Hebrew word · H5344

נָקַב

nikevu

to pierce

To bore, pierce or make a hole (2 Kgs 18:21, a reed that pierces the hand; Job 40:24, 26). A second sense is to designate, name or specify, and also to curse (Lev 24:11, 16), the root of later debate over "pronouncing" the Name.

Appears 19 times in 18 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

1) to pierce, perforate, bore, appoint

1a) (Qal)

1a1) to pierce, bore

1a2) to prick off, designate

1b) (Niphal) to be pricked off, be designated, be specified

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 Haggai 1:6

Range of meaning

To bore, pierce or make a hole (2 Kgs 18:21, a reed that pierces the hand; Job 40:24, 26). A second sense is to designate, name or specify, and also to curse (Lev 24:11, 16), the root of later debate over "pronouncing" the Name.

Against the English

"With holes" (KJV, WEB, ESV, NIV) and "pierced through" (BSB, YLT) are equivalent.

Used elsewhere in the period

2 Kgs 12:9 [Heb 12:10]: the priest Jehoiada "bored a hole" (wayyiqqov) in the lid of a chest to collect silver for repairing the temple. LXX τετρυπημένον, "bored through".

From the study of Isaiah 62:2

Range of meaning

Lexicons such as BDB and HALOT list two groups of meaning, possibly from two separate roots. (1) To pierce or bore: a reed piercing the hand (2 Kgs 18:21 = Isa 36:6), a hole bored in a chest lid (2 Kgs 12:9 [Eng.]), a bag with holes (Hag 1:6). (2) To mark out, specify or designate by name: "name your wages" (Gen 30:28), men "designated by names" (Num 1:17; 1 Chr 12:31; 16:41; Ezra 8:20), "the notable men" (Amos 6:1). In Leviticus 24:11, 16 it is used of someone who "pronounces/blasphemes" the Name.

Against the English

BSB/NIV "bestow" and ESV "give" are smooth but lose the precision. KJV/WEB "name" is serviceable. NASB "designate" and YLT "define" come closest to the sense of exact specification.

Used elsewhere in the period

Numbers 1:17 and Ezra 8:20 use it for persons officially singled out by name. Leviticus 24 shows it could mean uttering a name distinctly. Later Jewish tradition read that passage as speaking the divine Name aloud.

From the study of Numbers 1:17

Range of meaning

The basic physical sense is 'to pierce, bore through' (2 Kgs 18:21, a reed that pierces the hand; 2 Kgs 12:9 [10 Heb], boring a hole in a chest lid; Job 40:24, 26). A second group of uses means 'to specify, designate, name': Gen 30:28, 'name your wages'; Isa 62:2, 'a new name that the mouth of the LORD will specify'. The passive form used here, 'be designated (by name)', appears in Num 1:17; 1 Chr 12:31 [32 Heb]; 16:41; 2 Chr 28:15; 31:19; Ezra 8:20. The related word nəqūvîm in Amos 6:1 means 'the notable, distinguished men'. Lexicons differ on whether 'pierce' and 'designate' are one root with a developed meaning (marking something out precisely) or two roots that look the same. HALOT lists them separately. BDB treats them more as one root.

Against the English

'Designated' (BSB, NASB) and 'defined' (YLT) keep the official, deliberate sense. 'Mentioned' (WEB) and 'expressed' (KJV) can make it sound like the men were simply named in the text, when the verb says they had been formally picked out for a job.

How it drifted

KJV 'expressed' meant 'stated explicitly, specified' in 1611. That sense survives in legal English ('express terms') but has mostly faded from everyday use.

Used elsewhere in the period

The Septuagint (the ancient Greek translation) renders the phrase with anaklēthentas ex onomatos, 'called up by name', so it read the verb as summons or appointment. Chronicles and Ezra use the same passive phrase as a set formula for men enrolled by name for a specific task: Levitical musicians, men assigned to distribute supplies, temple servants.

Where it appears

Genesis · 1

  1. Genesis 30:28 נָקְבָ֧ה designate !

    And he added, “Name your wages, and I will pay them.”

Leviticus · 3

  1. Leviticus 24:11 וַ֠יִּקֹּב and he slandered

    The son of the Israelite woman blasphemed the Name with a curse. So they brought him to Moses. (His mother’s name was Shelomith daughter of Dibri, of the tribe of Dan.)

    Here: The verse opens with the offense. The root's basic sense is to bore or pierce, and from that come both 'to specify by name' and 'to curse.' Here he either 'pierced' the Name with abuse or 'pronounced' it outright. Either way the speech is aimed at God's Name itself.

  2. Leviticus 24:16 וְנֹקֵ֤ב בְּנָקְבוֹ־ and [one who] slanders, when slanders he

    Whoever blasphemes the name of the LORD must surely be put to death; the whole assembly must surely stone him, whether he is a foreign resident or native; if he blasphemes the Name, he must be put to death.

