3127. yoneqeth
Lexical Summary
yoneqeth: Shoot, branch, sprout

Original Word: יוֹנֶקֶת
Part of Speech: Noun Feminine
Transliteration: yowneqeth
Pronunciation: yoh-neh'-keth
Phonetic Spelling: (yo-neh'-keth)
KJV: (tender) branch, young twig
NASB: shoots, young twigs
Word Origin: [feminine of H3126 (יוֹנֵק - tender shoot)]

1. a sprout

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
tender branch, young twig

Feminine of yowneq; a sprout -- (tender) branch, young twig.

see HEBREW yowneq

NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Origin
fem. of yoneq
Definition
a young shoot, twig
NASB Translation
shoots (5), young twigs (1).

Brown-Driver-Briggs
[יוֺנֶ֫קֶת] noun feminine young shoot, twig (= foregoing) — יוֺנַקְתּוֺ Job 8:16 2t.; יוֺנְקוֺתָיו Hosea 14:7; יֹנְקוֺתָיו Ezekiel 17:22; יוֺנְקוֺתֶיהָ Psalm 80:12; — shoot, twig, of tree Job 14:7; cf wicked under figure of tree Job 8:16; Job 15:30; Israel under figure of olive-tree Hosea 14:7, of cedar Ezekiel 17:22, of vine Psalm 80:12.

Topical Lexicon
Definition and Imagery

יוֹנֶקֶת (yōneqet) pictures the tender offshoot or young sprig that draws its life from a larger trunk or vine. In every occurrence the word evokes three intertwined ideas: (1) visible vitality that comes from hidden roots, (2) vulnerability to scorching heat, fire or cutting, and (3) expectation of future growth that extends far beyond the point of origin.

Occurrences and Immediate Contexts

1. Job 8:16 – Bildad likens the seeming prosperity of the ungodly to a luxuriant plant whose “shoots spread over the garden.” The image stresses transitory flourishing that depends on external circumstances.
2. Job 14:7 – Job counters that “there is hope for a tree: if it is cut down, it will sprout again, and its shoots will not fail,” using the yonēqet to affirm divine capacity to restore life after utter loss.
3. Job 15:30 – Eliphaz warns that the flame of divine judgment “will wither his shoots,” showing how quickly empty confidence can be consumed.
4. Psalm 80:11 – The psalmist celebrates Israel as the LORD’s transplanted vine whose “shoots” reached “toward the River,” recalling the widespread influence granted during the united monarchy.
5. Ezekiel 17:22 – The LORD pledges to take “a tender twig from its topmost shoots” of the cedar and replant it, promising a future royal line set on “a high and lofty mountain.”
6. Hosea 14:6 – After repentance, Israel’s “shoots will sprout,” her beauty and fragrance restored, displaying covenant mercy that turns barrenness into abundance.

Theological Themes

1. Divine Sovereignty over Growth and Decline

The same God who allows shoots to spread (Job 8:16; Psalm 80:11) can wither them (Job 15:30). Prosperity or adversity never falls outside His governance.
2. Hope of Restoration

Job 14:7 anchors hope in the persistent life resident within the stump, anticipating resurrection motifs later clarified in Scripture. Hosea 14:6 reaffirms that repentance opens the way for renewed vitality.
3. Covenant Narrative of Israel

Psalm 80 and Hosea 14 locate the yonēqet within Israel’s story—chosen, disciplined, yet ultimately destined to flourish. The imagery ties the nation’s fortunes to fidelity to the LORD.
4. Messianic Expectation

Ezekiel 17:22’s “tender twig” portrays a divinely planted Davidic king whose reign will tower over every opposing power. The scene intentionally echoes earlier promises (for example, 2 Samuel 7) and foreshadows the righteous Branch unveiled in the New Testament.

Historical and Prophetic Significance

• Pre-exilic: Psalm 80 probably reflects the height of Israel’s influence followed by Assyrian pressure, interpreting lost dominion as broken branches needing divine attention.
• Exilic: Ezekiel speaks to a displaced community, assuring that the LORD Himself will replant a true king. This pledge guarded the genealogical hope that culminates in Jesus Christ.
• Post-exilic and Eschatological: Hosea’s call anticipates spiritual renewal that transcends national boundaries, ultimately finding fulfillment in the ingathering of the nations through the gospel.

