Hebrew word · H7577

רְתֻקָה

uretukot

chain

Found only in this verse. It is linked to a root meaning 'to bind, chain' (Ezek 7:23 rattoq, 'chain') and to rattiqot, the gold chains Solomon hung across the front of the inner sanctuary (1 Kgs 6:21). The likely meaning is chains or linked fittings, but the exact item is uncertain.

Appears once in the Hebrew Old Testament. · Updated October 31, 2026

What it means

chain

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 40:19

Range of meaning: Found only in this verse. It is linked to a root meaning 'to bind, chain' (Ezek 7:23 rattoq, 'chain') and to rattiqot, the gold chains Solomon hung across the front of the inner sanctuary (1 Kgs 6:21). The likely meaning is chains or linked fittings, but the exact item is uncertain.
Against the English: English versions almost all say 'silver chains'. The Vulgate reads 'plates of silver' (laminis argenteis). The Septuagint seems to have no clear equivalent. Because the word occurs only once, every rendering is a reasoned guess.
Used elsewhere in the period: 1 Kgs 6:21 (chains in Solomon's temple); Ezek 7:23. Mesopotamian cult statues wore jewellery, pectorals and chains, and inventories of ornaments for divine images survive. Jer 10:4 and Isa 41:7 describe idols fastened 'with nails so that it will not totter', and the Letter of Jeremiah (Baruch 6) mocks gods that have to be secured so they do not fall.

Where it appears

Isaiah · 1

Isaiah 40:19 וּרְתֻק֥וֹת and chains of

To an idol that a craftsman casts and a metalworker overlays with gold and fits with silver chains?

Here: A rare word found only here. It probably means chains or linked fittings. They may be decorative necklaces, or chains that hold the statue in place. The next verse's worry about an idol that might 'topple' makes the second option possible.

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