Lexical Summary
tiqvah: Hope, expectation
Original Word:תִּקְוָה
Part of Speech:Noun Feminine
Transliteration:tiqvah
Pronunciation:tik-VAH
Phonetic Spelling:(tik-vaw')
KJV: expectation ((-ted)), hope, live, thing that I long for
Word Origin:[fromH6960 (קָוָה - To wait)]
1. (literally) a cord (as an attachment)
2. (figuratively) expectancy
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
expectation ted, hope, live, thing that I long for
Fromqavah; literally, a cord (as an attachment (compareqaveh)); figuratively, expectancy -- expectation ((-ted)), hope, live, thing that I long for.
see HEBREWqavah
see HEBREWqaveh
Brown-Driver-Briggs
I. [] (compare √
at the beginning); — construct
Joshua 2:18,21.
II.34 ; — absoluteHosea 2:17 +; constructJob 8:13 +; suffixJob 6:8 +, etc.; —
hope,Jeremiah 31:17;Lamentations 3:29;Job 5:16;Job 7:6;Job 11:18,20;Job 14:7,19;Job 17:15aJob 19:10;Psalm 62:6;Proverbs 19:18;Proverbs 26:12;Proverbs 29:20;Ruth 1:12;Hosea 2:17;Zechariah 9:12 (i.e. with hope of deliverance).
= ground of hopeJob 4:6;Psalm 71:5 (comparePsalm 62:6).
things hoped for, outcome,Ezekiel 19:5;Ezekiel 37:11;Job 6:8;Job 8:13;Job 17:15b (but read Me Bi Siegf Beer Bu Du),Job 27:8;Psalm 9:19;Proverbs 10:28;Proverbs 11:7,23;Proverbs 23:18;Proverbs 24:14 (strike out Toy as gloss);Jeremiah 29:11 (i.e. by hendyadis, the hoped-for future).
Topical Lexicon
Overview and Range of Meaningתִּקְוָה combines two complementary images: (1) a physical cord that binds or secures, and (2) an inner attitude of confident expectation. The word moves effortlessly between these senses because biblical hope is never abstract optimism; it is a lifeline anchored in the reliability of God.
Occurrences and Literary Spread
Approximately thirty-four occurrences are spread through Historical Books (Joshua, Ruth, Ezra), Wisdom Books (Job, Psalms, Proverbs), the Prophets (Jeremiah, Lamentations, Zechariah), and one instance in a penitential prayer (Ezra 10:2). This distribution reveals that hope is integral to Israel’s story, worship, ethics, and prophetic vision.
The Scarlet Cord of Jericho: Hope Embodied
The earliest narrative appearance is Rahab’s “scarlet cord” inJoshua 2:18, 21. The spies tell her, “You must tie this scarlet cord in the window through which you let us down”. The cord is both token and guarantee: if Rahab trusts the instruction, the household is spared. Thus תִּקְוָה physically hangs between destruction and deliverance, prefiguring how covenant promises secure all who cling to them.
Personal Hope amid Family Loss: Ruth
Naomi laments, “Return home, my daughters, for I am too old to have a husband. Even if I thought there was still hope for me…” (Ruth 1:12). Her despair frames the narrative so that God’s later provision through Boaz demonstrates that hope is never finally extinguished while God governs history.
Wisdom Literature: The Contest between Despair and Confidence
Job employs תִּקְוָה more than any other book, oscillating between the apparent collapse of hope (Job 7:6; 17:15) and the stubborn conviction that “there is hope for a tree” (Job 14:7). Proverbs contrasts righteous hope and wicked futility: “The hope of the righteous is joy, but the expectation of the wicked will perish” (Proverbs 10:28). These texts teach that hope is inseparable from moral alignment with God.
Psalms: Hope as Waiting on God
InPsalm 62:5 David counsels his soul, “Rest in God alone, O my soul, for my hope is from Him”.Psalm 71:5 roots hope in God’s past faithfulness from youth, whilePsalm 9:18 assures that “the hope of the needy will never perish.” The Psalter thus turns hope into doxology and prayer.