    Here: A participle used as a noun, 'the one who does this', with 'and' linking it to verse 15. In this passage it means cursing God out loud, aiming the divine name at him as a weapon. It does not mean careless speech. The root also means 'to pierce' and 'to name exactly', and translators have argued for centuries over which sense applies here.

Numbers · 1

  1. Numbers 1:17 נִקְּב֖וּ they had been designated

    So Moses and Aaron took these men who had been designated by name,

    Here: A passive form of naqav. The basic root sense is 'to pierce, bore', and from it comes 'to mark out, specify, designate'. These men were not volunteers or self-appointed. They had been individually singled out, and in context the one who did this is God, through the list in vv. 5–15.

2 Kings · 2

  1. 2 Kings 12:9 וַיִּקֹּ֥ב and he bored

    Then Jehoiada the priest took a chest, bored a hole in its lid, and set it beside the altar on the right side as one enters the house of the LORD. There the priests who guarded the threshold put all the money brought into the house of the LORD.

  2. 2 Kings 18:21 וּנְקָבָ֑הּ and it will pierce it

    Look now, you are trusting in Egypt, that splintered reed of a staff that will pierce the hand of anyone who leans on it. Such is Pharaoh king of Egypt to all who trust in him.

1 Chronicles · 2

  1. 1 Chronicles 12:31 נִקְּבוּ֙ they had been designated

    From the half-tribe of Manasseh: 18,000 designated by name to come and make David king.

  2. 1 Chronicles 16:41 נִקְּב֖וּ they had been designated

    With them were Heman, Jeduthun, and the rest of those chosen and designated by name to give thanks to the LORD, for “His loving devotion endures forever.”

    Here: The root's basic picture is to pierce or mark out. In this passive form with "by names" it means "were specified by name" and entered on a roster. The same phrasing is used for men enrolled on official lists (Num 1:17; Ezra 8:20).

2 Chronicles · 2

  1. 2 Chronicles 28:15 נִקְּב֨וּ they had been designated

    Then the men who were designated by name arose, took charge of the captives, and provided from the plunder clothing for the naked. They clothed them, gave them sandals and food and drink, anointed their wounds, and put all the feeble on donkeys. So they brought them to Jericho, the City of Palms, to their brothers. Then they returned to Samaria.

    Here: The root means 'pierce' or 'mark off', but in this passive form it means 'specified' or 'named'. These men were formally picked out, so the care that follows is an official act, not a private kindness.

  2. 2 Chronicles 31:19 נִקְּב֖וּ they had been designated

    As for the priests, the descendants of Aaron, who lived on the farmlands around each of their cities or in any other city, men were designated by name to distribute a portion to every male among the priests and to every Levite listed by the genealogies.

Ezra · 1

  1. Ezra 8:20 נִקְּב֥וּ they had been designated

    They also brought 220 of the temple servants, all designated by name. David and the officials had appointed them to assist the Levites.

Job · 2

  1. Job 40:24 יִנְקָב־ will anyone pierce?

    Can anyone capture him as he looks on, or pierce his nose with a snare?

  2. Job 41:2 תִּקּ֥וֹב will you pierce?

    Can you put a cord through his nose or pierce his jaw with a hook?

Isaiah · 2

  1. Isaiah 36:6 וּנְקָבָ֑הּ and it will pierce it

    Look now, you are trusting in Egypt, that splintered reed of a staff that will pierce the hand of anyone who leans on it. Such is Pharaoh king of Egypt to all who trust in him.

    Here: 'And bores through it'. The verb is used for boring a hole. The 'help' does not just fail; it wounds the one who relied on it.

  2. Isaiah 62:2 יִקֳּבֶֽנּוּ׃ it will designate it

    Nations will see your righteousness, and all kings your glory. You will be called by a new name that the mouth of the LORD will bestow.

    Here: "Will designate it". The verb means to specify or mark out precisely. The name is chosen and spoken out exactly by YHWH himself. It is not a vague honour.

Amos · 1

  1. Amos 6:1 נְקֻבֵי֙ [the] distinguished [people] of

    Woe to those at ease in Zion and those secure on Mount Samaria, the distinguished ones of the foremost nation, to whom the house of Israel comes.

    Here: 'The marked-out ones of': men singled out and designated by name, the recognised notables. It is the language of a society's 'names', its VIPs.

Habakkuk · 1

  1. Habakkuk 3:14 נָקַ֤בְתָּ you pierced

    With his own spear You pierced his head, when his warriors stormed out to scatter us, gloating as though ready to secretly devour the weak.

Haggai · 1

  1. Haggai 1:6 נָקֽוּב׃ פ pierced

    You have planted much but harvested little. You eat but never have enough. You drink but never have your fill. You put on clothes but never get warm. You earn wages to put into a bag pierced through.”

    Here: "Pierced": a passive form meaning "having been bored through". The purse has a hole in it, so what goes in at the top runs out at the bottom. The closing picture sums up the whole verse: income that never stays.

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