Original Word: נוּעַ
Part of Speech: Verb
Transliteration: nuwa`
Pronunciation: noo-ah
Phonetic Spelling: (noo'-ah)
KJV: continually, fugitive, X make, to (go) up and down, be gone away, (be) move(-able, -d), be promoted, reel, remove, scatter, set, shake, sift, stagger, to and fro, be vagabond, wag, (make) wander (up and down)
NASB: wander, shake, shaken, wave, stagger, trembled, vagrant
Word Origin: [a primitive root]

1. to waver, in a great variety of applications, literally and figuratively (as subjoined)

continually, fugitive, make, to go up and down, be gone away

A primitive root; to waver, in a great variety of applications, literally and figuratively (as subjoined) -- continually, fugitive, X make, to (go) up and down, be gone away, (be) move(-able, -d), be promoted, reel, remove, scatter, set, shake, sift, stagger, to and fro, be vagabond, wag, (make) wander (up and down).

Word Origin
a prim. root
Definition
to quiver, wave, waver, tremble, totter
NASB Translation
disturb (1), moving (1), reels (1), scatter (1), set trembling (1), shake (4), shaken (4), shook (1), stagger (3), staggered (1), swing to and fro (1), to and fro (1), tremble (1), trembled (2), unstable (1), vagrant (2), wag (2), wander (5), wandered (2), wave (4).

נוּעַ verb quiver, wave, waver, tremble, totter (Late Hebrew Pilpal נִעְנַע shake, Aramaic נוּעַ waver, stagger (rare); Arabic , bend (of boughs), see commotus fuit (of id.), so Kam Frey; also change, kind, species, variety; Di compare Ethiopic hunt); —

Qal Perfect נָ֫עוּ Job 28:4 +; וְנָע֫וּ Amos 4:8 2t.; Imperfect וַיָּ֫נַע Isaiah 7:2; 3feminine singular תָּנוּעַ Isaiah 24:20; אֲנוּעֲךָ 2 Samuel 15:20 Kt (but read Qr Hiph`il q. v.); יָנ֫וּעוּ Psalm 109:10; יְנוּע֑וּן Psalm 59:16 Kt (so read; not Qr Hiph`il), etc.; Infinitive absolute Isaiah 24:20; Psalm 109:10; construct נוּעַ Judges 9:9 3t.; נוֺעַ Isaiah 7:2; Participle נָע Genesis 4:12,14; נָעִים Proverbs 22:19; נָעוֺת 1 Samuel 1:13: —

1 wave, of trees, followed by עַל Judges 9:9,11,13 followed by מִמְּנֵי of cause Isaiah 7:2; quiver, vibrate, of lips 1 Samuel 1:13; swing (to and fro) of miners Job 28:4 ("" דלל); stagger like drunkard, of mariners in storm Psalm 107:27 ("" חגג), compare Isaiah 29:9 ("" שׁכר); hence be unstable, figurative of ways of harlot Proverbs 5:6; tremble, of doorposts, Isaiah 6:4 (followed by מִן causative ), idols Isaiah 19:1 (followed by מִמְּנֵי), earth Isaiah 24:20 ("" התנודד), people Exodus 20:18 (E); figurative of heart Isaiah 7:2.

2 totter, go tottering (faint and uncertain) Lamentations 4:14 Lamentations 4:15 ("" נוּץ), Amos 8:12 ("" שׁוטט); as beggars Psalm 109:10 ("" שִׁאֵל), compare Psalm 59:16; Amos 4:8 followed by אֶלֿ; participle vagabond Genesis 4:12,14 (both "" נָד); figurative = err, sin, Jeremiah 14:10.

Niph`al Imperfect יִנּוֺעַ Amos 9:9 be tossed about (of corn) in a sieve; יִנּוֺעוּ id., of bulwarks as fig-trees Nahum 3:12 ("" נפל).

Hiph`il Perfect3feminine singular הֵנִ֫יעָה 2 Kings 19:21 = Isaiah 37:22; וַהֲנִָֽעוֺתִ֫י Amos 9:9; Imperfect יָנִיעַ Zephaniah 2:15; jussive יָ֫נַע 2 Kings 23:18; אֲנִיעֲךָ 2 Samuel 15:20 Qr (compare Qal); יְנִיעוּן Psalm 109:25 + Psalm 59:16 Qr (read Kt

Qal q. v. ), etc.; Imperative suffix הֲנִיעֵ֫מוֺ Psalm 59:12; —

1 toss about Amos 9:9 subject ׳י, object Israel followed by בַּגּוֺיִם (compare Niph`al).

2 shake, cause to totter: = set me tottering Daniel 10:10 on my knees and hands; especially shake or wag the head, in mockery 2 Kings 19:21 = Isaiah 37:22 ("" בוז, לעג) compare Psalm 22:8; Psalm 109:25; followed by עַלֿ Job 16:4 (׳בְּמוֺ ר [Ges^{§ 119q}]), also Lamentations 2:15 ("" שׁרק), Zephaniah 2:15 יָדוֺ ("" id.), [see also Ecclus 12:18; Ecclus 13:7 (׳בְּר)].

3 (shake), disturb, bones of dead 2 Kings 23:18.

4 cause to wander Numbers 32:13 (J); 2 Samuel 15:20 (followed by ללכת); Psalm 59:12 ("" הוריד, for which Lag^{Proph. Chald. xlviii.} proposes הניד).

