Original Word: יְרֵכָה
Part of Speech: Noun Feminine
Transliteration: yrekah
Pronunciation: yeh-reh-KAH
Phonetic Spelling: (yer-ay-kaw')
KJV: border, coast, part, quarter, side
NASB: rear, remote parts, remotest parts, recesses, remote part, extreme rear, far
Word Origin: [feminine of H3409 (יָרֵך - thigh)]

1. (properly) the flank
2. (figuratively) the rear or recess, i.e. "ends of the earth"

border, coast, part, quarter, side

Feminine of yarek; properly, the flank; but used only figuratively, the rear or recess -- border, coast, part, quarter, side.

see HEBREW yarek

Word Origin
fem. of yarek
Definition
flank, side, extreme parts, recesses
NASB Translation
extreme rear (1), far (1), flank (1), hold (1), inner recesses (1), innermost part (1), rear (6), rear part (1), recesses (2), remote part (2), remote parts (5), remotest parts (5), within (1).

[יַרְכָה, or יְרֵכָה Ol^{§ 167. g}] flank, side, dual extreme parts, recesses; — suffix יַרְכָֿתוֺ Genesis 49:13; dual יַרְכָתַיִם Exodus 26:27; Exodus 36:32 + Ezekiel 46:19 Qr (Kt ירכתם); יַרְכָתָ֑יִם Exodus 26:23; Exodus 36:28; construct יַרְכְּתֵי Judges 19:1 20t. + 1 Kings 6:16 Qr (Kt ירכותי); —

1 side, i.e. further side of Zebulun, poetic for more distant border of his territory Genesis 49:13.

2 elsewhere always dual the two things, i.e. figurative angle, recess, extreme parts: as recesses of Mt. Ephraim Judges 19:1,18; of Lebanon 2 Kings 19:23 = Isaiah 37:24; of recesses or innermost part of a cave 1 Samuel 24:4; a house Amos 6:10; Psalm 128:3; the pit (בּוֺר) Isaiah 14:15 ("" שְׁאוֺל), Ezekiel 32:23; a ship Jonah 1:5; יַרְכְּתֵי צָפוֺן remote parts of the north Isaiah 14:13; Ezekiel 38:6,15; Ezekiel 39:2; Psalm 48:3 (but here Lag proposes רצון ׳יר); יַרְכְּתֵי אָ֑רֶץ remote parts of earth Jeremiah 6:22; Jeremiah 25:32; Jeremiah 31:8; Jeremiah 50:41; of a long building, extreme or hinder part, so of tabernacle Exodus 26:22,23,27; Exodus 36:27,28,32 (all P); of temple 1 Kings 6:16; of Ezekiel's temple Ezekiel 46:19.

Range of Meaning and Imagery

יְרֵכָה gathers the ideas of an extremity, flank, or hidden recess. Whether applied to a body, a building, or the earth itself, it always points to what lies to the side or at the far edge—out of ordinary view yet structurally significant.

Anatomical Usage: Thigh and Loins in Covenant and Warfare

When the word is used of the human frame it speaks of strength, generative power, and readiness for action. By placing a sword on the thigh (for example, Judges 3:16) or swearing an oath with the hand under the thigh (Genesis 24:2 – a parallel form), the biblical writers locate both authority and vulnerability in the same place. The patriarchal oath-ritual stresses covenant continuity; the warrior context underscores preparedness and courage. In pastoral application the believer is called to “gird up the loins of your mind” (1 Peter 1:13), an echo of the physical image behind יְרֵכָה.

Architectural and Technical Usage: Sides, Chambers, and Rear Sections

Solomon’s temple construction uses the term repeatedly. “He built side rooms all around” (1 Kings 6:5). These flanking structures buttress the main hall and Holy of Holies, making the יְרֵכָה integral to stability and storage. Ezekiel’s visionary temple mirrors this (Ezekiel 41:6, 11). The same idea governs descriptions of palaces (1 Kings 7:3) and ships (Ezekiel 27:34), where cargo and crew disappear into the vessel’s “inmost parts.” Thus יְרֵכָה reminds the church that unseen ministries—support staff, intercessors, givers—uphold and protect what is publicly glorious.

