Hebrew word · H7390

רַךְ

rakh

tender

rak: soft, tender, delicate; of young children or animals (Gen 33:13), of a soft answer (Prov 15:1), of a timid heart (Deut 20:8), of the soft living of the privileged. ʿānōg: delicate, luxurious, pampered, from the root ʿ-n-g, 'to take delight, live in luxury' (compare ʿōneg, 'delight', Isa 58:13).

Appears 16 times in 16 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

1) tender, soft, delicate, weak

1a) tender, delicate (of flesh)

1b) weak of heart, timid

1c) soft (of words)

1c1) gentle words (subst)

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 47:1

Range of meaning

rak: soft, tender, delicate; of young children or animals (Gen 33:13), of a soft answer (Prov 15:1), of a timid heart (Deut 20:8), of the soft living of the privileged. ʿānōg: delicate, luxurious, pampered, from the root ʿ-n-g, 'to take delight, live in luxury' (compare ʿōneg, 'delight', Isa 58:13).

Against the English

Modern 'tender' tends to mean caring or affectionate, and 'delicate' tends to mean fragile. The Hebrew pair describes a woman of leisure softened by luxury: refined, sheltered, used to comfort, never needing to work or walk on bare ground.

How it drifted

In English, 'tender' moved toward emotional warmth and 'delicate' toward breakability. Neither carries the Hebrew sense of privileged luxury.

Used elsewhere in the period

The exact pair appears in Deut 28:56 in the covenant curses: 'the most soft and pampered woman among you, who would not venture to set the sole of her foot on the ground because of her pampering and softness', a woman whom siege will drive to unthinkable acts. Deut 28:54 uses rak of a refined man. The Greek translation of Deuteronomy uses ἁπαλή and τρυφερά (soft, luxurious), and the Vulgate here has mollis et tenera.

From the study of Proverbs 15:1

Range of meaning

Soft, tender, delicate, yielding. Used of young or tender things (a tender calf, Gen 18:7; children too young for a hard march, Gen 33:13). Used of soft speech ("will he speak soft words to you?" Job 41:3 [Heb 40:27]). Used of a soft or fearful heart ("faint-hearted," Deut 20:8). Used of weakness (David: "I am weak, though anointed king," 2 Sam 3:39). Its basic picture is texture: soft as against hard.

Against the English

"Gentle" (BSB, WEB, NIV, NASB) moves the word toward a kindly manner. "Soft" (KJV, ESV, YLT) keeps the physical picture. Neither is wrong. "Soft" better keeps the contrast with hardness, the thing the reply refuses to give.

Used elsewhere in the period

Prov 25:15 is the key companion saying: "With patience a ruler is persuaded, and a soft (rakh) tongue breaks a bone." Softness in Proverbs is effective, not feeble. The Septuagint renders the idea here with hypopiptousa, "falling under, yielding, deferential." The Vulgate has mollis, "soft, pliant."

From the study of Proverbs 4:3

Range of meaning

Soft, tender, delicate; young and immature; weak or vulnerable; in some uses pampered or gently raised. Applied to young children and animals, to soft words (Prov 15:1, 'a soft answer'; 25:15), and to a fearful or faint heart (Deut 20:8).

Against the English

Every major English version says 'tender.' That is accurate if 'tender' is taken in its older sense, as in 'of tender years': young, delicate, unformed. A modern reader may instead hear 'affectionate' or 'gentle-natured,' which is not the point.

How it drifted

In older English 'tender' mainly meant young, soft or fragile. Today the word leans toward emotional warmth (a tender moment, tender love), so the reader's attention shifts from the child's age to his feelings.

Used elsewhere in the period

Jacob says 'the children are tender (rakkim)' and cannot be driven hard (Gen 33:13). Abraham picks a calf 'tender and good' (Gen 18:7). Deuteronomy 28:54–56 speaks of 'the tender and delicate' man and woman, people raised in comfort. Most strikingly, David twice calls Solomon 'young and tender' (na'ar varakh, 1 Chr 22:5; 29:1), and Rehoboam is 'young and tender of heart' (2 Chr 13:7). The Septuagint here renders it hypēkoos, 'obedient,' which is an interpretation and not a translation.

Where it appears

Genesis · 3

  1. Genesis 18:7 רַ֤ךְ tender

    Meanwhile, Abraham ran to the herd, selected a tender and choice calf, and gave it to a servant, who hurried to prepare it.

  2. Genesis 29:17 רַכּ֑וֹת [were] weak

    Leah had weak eyes, but Rachel was shapely and beautiful.

