Lexical Summary
num: To slumber, to sleep
Original Word:נוּם
Part of Speech:Verb
Transliteration:nuwm
Pronunciation:noom
Phonetic Spelling:(noom)
KJV: sleep, slumber
NASB:slumber, sank, sleeping, slumbers
Word Origin:[a primitive root]
1. to slumber (from drowsiness)
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
sleep, slumber
A primitive root; to slumber (from drowsiness) -- sleep, slumber.
NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Origina prim. root
Definitionto be drowsy, slumber
NASB Translationsank (1), sleeping (1), slumber (3), slumbers (1).
Brown-Driver-Briggs
(Late Hebrew ,
id.; Aramaic ,
; Arabic (
)
id.; Ethiopic
); —
Perfect3pluralNahum 3:18;Psalm 76:6 (Ges§ 72l);ImperfectPsalm 121:3 2t.; 3 feminine singular2 Samuel 4:6 (so read for HCT , with other radical changes, Th We Dr Kit Bu HPS);Infinitive constructIsaiah 56:10. —be drowsy, slumber, literal2 Samuel 4:6 (emendation, see above)and she grew drowsy and slept; figurative of inactivity, indolence,Isaiah 5:27 ("" ),Psalm 121:3;Psalm 121:4 (of ; ""id.);Nahum 3:18 ("" );Isaiah 56:10 ("" ); followed by accusative of congnate meaning with verbPsalm 76:6 (of death, "" ).
Topical Lexicon
OverviewThe verb נוּם traces a thematic line across Scripture that contrasts human frailty and indifference with the tireless vigilance of the Lord. Its six appearances form a concise, yet profound witness to the spiritual danger of drowsiness—physical or moral—and to the certainty that God never lapses into obliviousness.
Occurrences and Contexts
1.Psalm 76:5 locates slumber on the battlefield: “The valiant lie plundered; they sleep their last sleep; no men of war can lift their hands”. Human strength succumbs to a fatal, irreversible “sleep,” underscoring divine supremacy.
2.Psalm 121:3–4 twice denies slumber to the Protector of Israel: “He will not allow your foot to slip; your Protector will not slumber… the Protector of Israel will neither slumber nor sleep”. God’s ceaseless care answers the peril introduced inPsalm 76.
3.Isaiah 5:27 depicts an invincible force of judgment: “No one slumbers or sleeps; the belt on their waist is not loosened, nor are the straps of their sandals broken”. The Lord’s appointed instruments display the same wakefulness He possesses.
4.Isaiah 56:10 indicts negligent leaders: “They lie down, they love to slumber”. The guardians of the covenant community mirror the failing warriors ofPsalm 76, leaving the flock exposed.
5.Nahum 3:18 pronounces doom on Assyria: “Your shepherds slumber, O king of Assyria; your nobles lie down. Your people are scattered on the mountains, with no one to gather them”. The empire’s watchmen repeat Israel’s error and share its consequences.
Divine Vigilance Versus Human Frailty
Psalms 76 and 121 form a deliberate antithesis: men sleep in defeat, God never sleeps in guardianship. The juxtaposition reassures believers that covenant security does not rest on human alertness but on the Lord’s indefatigable oversight. Yet the same passages implicitly summon the faithful to mirror, rather than contradict, that vigilance (compareMatthew 26:41).
Slumber as a Sign of Judgment
Isaiah 5:27 shows that when God sends judgment, He equips His agents with a wakefulness that mocks the sleepy defenders.Isaiah 56:10 andNahum 3:18 then reverse the picture: now the leaders of God’s people and the rulers of a pagan empire are the ones drowsing on duty, a prelude to devastation. In biblical theology, slumber becomes a metaphor for culpable negligence that invites divine intervention.
Prophetic Admonition to Watchfulness
By exposing sleepy watchmen,Isaiah 56:10 anticipates later exhortations: “Be on the alert, stand firm in the faith” (1 Corinthians 16:13) and “Let us not sleep as the rest do” (1 Thessalonians 5:6). The Old Testament groundwork provided by נוּם thus feeds directly into the New Testament ethic of spiritual sobriety.
Historical Resonances
• The fall of Sennacherib’s Assyria (Isaiah 37) and, afterward, Nineveh (Nahum 3) illustrate how political powers collapse when leaders lapse into figurative or literal slumber.
• Post-exilic readers, facing diminished national strength, would hear inPsalm 121 a promise that the Lord’s watchfulness compensates for their own vulnerability on return journeys to Zion.
• In Second Temple liturgy,Psalm 121 became a Song of Ascents for pilgrims—people at physical risk yet spiritually secure because Israel’s Protector never slumbers.
Ministry Applications
– Pastoral oversight entails vigilance;Isaiah 56:10 warns against complacent shepherds who silence their bark.
– Intercessory prayer draws courage fromPsalm 121: the believer petitions a God who never closes His eyes.
– Evangelistic preaching may employPsalm 76:5 to expose the finality of death apart from divine deliverance and to contrast it with the risen, ever-alert Christ (Hebrews 7:25).
Homiletical Directions
1. “Sleeping Soldiers, Sleepless Savior” – contrastPsalm 76:5 withPsalm 121:4.
2. “Wake-Up Call for Watchmen” –Isaiah 56:10 applied to contemporary leadership.
3. “When Empires Nod Off” –Nahum 3:18 as a cautionary tale for nations that trust in human governance.
Summary
Strong’s 5123 נוּם sketches a theology of slumber that moves from battlefield defeat, through covenant assurance, to prophetic indictment. In every case, the unifying thread is the unwearied sovereignty of God, calling His people to a matching alertness until the day “night will be no more” (Revelation 22:5).
Forms and Transliterations
יָ֝נ֗וּם יָ֭נוּם יָנ֖וּם ינום לָנֽוּם׃ לנום׃ נָמ֣וּ נָמ֤וּ נמו lā·nūm laNum lānūm nā·mū naMu nāmū yā·nūm yaNum yānūm
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