one who causes to suck', a wet-nurse. It can mean a mother nursing her own child (Gen 21:7; 1 Sam 1:23), but as a noun it usually means a hired or household wet-nurse.

Against the English

BSB/WEB/NIV/KJV 'nursing mothers'; NASB 'nurses'. 'Nursing mothers' can wrongly suggest the women are the children's mothers. The point is that they nurse children who are not theirs.

Used elsewhere in the period

Gen 24:59 and 35:8: Rebekah's meineqet Deborah, a lifelong household servant. Exod 2:7: Moses' sister offers to find 'a nursing woman from the Hebrews'. 2 Kgs 11:2: Joash is hidden 'with his nurse'. Across the ancient Near East, wet-nursing contracts (e.g. Old Babylonian and Neo-Babylonian contracts) show it was paid service work, often done by slaves or lower-status women.

From the study of Isaiah 60:16

Range of meaning

In the basic form: to suck, nurse, of an infant at the breast (Job 3:12; Song 8:1), and also of young animals. In the causative form (heniq) it means to give suck, to nurse, and its participle meneqet means 'wet nurse' (Gen 24:59; Exod 2:7; 2 Kgs 11:2). It is used figuratively for drawing nourishment from a rich source: 'honey from the rock' (Deut 32:13), 'the abundance of the seas' (Deut 33:19).

Against the English

KJV, NASB and ESV keep 'suck' or 'nurse' both times. BSB and WEB say 'drink' first and 'nurse' second, which is smoother English but loses the repeated verb that frames the line and plays down the plainly infant image.

Used elsewhere in the period

Deuteronomy 33:19 uses the same verb for tribes who 'suck the abundance of the seas' (trade wealth). In Ugarit (13th century BC), the Kirta epic says the royal heir will 'suck the milk of Athirat' and drain the breast of the goddess Anat, with the same pair of verb and 'milk' plus the Ugaritic word for 'breast'. Assyrian texts likewise picture King Ashurbanipal nursed by a goddess. Being suckled by divine or royal figures was a known way to describe a king's privileged status.

From the study of 1 Kings 3:21

Range of meaning

Yanaq is 'to suck'. Its causative form means 'to cause to suck', i.e. to nurse or suckle a baby (Gen 21:7; Exod 2:7, 9; 1 Sam 1:23).

Against the English

KJV 'give my child suck' is accurate but archaic. 'Nurse' is right, though in modern English it can suggest caring for the sick.

Used elsewhere in the period

Used of Sarah (Gen 21:7), Moses' mother as wet-nurse (Exod 2:7–9) and Hannah (1 Sam 1:23). In the ancient Near East nursing usually lasted two to three years (cf. 2 Macc 7:27).

Where it appears

Genesis · 4

  1. Genesis 21:7 הֵינִ֥יקָה she has suckled

    She added, “Who would have told Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? Yet I have borne him a son in his old age.”

  2. Genesis 24:59 מֵנִקְתָּ֑הּ suckling-nurse her

    So they sent their sister Rebekah on her way, along with her nurse and Abraham’s servant and his men.

  3. Genesis 32:15 מֵינִיק֛וֹת suckling

    30 milk camels with their young, 40 cows, 10 bulls, 20 female donkeys, and 10 male donkeys.

  4. Genesis 35:8 מֵינֶ֣קֶת [the] suckling-nurse of

    Now Deborah, Rebekah’s nurse, died and was buried under the oak below Bethel. So Jacob named it Allon-bacuth.

Exodus · 4

  1. Exodus 2:7 מֵינֶ֔קֶת וְתֵינִ֥ק a suckling-nurse, so she may suckle

    Then his sister said to Pharaoh’s daughter, “Shall I go and call one of the Hebrew women to nurse the child for you?”

  2. Exodus 2:9 וְהֵינִקִ֣הוּ וַתְּנִיקֵֽהוּ׃ and suckle him, and she suckled him

    Pharaoh’s daughter said to her, “Take this child and nurse him for me, and I will pay your wages.” So the woman took the boy and nursed him.

