Lexical Summary
yanaq: To suck, to nurse, to draw milk
Original Word:יָנַק
Part of Speech:Verb
Transliteration:yanaq
Pronunciation:yah-nak'
Phonetic Spelling:(yaw-nak')
KJV: milch, nurse(-ing mother), (give, make to) suck(-ing child, -ling)
NASB:nurse, suck, infant, nursed, infants, draw, milking
Word Origin:[a primitive root]
1. to suck
2. causatively, to give milk
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
give milk, nursing mother, give, make to sucking child,
A primitive root; to suck; causatively, to give milk -- milch, nurse(-ing mother), (give, make to) suck(-ing child, -ling).
NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Origina prim. root
Definitionto suck
NASB Translationdraw (1), infant (3), infants (2), milking (1), nurse (11), nursed (3), nurses (1), nursing (1), nursing babes (1), nursing infant (1), nursing infants* (1), nursling (1), suck (4), sucks (1).
Brown-Driver-Briggs
[] (Late Hebrew
id.; Aramaic ,
, and derivatives; Assyrian
êni‡u,
suck, SASm
Assurbanipal i, Gloss,
mušeni‡tu,
nurse, Jen
ZA, 1886, 402) —
Perfect consecutiveIsaiah 60:16;Isaiah 66:12;ImperfectJob 20:16;Job 3:12;Isaiah 60:16;Deuteronomy 33:19;Isaiah 66:11;ParticipleDeuteronomy 32:25 7t.;Numbers 11:12;Psalm 8:3;Joel 2:16; —suck, of infant at mother's breast, absoluteJob 3:12; metaphor of abundance and honour of Jerusalem in future,Isaiah 66:11 absolute; followed by accusative of breastIsaiah 60:16; accusative of milkIsaiah 60:16;Isaiah 66:12; followed by accusativeJob 20:16 of punishment of wicked; participle followed by accusativeSongs 8:1; constructJoel 2:16; elsewhere as subt.,suckling, babeNumbers 11:12;Deuteronomy 32:25 (opposed to ); ""1 Samuel 15:3;1 Samuel 22:19;Psalm 8:3;Jeremiah 44:7;Lamentations 2:11; ""Lamentations 4:4; compareJoel 2:16; ""Isaiah 11:8; — onIsaiah 53:2 see below
PerfectGenesis 21:7;Lamentations 4:3;Imperfect suffixDeuteronomy 32:13; 3feminine singularExodus 2:7;1 Samuel 1:23;Exodus 2:9;Imperative feminine singular suffixExodus 2:9;Infinitive1 Kings 3:21;ParticipleExodus 2:7; constructid.Genesis 35:8;2 Kings 11:2; 2Chronicles 22:11;Genesis 24:59;Genesis 32:16;Isaiah 49:23; —give suck to, nurse, followed by accusativeGenesis 21:7;1 Kings 3:21;Exodus 2:7,9;1 Samuel 1:23; cause to suck honey, figurativeDeuteronomy 32:13 (2 accusative); of animalsLamentations 4:3 followed by accusative; participle feminine =nursing,Exodus 2:7 literallya nursing woman, a nurse; alone as substantive =nurseGenesis 24:59 (J),Genesis 35:8 (E; ),2 Kings 11:2; 2Che2 Kings 22:11; metaphorIsaiah 49:23; of camelsGenesis 32:16.
Topical Lexicon
Literal Sphere of Mother-Child NourishmentFrom the first mention inGenesis 21:7, where Sarah wonders that she should “nurse children,” יָנַק forms part of the ordinary vocabulary of family life.Exodus 2:7-9 shows it as an accepted social arrangement: Moses’ own mother is hired to nurse her son for Pharaoh’s daughter.2 Samuel 4:4 and2 Kings 11:2 record royal infants in the arms of a nurse who literally “sucked” them, underscoring how fragile dynastic hope could rest upon those early months of dependence.
The verb also embraces animal life (for exampleIsaiah 11:8 where “the nursing child will play by the cobra’s hole”), reminding readers that God embedded the pattern of nourishment into every living order. By depicting both human and beast drawing life in the same way, Scripture quietly affirms the Creator’s intentional design and the goodness of created relationships.
Metaphorical and Prophetic Expansion
The prophets employ יָנַק to portray covenant blessings and eschatological plenty. Isaiah speaks of Zion as a mother whose “breasts be delighted” (Isaiah 66:11) and of the nations as foster-mothers: “You will suck the milk of nations and nurse at the breast of kings” (Isaiah 60:16). Here the act of nursing becomes a figure for economic abundance, political security, and the reversal of shame. InIsaiah 49:23 the same image is pressed into royal service when kings are pictured as “foster fathers” and queens as “nursing mothers,” signaling the honor that will accrue to restored Israel.
Hosea uses the opposite side of the image. InHosea 9:14 the prophet calls for judgment that withholds the breast, dramatizing covenant curses by removing the most basic kindness a mother can show.