  3. Genesis 33:13 רַכִּ֔ים [are] weak

    But Jacob replied, “My lord knows that the children are frail, and I must care for sheep and cattle that are nursing their young. If they are driven hard for even a day, all the animals will die.

Deuteronomy · 3

  1. Deuteronomy 20:8 וְרַ֣ךְ and [the] weak of

    Then the officers shall speak further to the army, saying, “Is any man afraid or fainthearted? Let him return home, so that the hearts of his brothers will not melt like his own.”

    Here: 'And soft.' The word is used for young calves, gentle words and pampered people. Of the heart, it means lacking firmness and resolve.

  2. Deuteronomy 28:54 הָרַ֣ךְ <the> gentle

    The most gentle and refined man among you will begrudge his brother, the wife he embraces, and the rest of his children who have survived,

  3. Deuteronomy 28:56 הָרַכָּ֨ה the gentle [woman]

    The most gentle and refined woman among you, so gentle and refined she would not venture to set the sole of her foot on the ground, will begrudge the husband she embraces and her son and daughter

2 Samuel · 1

  1. 2 Samuel 3:39 רַךְ֙ [am] weak

    And I am weak this day, though anointed as king, and these men, the sons of Zeruiah, are too fierce for me. May the LORD repay the evildoer according to his evil!”

    Here: 'Soft' or 'tender', the opposite of 'hard' later in the verse. It can mean weak, gentle, or young and inexperienced. Here it means at least that David can't control his men, and probably also that he is milder than they are.

1 Chronicles · 2

  1. 1 Chronicles 22:5 וָרָךְ֒ and weak

    And David said, “My son Solomon is young and inexperienced, and the house to be built for the LORD must be exceedingly magnificent—famous and glorious throughout all lands. Therefore I must make preparations for it.” So David made lavish preparations before his death.

  2. 1 Chronicles 29:1 וָרָ֑ךְ and weak

    Then King David said to the whole assembly, “My son Solomon, the one whom God has chosen, is young and inexperienced. The task is great because this palace is not for man, but for the LORD God.

    Here: 'Soft' in the sense of not yet hardened: inexperienced and vulnerable. It is not a word for gentleness of character.

2 Chronicles · 1

  1. 2 Chronicles 13:7 וְרַךְ־ and weak of

    Then worthless and wicked men gathered around him to resist Rehoboam son of Solomon when he was young, inexperienced, and unable to resist them.

    Here: "And soft (of)." Combined with "heart," it describes someone timid or faint-hearted who lacks nerve. It does not mean compassionate.

Job · 1

  1. Job 41:3 רַכּֽוֹת׃ soft [words]

    Will he beg you for mercy or speak to you softly?

Proverbs · 3

  1. Proverbs 4:3 רַ֥ךְ tender

    When I was a son to my father, tender and the only child of my mother,

    Here: Soft and young: a small child, not yet hardened by life, easy to shape and easy to hurt. It describes his age and vulnerability. It does not mean he was gentle by temperament.

  2. Proverbs 15:1 רַּ֭ךְ soft

    A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.

    Here: Soft as opposed to hard: pliable and yielding. It is used of a tender calf or a young child. The reply does not push back against the rage with matching hardness.

  3. Proverbs 25:15 רַ֝כָּ֗ה soft

    Through patience a ruler can be persuaded, and a gentle tongue can break a bone.

    Here: 'Soft' in the physical sense too: the word describes a tender calf (Gen 18:7) and young children (Gen 33:13). The same word gives the 'soft answer' of Proverbs 15:1. The softest thing is about to break the hardest.

Isaiah · 1

  1. Isaiah 47:1 רַכָּ֖ה tender

    “Go down and sit in the dust, O Virgin Daughter of Babylon. Sit on the ground without a throne, O Daughter of the Chaldeans! For you will no longer be called tender or delicate.

    Here: 'Soft.' This is the softness of someone who has never done hard labour: sheltered, refined, pampered. It is not 'tender' in the modern sense of loving.

Ezekiel · 1

  1. Ezekiel 17:22 רַ֣ךְ a tender [shoot]

    This is what the Lord GOD says: ‘I will take a shoot from the lofty top of the cedar, and I will set it out. I will pluck a tender sprig from its topmost shoots, and I will plant it on a high and lofty mountain.

    Here: Placed first in its clause for emphasis: 'a tender one'. It means young and fragile, a word also used of young children and of untested young kings.

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