Numbers · 1

  1. Numbers 11:12 הַיֹּנֵ֔ק the suckling-child

    Did I conceive all these people? Did I give them birth, so that You should tell me, ‘Carry them in your bosom, as a nurse carries an infant,’ to the land that You swore to give their fathers?

Deuteronomy · 3

  1. Deuteronomy 32:13 וַיֵּנִקֵ֤הֽוּ and he suckled him

    He made him ride on the heights of the land and fed him the produce of the field. He nourished him with honey from the rock and oil from the flinty crag,

    Here: Literally 'he made him suck', the verb used for a mother or wet-nurse giving the breast (Exod 2:7, 9). God is pictured as nursing Israel, which looks ahead to v.18, where God is the one who 'gave you birth'.

  2. Deuteronomy 32:25 יוֹנֵ֖ק a suckling-child

    Outside, the sword will take their children, and inside, terror will strike the young man and the young woman, the infant and the gray-haired man.

  3. Deuteronomy 33:19 יִינָ֔קוּ they will suck

    They will call the peoples to a mountain; there they will offer sacrifices of righteousness. For they will feast on the abundance of the seas and the hidden treasures of the sand.”

1 Samuel · 3

  1. 1 Samuel 1:23 וַתֵּ֣ינֶק and she suckled

    “Do what you think is best,” her husband Elkanah replied, “and stay here until you have weaned him. Only may the LORD confirm His word.” So Hannah stayed and nursed her son until she had weaned him.

  2. 1 Samuel 15:3 יוֹנֵ֔ק a suckling-child

    Now go and attack the Amalekites and devote to destruction all that belongs to them. Do not spare them, but put to death men and women, children and infants, oxen and sheep, camels and donkeys.’”

    Here: Literally 'one who sucks': a child still at the breast. In that world children were often nursed until about age three.

  3. 1 Samuel 22:19 יוֹנֵ֑ק suckling-child

    He also put to the sword Nob, the city of the priests, with its men and women, children and infants, oxen, donkeys, and sheep.

1 Kings · 1

  1. 1 Kings 3:21 לְהֵינִ֥יק to suckle

    The next morning, when I got up to nurse my son, I discovered he was dead. But when I examined him, I realized that he was not the son I had borne.”

    Here: The causative form of 'suck': 'to make suck', i.e. to breastfeed. It shows her purpose in getting up and stresses the close, physical bond between a nursing mother and her baby, which is the ground of her claim.

2 Kings · 1

  1. 2 Kings 11:2 מֵינִקְתּ֖וֹ suckling-nurse his

    But Jehosheba daughter of King Joram, the sister of Ahaziah, took Joash son of Ahaziah and stole him away from among the sons of the king who were being murdered. She put him and his nurse in a bedroom to hide him from Athaliah, and he was not killed.

2 Chronicles · 1

  1. 2 Chronicles 22:11 מֵֽינִקְתּ֖וֹ suckling-nurse his

    But Jehoshabeath daughter of King Jehoram took Joash son of Ahaziah and stole him away from among the sons of the king who were being murdered, and she put him and his nurse in a bedroom. Because Jehoshabeath, the daughter of King Jehoram and the wife of Jehoiada the priest, was Ahaziah’s sister, she hid Joash from Athaliah so that she could not kill him.

Job · 2

  1. Job 3:12 אִינָֽק׃ I will suckle

    Why were there knees to receive me, and breasts that I should be nursed?

  2. Job 20:16 יִינָ֑ק he sucks

    He will suck the poison of cobras; the fangs of a viper will kill him.

Psalms · 1

  1. Psalm 8:2 וְֽיֹנְקִים֮ and suckling-children

    From the mouths of children and infants You have ordained praise on account of Your adversaries, to silence the enemy and avenger.

    Here: Literally "those who suck," a participle of the verb to nurse at the breast. Children in Israel nursed until about age three, so these can be little ones who already make sounds or a few words but still depend wholly on their mothers.