Prophetic Assurance during National Crisis
Jeremiah, writing to exiles, records perhaps the most quoted instance: “For I know the plans I have for you… plans to give you hope and a future” (Jeremiah 29:11). After the deportations he promises, “There is hope for your future, declares the LORD” (Jeremiah 31:17).Lamentations 3:29 urges the humbled sufferer to “put his mouth in the dust—there may yet be hope.” Post-exilic Zechariah cries, “Return to your stronghold, O prisoners of hope” (Zechariah 9:12). Hope here is a covenant guarantee even when outward circumstances deny it.
Covenant, Eschatology, and Messianic Expectation
Because hope rests on God’s sworn commitments, it reaches beyond immediate relief toward final restoration. Jeremiah’s “future” (31:17) and Zechariah’s royal deliverer (9:9-12) point forward to Messiah, fulfilled in Jesus Christ, “the hope of Israel” (echoed inActs 28:20). Thus biblical hope is anchored in the unchangeable character of God and climaxes in His redemptive plan.
Pastoral and Practical Ministry Significance
1. Counseling the afflicted: Job’s candor allows believers to voice anguish without surrendering hope.
2. Preaching the gospel: Rahab’s cord exemplifies simple faith that clings to an appointed sign, foreshadowing the cross.
3. Discipleship: Proverbs teaches that hopeful expectation must be wedded to righteousness, shaping ethical instruction.
4. Worship: The Psalms model how to transform hope into patient, God-centered waiting.
5. Mission: Zechariah’s “prisoners of hope” inspires evangelistic outreach, declaring liberation to those bound by sin and despair.
Representative Reference List
Historical:Joshua 2:18, 21;Ruth 1:12;Ezra 10:2
Wisdom & Poetry:Job 4:6; 5:16; 6:8; 7:6; 11:18, 20; 14:7; 17:15; 19:10;Psalm 9:18; 62:5; 71:5; 78:7;Proverbs 10:28; 11:7; 14:32; 19:18; 23:18; 24:14
Prophetic:Jeremiah 29:11; 31:17;Lamentations 3:29;Zechariah 9:12
Conclusion
תִּקְוָה unites the tangible and the spiritual: the cord that saves Rahab prefigures the confidence that sustains believers. From patriarchal narratives to post-exilic prophecy, hope is revealed as a secure tether to the steadfast love and purposes of God, ultimately fulfilled in Christ and still operative for the church’s life and mission today.
Forms and Transliterations
הַתִּקְוָ֑ה התקוה וְ֝תִקְוָתְךָ֗ וְ֝תִקְוָתִ֗י וְ֝תִקְוָתָ֗ם וְתִקְוַ֖ת וְתִקְוָֽה׃ ותקוה׃ ותקות ותקותי ותקותך ותקותם תִּ֝קְוָתְךָ֗ תִּ֫קְוָ֥ה תִּקְוַ֖ת תִּקְוַ֡ת תִּקְוַ֣ת תִּקְוַ֥ת תִּקְוָ֑ה תִּקְוָ֖ה תִּקְוָ֥ה תִּקְוָֽה׃ תִּקְוָתִֽי׃ תִּקְוָתָ֑הּ תִקְוָ֔ה תִקְוָתִ֑י תִקְוָתֵ֖נוּ תקוה תקוה׃ תקות תקותה תקותי תקותי׃ תקותך תקותנו hat·tiq·wāh hattikVah hattiqwāh tikVah tikVat tikvaTah tikvatecha tikvaTenu tikvaTi tiq·wā·ṯāh tiq·wā·ṯə·ḵā ṯiq·wā·ṯê·nū tiq·wā·ṯî ṯiq·wā·ṯî tiq·wāh ṯiq·wāh tiq·waṯ tiqwāh ṯiqwāh tiqwaṯ tiqwāṯāh tiqwāṯəḵā ṯiqwāṯênū tiqwāṯî ṯiqwāṯî vetikVah vetikVat vetikvaTam vetikvatecha vetikvaTi wə·ṯiq·wā·ṯām wə·ṯiq·wā·ṯə·ḵā wə·ṯiq·wā·ṯî wə·ṯiq·wāh wə·ṯiq·waṯ wəṯiqwāh wəṯiqwaṯ wəṯiqwāṯām wəṯiqwāṯəḵā wəṯiqwāṯî
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