Hebrew word · H5298

נֶ֫פֶג

venefeg

Nepheg

The meaning is unknown. Older lexicons (Gesenius, BDB) tentatively give 'sprout, shoot', but they connect it to no secure Hebrew root. Modern lexicons treat the meaning as uncertain.

Appears 4 times in 4 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

A man of the tribe of Judah living at the time of United Monarchy, first mentioned at 2Sa.5.15;

son of: David (H1732);

brother of: Amnon (H0550), Chileab (H3609), Absalom (H0053), Adonijah (H0138), Shephatiah (H8203), Ithream (H3507), Shammua (H8051H), Shobab (H7727), Nathan (H5416), Solomon (H8010), Ibhar (H2984), Elishua (H0474), Japhia (H3309I), Elishama (H0476H), Eliada (H0450), Eliphelet (H0467), Tamar (H8559H), Elpelet (H0467I), Nogah (H5052) and Jerimoth (H3406N)

§ Nepheg = "sprout"

1) one of sons of Izhar and grandson of Kohath of the tribe of Levi in the time of the exodus

2) one of the sons of David born to him at Jerusalem

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 2 Samuel 5:15

Range of meaning

The meaning is unknown. Older lexicons (Gesenius, BDB) tentatively give 'sprout, shoot', but they connect it to no secure Hebrew root. Modern lexicons treat the meaning as uncertain.

Against the English

All versions transliterate it. No English rendering adds or loses meaning, because the meaning itself is not recoverable with confidence.

Used elsewhere in the period

Exod 6:21 gives the same name to a Levite, son of Izhar and brother of Korah. Otherwise it appears only for David's son here and in 1 Chr 3:7 and 14:6.

Where it appears

Exodus · 1

  1. Exodus 6:21 וָנֶ֖פֶג and Nepheg

    The sons of Izhar were Korah, Nepheg, and Zichri.

2 Samuel · 1

  1. 2 Samuel 5:15 וְנֶ֥פֶג and Nepheg

    Ibhar, Elishua, Nepheg, Japhia,

    Here: 'And Nepheg'. The meaning is uncertain; older lexicons suggest 'sprout, shoot'. The same name belongs to a Levite in Exodus 6:21, the brother of Korah. Here it is the son of David known only from these lists.

1 Chronicles · 2

  1. 1 Chronicles 3:7 וְנֶ֖פֶג and Nepheg

    Nogah, Nepheg, Japhia,

  2. 1 Chronicles 14:6 וְנֶ֖פֶג and Nepheg

    Nogah, Nepheg, Japhia,

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