Geographical Idiom: Remote Reaches and the Far North

In poetic and prophetic texts the plural construct “yarketê” designates the uttermost parts of a region. “Mount Zion, in the far north” (Psalm 48:2) contrasts the Lord’s dwelling with pagan cosmic mountains. Jeremiah and Ezekiel repeatedly announce invasions “from the land of the north…from the remote parts of the earth” (Jeremiah 6:22; Ezekiel 38:6, 15). The term marks both threat and hope: judgment comes from the periphery, but so does restoration (Isaiah 41:9). Missiologically, the gospel is mandated for the “ends of the earth,” picking up the same geographical horizon (Acts 1:8).

Cultic and Liturgical Dimensions

Because יְרֵכָה can describe inner chambers, it is tied to the priest’s approach to holy space. The side-rooms in Solomon’s temple stored utensils, tithes, and offerings (cf. 1 Kings 6:10; Nehemiah 10:39, where a cognate appears). What is set apart in the hidden places sustains public worship. The term therefore underlines stewardship and purity behind the scenes of ministry.

Prophetic and Eschatological Overtones

Ezekiel’s Gog oracle deploys יְרֵכָה for the hordes “from the far north” (Ezekiel 38:15; 39:2), casting the word into the last-days conflict. The extremity of location mirrors the extremity of hostility, yet it is precisely there that God displays sovereign victory. Psalm 139:9–10 offers the pastoral complement: “If I dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there Your hand will guide me.” No distance—spatial or spiritual—lies beyond covenant reach.

Ministry Applications

• Hidden faithfulness: Like the side-chambers, unnoticed service strengthens the visible body of Christ.
• Mission to the margins: The “far reaches” call believers outward to proclaim Christ where He is not named.
• Integrity in oaths and commitments: The thigh imagery warns that promises invoke one’s deepest life.
• Spiritual preparedness: To strap on the sword at the flank is to wield “the sword of the Spirit” (Ephesians 6:17).

Representative References

Anatomy/Weaponry: Genesis 32:25–32; Judges 3:16, 21; Psalm 45:3.

Architecture: 1 Kings 6:5, 6, 8, 10; Ezekiel 41:6, 11.

Geography: Psalm 48:2; Jeremiah 6:22; 31:8; Ezekiel 38:6, 15.

Liturgical storage: Nehemiah 10:39; 13:5.

Assurance/Judgment: Psalm 139:9–10; Isaiah 41:9; Ezekiel 39:2.

Theological Summary

יְרֵכָה binds together power and vulnerability, center and edge, seen and unseen. In every sphere it testifies that what is peripheral to human eyes is strategic in the purposes of God.

בְּיַרְכְּתֵ֣י בְּיַרְכְּתֵ֥י בְּיַרְכְּתֵ֪י בְּיַרְכְּתֵי־ בַּיַּרְכָתָֽיִם׃ בַּיַּרְכָתַ֖יִם בירכתי בירכתי־ בירכתים בירכתים׃ וְיַרְכָת֖וֹ וּֽלְיַרְכְּתֵ֥י וירכתו ולירכתי יַרְכְּתֵ֣י יַרְכְּתֵ֥י יַרְכְּתֵי־ ירכתי ירכתי־ לַיַּרְכָתַ֖יִם לירכתים מִֽיַּרְכְּתֵ֤י מִיַּרְכְּתֵ֣י מִיַּרְכְּתֵי־ מירכתי מירכתי־ baiyarchaTayim bay·yar·ḵā·ṯa·yim bay·yar·ḵā·ṯā·yim bayyarḵāṯayim bayyarḵāṯāyim bə·yar·kə·ṯê bə·yar·kə·ṯê- bəyarkəṯê bəyarkəṯê- beyarkeTei laiyarchaTayim lay·yar·ḵā·ṯa·yim layyarḵāṯayim mî·yar·kə·ṯê mî·yar·kə·ṯê- mîyarkəṯê mîyarkəṯê- miyarkeTei ū·lə·yar·kə·ṯê ūləyarkəṯê uleyarkeTei veyarchaTo wə·yar·ḵā·ṯōw wəyarḵāṯōw yar·kə·ṯê yar·kə·ṯê- yarkəṯê yarkəṯê- yarkeTeiInterlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel Texts