Practical Ministry Applications

1. Encouragement in Apparent Ruin

Like Job’s felled tree, believers facing devastating loss can expect God to bring forth new “shoots” as they cling to Him.
2. Warning against Superficial Prosperity

Bildad’s lush imagery that soon fades and Eliphaz’s scorched shoots caution against equating material success with divine favor.
3. Discipleship and Growth

Healthy shoots depend on deep roots. Ministries that prioritize Scripture, prayer and obedience cultivate believers who withstand fiery trial.
4. Church Planting and Missions

The transplanting of the cedar twig (Ezekiel 17:22) inspires confidence that the Lord Himself establishes gospel witness in unlikely soil, nourishing global fruitfulness.

Christological and Eschatological Reflections

Ezekiel’s yonēqet directs eyes to the “shoot from the stump of Jesse” (Isaiah 11:1, using a different Hebrew term but the same concept). In Jesus Christ the fragile-looking twig becomes the eternal King whose kingdom fills the whole earth. His death appeared to fell the tree, yet on the third day the most glorious sprout burst forth, guaranteeing the final restoration pictured in Hosea 14 and the everlasting flourishing of all who abide in Him (John 15:5).

Forms and Transliterations
וְ֝יֹֽנַקְתּ֗וֹ וינקתו יֹֽ֭נַקְתּוֹ יֹֽנְקוֹתָ֔יו יֹֽנְקוֹתָיו֙ יֹֽנַקְתּ֥וֹ יֽוֹנְקוֹתֶֽיהָ׃ יונקותיה׃ ינקותיו ינקתו veyonakTo wə·yō·naq·tōw wəyōnaqtōw yō·naq·tōw yō·nə·qō·w·ṯāw yō·wn·qō·w·ṯe·hā yonakTo yōnaqtōw yonekoTav yōnəqōwṯāw YonkoTeiha yōwnqōwṯehā
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Englishman's Concordance
Job 8:16
HEB: וְעַ֥ל גַּ֝נָּת֗וֹ יֹֽנַקְתּ֥וֹ תֵצֵֽא׃
NAS: the sun, And his shoots spread
KJV: the sun, and his branch shooteth forth
INT: over his garden and his shoots spread

Job 14:7
HEB: וְע֣וֹד יַחֲלִ֑יף וְ֝יֹֽנַקְתּ֗וֹ לֹ֣א תֶחְדָּֽל׃
NAS: again, And its shoots will not fail.
KJV: that it will sprout again, and that the tender branch thereof will not cease.
INT: again will sprout shoots will not fail

Job 15:30
HEB: מִנִּי־ חֹ֗שֶׁךְ יֹֽ֭נַקְתּוֹ תְּיַבֵּ֣שׁ שַׁלְהָ֑בֶת
NAS: will wither his shoots, And by the breath
KJV: shall dry up his branches, and by the breath
INT: from darkness his shoots will wither the flame

Psalm 80:11
HEB: וְאֶל־ נָ֝הָ֗ר יֽוֹנְקוֹתֶֽיהָ׃
NAS: to the sea And its shoots to the River.
KJV: unto the sea, and her branches unto the river.
INT: to the River shoots

Ezekiel 17:22
HEB: וְנָתָ֑תִּי מֵרֹ֤אשׁ יֹֽנְקוֹתָיו֙ רַ֣ךְ אֶקְטֹ֔ף
NAS: from the topmost of its young twigs a tender one
KJV: from the top of his young twigs a tender one,
INT: and set the topmost young A tender will pluck

Hosea 14:6
HEB: יֵֽלְכוּ֙ יֹֽנְקוֹתָ֔יו וִיהִ֥י כַזַּ֖יִת
NAS: His shoots will sprout, And his beauty
KJV: His branches shall spread,
INT: will sprout his shoots will be like the olive

6 Occurrences

Strong's Hebrew 3127
6 Occurrences


wə·yō·naq·tōw — 1 Occ.
yō·naq·tōw — 2 Occ.
yō·nə·qō·w·ṯāw — 2 Occ.
yō·wn·qō·w·ṯe·hā — 1 Occ.

3126
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