Song of Songs · 1

  1. Song of Songs 8:1 יוֹנֵ֖ק [the] suckling-child of

    O that you were to me like a brother who nursed at my mother’s breasts! If I found you outdoors, I would kiss you, and no one would despise me.

Isaiah · 6

  1. Isaiah 11:8 יוֹנֵ֖ק a suckling-child

    The infant will play by the cobra’s den, and the toddler will reach into the viper’s nest.

    Here: Literally 'one who sucks': a baby still at the breast. It is the youngest and most helpless person in the household, chosen on purpose as the least able to protect itself.

  2. Isaiah 49:23 מֵינִ֣יקֹתַ֔יִךְ suckling-nurses your

    Kings will be your foster fathers, and their queens your nursing mothers. They will bow to you facedown and lick the dust at your feet. Then you will know that I am the LORD; those who hope in Me will never be put to shame.”

    Here: Literally 'women who give suck'. These are wet-nurses who breastfeed someone else's baby. That was normally a servant's job, and here royal women take it on for Zion's children.

  3. Isaiah 60:16 וְיָנַקְתְּ֙ תִּינָ֑קִי and you will suck, you will suck

    You will drink the milk of nations and nurse at the breasts of royalty; you will know that I, the LORD, am your Savior and your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.

    Here: 'And you will suck', the word for an infant feeding at the breast. The 'you' is feminine singular: Zion, pictured as a woman (60:1, 14–15), is now pictured as a nursing baby. The verb form carries on the future promises of the preceding verses.

  4. Isaiah 66:11 תִּֽינְקוּ֙ you may suck

    so that you may nurse and be satisfied at her comforting breasts; you may drink deeply and delight yourselves in her glorious abundance.

    Here: The ordinary verb for an infant feeding at the breast. The "you" is masculine plural and refers to the whole community, men included, all pictured as nursing babies.

  5. Isaiah 66:12 וִֽינַקְתֶּ֑ם and you will suck

    For this is what the LORD says: “I will extend peace to her like a river, and the wealth of nations like a flowing stream; you will nurse and be carried on her arm, and bounced upon her knees.

    Here: 'And you (plural) will nurse.' The returned and restored people are pictured as infants at their mother's breast, continuing the image from verse 11.

Jeremiah · 1

  1. Jeremiah 44:7 וְיוֹנֵ֖ק and suckling-child

    So now, this is what the LORD God of Hosts, the God of Israel, says: Why are you doing such great harm to yourselves by cutting off from Judah man and woman, child and infant, leaving yourselves without a remnant?

    Here: Literally 'one who sucks', a baby still at the breast. Naming the youngest shows that the community's future is at stake, not only its present.

Lamentations · 3

  1. Lamentations 2:11 וְיוֹנֵ֔ק and suckling-child

    My eyes fail from weeping; I am churning within. My heart is poured out in grief over the destruction of the daughter of my people, because children and infants faint in the streets of the city.

    Here: "And suckling": a baby still at the breast. Paired with ʿolel, it is a set phrase covering the youngest and most helpless members of the community.

  2. Lamentations 4:3 הֵינִ֖יקוּ they suckle

    Even jackals offer their breasts to nurse their young, but the daughter of my people has become cruel, like an ostrich in the wilderness.

    Here: The causative form of 'suck': 'they make suck', i.e. they nurse. The same root returns in v.4 as yoneq, 'the nursing infant', whose tongue sticks to the roof of its mouth. The wordplay sets the jackal pups that are fed beside the human babies that are not.

  3. Lamentations 4:4 יוֹנֵ֛ק a suckling-child

    The nursing infant’s tongue clings in thirst to the roof of his mouth. Little children beg for bread, but no one gives them any.

Joel · 1

  1. Joel 2:16 וְיֹנְקֵ֖י and suckling-children of

    Gather the people, sanctify the congregation, assemble the aged, gather the children, even those nursing at the breast. Let the bridegroom leave his room, and the bride her chamber.

    Here: 'And the sucklers of', meaning babies still nursing. The 'and' works as 'even': gather even the babies at the breast.

Word data: STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0), main text only.