Theological Motifs: Dependence, Provision, and Covenant Loyalty
1. Dependence. New-borns cannot sustain themselves, and Israel can no more survive without YHWH than an infant without milk (compareNumbers 11:12). The verb supplies the conceptual bridge from helplessness to trust.
2. Provision. Because milk is internally manufactured, the picture stresses grace: life is supplied free of charge by another.Psalm 22:9 therefore celebrates that God placed the psalmist “in safety at my mother’s breasts”, tracing divine care back to the first drops received.
3. Covenant loyalty (חֶסֶד). By portraying YHWH as both Father and nursing Mother, Scripture asserts that the Lord’s commitment is comprehensive, combining strength and tender nurture (seeIsaiah 49:15).
Historical and Cultural Backdrop
Ancient Near-Eastern weaning usually occurred between eighteen months and three years.Genesis 21:8 records Isaac’s weaning feast, a social marker of survival past infancy. To “suck” in that milieu implied both biological success and social continuity. The nursing slave or wet-nurse (Exodus 2;2 Samuel 4) formed part of extended household economies, confirming the verb’s range from family intimacy to public duty.
Ministry Implications
• Pastoral care: The nursing motif legitimizes spiritual gentleness. Paul echoes it when he writes, “we were gentle among you, like a nursing mother caring for her own children” (1 Thessalonians 2:7).
• Discipleship:1 Peter 2:2 urges believers to “crave pure spiritual milk,” showing that the Old Testament picture remains instructive for Christian growth.
• Pro-life and family ministry: Scriptures that highlight God’s concern for nursing infants (Isaiah 49:15) provide theological ground for protecting life and supporting mothers.
Christological and Eschatological Trajectory
The Servant Songs allude to the same nurture that sustained Israel. At Bethlehem the incarnation begins with the Son of God receiving milk from Mary, embodying voluntary dependence.Revelation 21 answersIsaiah 60 and 66: the nations bring their glory into the New Jerusalem, and God Himself wipes every tear, ending the season of vulnerability that יָנַק presupposes.
Summary of Canonical Distribution
Approximately thirty-two occurrences cluster in: Pentateuch (Genesis, Exodus, Numbers), Historical Books (2 Samuel, 2 Kings), Writings (Psalms, Job, Song of Solomon), and especially Prophets (Isaiah, Hosea, Joel, et al.). The consistent thread is that sucking milk, whether literal or metaphorical, marks the place where life, dependence, and divine compassion meet.
Forms and Transliterations
אִינָֽק׃ אינק׃ הֵינִ֖יקוּ הֵינִ֥יקָה הַיֹּנֵ֔ק היניקה היניקו הינק וְֽיֹנְקִים֮ וְהֵינִקִ֣הוּ וְיָנַקְתְּ֙ וְיֹנְקֵ֖י וְיוֹנֵ֔ק וְיוֹנֵ֖ק וְתֵינִ֥ק וִֽינַקְתֶּ֑ם וַיֵּנִקֵ֤הֽוּ וַתֵּ֣ינֶק והינקהו ויונק וינקהו וינקי וינקים וינקת וינקתם ותינק יִינָ֑ק יִינָ֔קוּ יוֹנֵ֑ק יוֹנֵ֔ק יוֹנֵ֖ק יוֹנֵ֛ק יונק יינק יינקו לְהֵינִ֥יק להיניק מֵֽינִקְתּ֖וֹ מֵינִ֣יקֹתַ֔יִךְ מֵינִיק֛וֹת מֵינִקְתּ֖וֹ מֵינֶ֔קֶת מֵינֶ֣קֶת מֵנִקְתָּ֑הּ מיניקות מיניקתיך מינקת מינקתו מנקתה תִּֽינְקוּ֙ תִּינָ֑קִי תינקו תינקי ’î·nāq ’înāq haiyoNek hay·yō·nêq hayyōnêq hê·nî·qāh hê·nî·qū heiNikah heiNiku hênîqāh hênîqū iNak lə·hê·nîq leheiNik ləhênîq mê·ne·qeṯ mê·nî·qō·ṯa·yiḵ mê·nî·qō·wṯ mê·niq·tāh mê·niq·tōw meiNeket meiniKot meiNikoTayich meinikTo mêneqeṯ menikTah mênîqōṯayiḵ mênîqōwṯ mêniqtāh mêniqtōw tî·nā·qî tî·nə·qū tiNaki tînāqî tineKu tînəqū vaiyeniKehu vatTeinek veheiniKihu veteiNik veyanakT veyoNek veyoneKei veyoneKim vinakTem wat·tê·neq wattêneq way·yê·ni·qê·hū wayyêniqêhū wə·hê·ni·qi·hū wə·ṯê·niq wə·yā·naqt wə·yō·nə·qê wə·yō·nə·qîm wə·yō·w·nêq wəhêniqihū wəṯêniq wəyānaqt wəyōnəqê wəyōnəqîm wəyōwnêq wî·naq·tem wînaqtem yî·nā·qū yî·nāq yiNak yiNaku yînāq yînāqū yō·w·nêq yoNek yōwnêq
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