Topical Encyclopedia
In the biblical context, the term "nurse" refers to a woman who breastfeeds and cares for a child, often in a role similar to that of a modern-day nanny or caregiver. Nurses in the Bible are depicted as important figures in the upbringing and nurturing of children, often serving in both familial and royal settings.
Old Testament References1.
Rebekah's Nurse: One of the earliest mentions of a nurse in the Bible is found in the account of Rebekah. When Rebekah left her family to marry Isaac, she was accompanied by her nurse, Deborah.
Genesis 24:59 states, "So they sent their sister Rebekah on her way, along with her nurse and Abraham’s servant and his men." Deborah's presence underscores the importance of a nurse in providing care and support.
2.
Moses' Nurse: In the account of Moses, his mother Jochebed becomes his nurse after Pharaoh's daughter discovers him in the Nile.
Exodus 2:7-9 recounts how Moses' sister, Miriam, suggests to Pharaoh's daughter that a Hebrew woman could nurse the child. Pharaoh's daughter agrees, and Jochebed is paid to nurse her own son. This arrangement highlights the providential care and protection over Moses' life.
3.
Mephibosheth's Nurse: In
2 Samuel 4:4, we learn about Mephibosheth, the son of Jonathan, who was crippled as a child. His nurse, in a hurried attempt to flee after hearing of Saul and Jonathan's deaths, accidentally dropped him, resulting in his lifelong disability. This incident illustrates the nurse's role in safeguarding the child, even in times of crisis.
New Testament ContextWhile the New Testament does not explicitly mention nurses in the same capacity as the Old Testament, the nurturing and caregiving roles are evident in the broader context of family and community life. The early Christian community emphasized caring for one another, as seen in passages like
1 Thessalonians 2:7, where Paul compares his gentle care for the Thessalonians to that of a nursing mother: "On the contrary, we were gentle among you, like a nursing mother caring for her children."
Cultural and Historical InsightsIn ancient Near Eastern cultures, nurses were often employed by wealthy families and royal households. They were entrusted with the physical and emotional well-being of the children, sometimes forming lifelong bonds. The role of a nurse was not only to provide nourishment but also to offer guidance and protection.
Spiritual SymbolismThe role of a nurse in the Bible can also be seen as a metaphor for God's nurturing care for His people. Just as a nurse provides sustenance and comfort, God is depicted as a caregiver who tends to the needs of His children. This imagery is reflected in passages like
Isaiah 49:15, where God compares His compassion to that of a mother's care for her nursing child.
In summary, the biblical concept of a nurse encompasses both the practical and the spiritual, highlighting the importance of caregiving and nurturing within the family and community.
Smith's Bible Dictionary
NurseIn ancient times the position of the nurse, wherever one was maintained, was one of much honor sad importance. See (Genesis 24:59;36;8;2 Samuel 4:4;2 Kings 11:2) The same term is applied to a foster-father or mother, e.g. (Numbers 11:12;Ruth 4:16;Isaiah 49:23)
ATS Bible Dictionary
NurseThe Bible contains various allusions to the tender and confidential relation anciently subsisting between a nurse and the children she had brought up,Isaiah 49:22,231 Thessalonians 2:7,8. See also the story of Rebekah, attended through life by her faithful and honored Deborah, the oak under which she was buried being called "The oak of weeping,"Genesis 24:59 35:8. The custom still prevails in the better families of Syria and India. Says Roberts in his Oriental Illustrations, "how often have scenes like this led my mind to the patriarchal age. The daughter is about for the first time to leave the paternal roof; the servants are all in confusion; each refers to things long gone by, each wishes to do something to attract the attention of his young mistress. One says, �Ah do not forget him who nursed you when an infant;- another, �How often did I bring you the beautiful lotus from the distant tank. Did I not always conceal your faults'- Then the mother comes to take leave. She weeps and tenderly embraces her, saying, �My daughter, I shall see you no more; forget not your mother.- The brother enfolds his sister in his arms, and promises soon to come and see her. The father is absorbed in thought, and is only aroused by the sobs of the party. He then affectionately embraces his daughter, and tells her not to fear. The female domestics must each smell of the poor girl, and the men touch her feet. As Rebekah had her nurse to accompany her, so, at this day, the aya (nurse) who has from infancy brought up the bride goes with her to the new scene. She is her adviser, her assistant and friend, and to her will she tell all her hopes and all her fears."
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary
1. (
n.) One who nourishes; a person who supplies food, tends, or brings up; as: (a) A woman who has the care of young children; especially, one who suckles an infant not her own. (b) A person, especially a woman, who has the care of the sick or infirm.
2. (n.) One who, or that which, brings up, rears, causes to grow, trains, fosters, or the like.
3. (n.) A lieutenant or first officer, who is the real commander when the captain is unfit for his place.
4. (n.) A peculiar larva of certain trematodes which produces cercariae by asexual reproduction. See Cercaria, and Redia.
5. (n.) Either one of the nurse sharks.
6. (v. t.) To nourish; to cherish; to foster
7. (v. t.) To nourish at the breast; to suckle; to feed and tend, as an infant.
8. (v. t.) To take care of or tend, as a sick person or an invalid; to attend upon.
9. (v. t.) To bring up; to raise, by care, from a weak or invalid condition; to foster; to cherish; -- applied to plants, animals, and to any object that needs, or thrives by, attention.
10. (v. t.) To manage with care and economy, with a view to increase; as, to nurse our national resources.
11. (v. t.) To caress; to fondle, as a nurse does.
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia
NURSE; NURSINGnurs, nurs'-ing: "Nurse" in the King James Version represents two different Hebrew words: In 8 passages (Genesis 24:59;Genesis 35:8Exodus 2:7, 92 Kings 11:22 Chronicles 22:11Isaiah 49:23) the word-noun or verb-renders some form of the verb yanaq, "to suck." The feminine causative part. of this verb is commonly used to denote nurse or foster-mother. According toExodus 2:7 Moses' mother-"a nurse of the Hebrew women"-became, at Pharaoh's daughter's request, the foster-mother of the foundling. Joash, the son of Ahaziah, was in charge of a nurse until he was 7 years old (2 Kings 11:22 Chronicles 22:11). But it is obvious that the term was used in a more general way, e.g. of a lady's maid or tire-woman. Rebekah was accompanied by her nurse when she left home to be married (Genesis 24:59;Genesis 35:8). In 5 passages (Numbers 11:12Ruth 4:162 Samuel 4:4Isaiah 49:23;Isaiah 60:4 the King James Version) "nurse" represents the Hebrew word, 'aman, "to support," "be faithful," "nourish." The participle of this verb denoted a person who had charge of young children-a guardian or governess. Naomi took charge of Ruth's child "and became nurse unto it" (Ruth 4:16). InNumbers 11:12 Moses asks whether he has to take charge of the Israelites "as a nursing-father carrieth the sucking child." The same word is found in2 Kings 10:15 (the King James Version "them that brought up," i.e. "guardians of the sons of Ahab) and inEsther 2:7 (the King James Version "and he brought up," i.e. he (Mordecai) adopted, his niece). Deutero-Isaiah uses both terms together (Isaiah 49:23) to describe the exalted position of Israel in the future when foreign kings and queens will offer their services and wait upon the chosen people.
In the solitary passage in the New Testament where "nurse" occurs, it renders the Greek word trophos. In this case the word does not mean a hired nurse, but a mother who nurses her own children (1 Thessalonians 2:7).
T. Lewis
Greek
5162. trophos -- anurse... trophos. 5163 . a
nurse. Part of Speech: Noun, Feminine Transliteration: trophos
Phonetic Spelling: (trof-os') Short Definition: a
nurse Definition: a
nurse.
...397. anatrepho -- tonurse up, nourish
... tonurse up, nourish. Part of Speech: Verb Transliteration: anatrepho Phonetic Spelling:
(an-at-ref'-o) Short Definition: I rear, bring up Definition: I rear...
2337. thelazo -- to suckle
... Cognate: 2337 -- tonurse (suck milk). See 2338 (). Word Origin from thele (a nipple)
Definition to suckle NASB Word Usage nursed (1), nursing babies (4)....
Strong's Hebrew
5134. nuq -- to suckle,nurse... to suckle,
nurse. Transliteration: nuq Phonetic Spelling: (nook) Short Definition:
nursed.
... root Definition to suckle,
nurse NASB Word Usage nursed (1).
nurse.
...5763. ul -- tonurse, give suck
... 5762, 5763. ul. 5764 . tonurse, give suck. Transliteration: ul Phonetic
Spelling: (ool) Short Definition: nursing. Word Origin a prim....
439. Allon Bakuth -- "oak of weeping," a tree near the grave of...
Allon Bakuth. 438, 439. Allon Bakuth. 440 . "oak of weeping," a tree near the
grave of Rebekah'snurse. Transliteration: Allon Bakuth Phonetic Spelling: (al...
3243. yanaq -- to suck
... 3242, 3243. yanaq. 3244 . to suck. Transliteration: yanaq Phonetic Spelling:
(yaw-nak') Short Definition:nurse. Word Origin a prim....
539. aman -- to confirm, support
... 3), faithful (21), firm (2), fulfilled (1), guardians (3), has assurance (1), have
faith (1), have...assurance (1), last (1), lasting (1),nurse (3), put your...
5532a. sakan -- to be of use or service, benefit
... 5532, 5532a. sakan. 5532b . to be of use or service, benefit.
Transliteration: sakan Short Definition:nurse. Word Origin a prim....
2946. taphach -- to extend, spread
... span, swaddle. A primitive root; to flatten out or extend (as a tent); figuratively,
tonurse a child (as promotive of growth); or perhaps a denom....
Library
Heaven'sNurse Children
... Heaven'sNurse Children. A Sermon (No.1021).... However, I restrain my loitering heart,
and proceed to the text. Here is the figure of anurse and a child....
The HospitalNurse. November 22.
... The HospitalNurse. November 22. Fearless, uncomplaining, she "trusted
in God and made no haste." She did her work and read her...
Home as a Stewardship.
... "Take this child away, andnurse it for me, and I will give thee thy wages.""Exodus
2. 9.... "Gonurse it for the King of heaven, And He will pay thee hire."....
The Age, Birth, and Life of Moses.
... came that day to the river to bathe and wash herself; and hearing the child cry,
she ordered it to be brought to her; and touched with pity, sought anurse....
The Finding of Moses
... Perhaps the princess guessed that the baby's mother would not be far off, and
she must have smiled a little when anurse was so quickly found....
Home as a Nursery.
... seem wise, resemble her.". Tonurse means to educate or draw out and direct
what exists in a state of mere involution. It means to...
Conversion
... She was a grandnurse, even at that age, and was a great comfort to us all; she
was so bright and cheerful that we were unwilling to have her leave us."....
Moses
... Then said his sister to Pharaoh's daughter, Shall I go and call to thee anurse
of the Hebrew women, that she maynurse the child for thee?...
Of this Weakness of His, He Saith in Another Place...
... Of this weakness of his, he saith in another place, "We made ourselves small among
you, even as anurse cherisheth her children." [2510] For in that passage...
The Cradle that was Rocked by a River.
... "This is one of the Hebrew's children," she said, and as the baby's sister came
near she asked the princess if she should go and get anurse from among the...
Thesaurus
Nurse (23 Occurrences)... 5. (n.) Either one of the
nurse sharks.
... 10. (vt) To manage with care and economy,
with a view to increase; as, to
nurse our national resources. 11.
...Wet-nurse (1 Occurrence)
Wet-nurse. Wet, Wet-nurse. Wetted . Multi-Version Concordance
Wet-nurse (1 Occurrence). Exodus 2:7 And his sister said...
Nursing (14 Occurrences)
... Noah Webster's Dictionary 1. (p. pr. & vb. n.) ofNurse. 2. (a.) Supplying... Int.
Standard Bible Encyclopedia.NURSE; NURSING. nurs, nurs'-ing...
Mephibosheth (13 Occurrences)
... The child'snurse hearing of this calamity, fled with him from Gibeah, the royal
residence, and stumbling in her haste, the child was thrown to the ground and...
Nursed (13 Occurrences)
... Noah Webster's Dictionary (imp. & pp) ofNurse. Multi-Version Concordance
Nursed (13 Occurrences). Mark 6:19 Herodias set herself...
Baby (23 Occurrences)
... Exodus 2:7 Then his sister said to Pharaoh's daughter, "Should I go and call anurse
for you from the Hebrew women, that she maynurse the child for you?" (See...
Deborah (10 Occurrences)
... A bee. (1.) Rebekah'snurse.... Genesis 35:8 Deborah, Rebekah'snurse, died, and she
was buried below Bethel under the oak; and its name was called Allon Bacuth....
Pharaoh's (72 Occurrences)
... Exodus 2:7 Then his sister said to Pharaoh's daughter, "Should I go and call anurse
for you from the Hebrew women, that she maynurse the child for you?" (WEB...
Jehosheba (2 Occurrences)
... of king Joram, sister of Ahaziah, took Joash the son of Ahaziah, and stole him away
from among the king's sons who were slain, even him and hisnurse, and put...
Moses (9295 Occurrences)
... The king's daughter "saw the child; and behold the child wept." The princess (see
PHARAOH'S DAUGHTER ) sent Miriam, who was standing by, to fetch anurse....
Resources
What does the Bible say about breastfeeding? | GotQuestions.orgWho was Miriam in the Bible? | GotQuestions.orgWhat does the Bible say about caregiving? | GotQuestions.orgNurse: Dictionary and Thesaurus | Clyx.comBible Concordance •
Bible Dictionary •
Bible Encyclopedia •
Topical Bible •
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