Root Idea and Range of Imagery

נּוּעַ paints a picture of restless motion—swaying, shaking, quivering, staggering, wandering. It can describe objects (trees, mountains, doors), persons (bodies, heads, feet), communities (tribes, nations), or even the created order itself. Across its occurrences Scripture employs the verb to contrast human instability with the steadfastness of the Lord.

Earliest Appearance: The Mark of Cain (Genesis 4)

The first two attestations frame Cain as “a restless wanderer on the earth” (Genesis 4:12, 14). The verb underscores judicial exile: cut off from God’s presence, Cain becomes the prototype of spiritual homelessness. Every later use that depicts drift—moral, geographic, or social—echoes this primeval sentence.

Physical Shaking and Natural Phenomena

1 Kings 14:15 likens the disintegration of the Northern Kingdom to “a reed swaying in the water.” Mountains quake (Job 9:6), the earth reels like a tent in a storm (Isaiah 24:20), and the temple doors themselves “swayed back and forth” (Song of Songs 5:5). נּוּעַ supplies the vocabulary for earthquakes, storms, and architectural groaning, reminding readers that creation is not ultimate; it convulses under the hand of its Maker.

National Upheaval and Divine Judgment

Prophets repeatedly enlist נּוּעַ to depict the Lord’s destabilizing of empires:
• “I will shake the house of Israel” (1 Kings 14:15).
• “Moab shall wallow in his vomit, and he himself shall be an object of shaking” (Jeremiah 48:27).
• “The Lord has shaken the nations and the everlasting foundations” (Isaiah 13:13; 14:16 implied).

Such passages amplify the Exodus theme that Yahweh alone is immovable; every political structure that sets itself against Him will totter.

Social Dislocation: Wandering, Homelessness, and Poverty

Psalm 109:10 (“May his children roam as beggars”) shows נּוּעַ depicting economic displacement. Isaiah 24:11 pictures empty streets where revelers once thronged, now “all joy turns to gloom,” a communal staggering. The vocabulary forces readers to feel the insecurity that sin breeds in society.

Personal Trembling and Psychological Turmoil

Job uses the verb in lament: “You shake me out like a leaf” (Job 16:12, sense parallel). When David pleads, “Why do You hide Your face and make me to shake with terror?” (implied Psalm 102) the root conveys visceral anguish. Scripture thus legitimizes the believer’s honest confession of inner instability while directing that cry toward God.

Mockery and Head-Wagging

A specialized nuance appears in scenes of scorn:
• Psalm 22:7 “they wag their heads, saying, ‘He trusts in the Lord…’”
• 2 Kings 19:21 and Isaiah 37:22 picture Jerusalem shaking her head at Assyria’s fallen king.

The gesture both belittles the enemy and fulfills messianic prophecy, for the same verb describes onlookers at the crucifixion (Matthew 27:39, Septuagint echo). נּוּעַ therefore threads together siege, psalm, and Passion.

Steadfastness by Contrast

Because נּוּעַ so vividly portrays agitation, biblical writers set it against promises of immovability. Psalm 16:8, Psalm 62:2 and Psalm 125:1 use a different root (מוֹט) but the conceptual antithesis is clear: those who rely on the Lord “will not be shaken.” Haggai 2:6 couples both ideas—God will yet again shake heavens and earth so that His chosen kingdom may stand firm. Hebrews 12:26–28 alludes to this, assuring believers of “a kingdom that cannot be shaken.”

Ministry Applications

1. Pastoral Care: נּוּעַ legitimizes feelings of disorientation. Scripture speaks to wanderers and tremblers, offering the stability of covenant grace.
2. Preaching: The verb furnishes arresting imagery for sermons on judgment, repentance, and assurance—“Is your life swaying like a reed? Christ holds you fast.”
3. Missions and Society: National shaking passages (Isaiah 24; Haggai 2) remind the Church that upheavals are not accidental but providential calls to repentance and gospel urgency.
4. Lament and Worship: Psalm 22 and Psalm 109 assure worshipers that mockery and marginalization are neither new nor final. The One who endured head-wagging now reigns unshaken.

Eschatological Horizon

Isaiah 24:18–20 and Haggai 2:6–7 envision cosmic trembling preceding the final consolidation of God’s reign. Revelation elaborates with earthquakes and collapsing mountains (Revelation 6:12–17), translating Old Testament נּוּעַ imagery into apocalyptic consummation. The very instability that terrifies the wicked heralds eternal stability for the saints.

Summary

Strong’s Hebrew 5128 sketches a theology of motion: sin exiles, judgment convulses, and mocking shakes heads—but the Lord anchors His people. From Cain’s wandering to the eschaton’s cosmic quake, נּוּעַ exposes human frailty and magnifies divine faithfulness.

אֲנִֽיעֲךָ֤ אניעך הֲנִיעֵ֣מוֹ הֵנִ֔יעָה הניעה הניעמו וְ֭יָנוּעוּ וְאָנִ֥יעָה וְנ֤וֹעַ וְנָע֞וּ וְנָע֡וּ וְנָעוּ֙ וַהֲנִע֥וֹתִי וַיְנִעֵם֙ וַיָּ֤נַע וַיָּנִ֣עוּ וַיָּנֻ֔עוּ וַיָּנֻ֙עוּ֙ וַתְּנִיעֵ֥נִי ואניעה והנעותי וינועו וינע וינעו וינעם ונוע ונעו ותניעני יְנִיע֣וּן יְנִיע֥וּן יִנּ֕וֹעוּ יִנּ֙וֹעַ֙ יָנ֣וּעוּ יָנִ֥יעַ יָנִ֥יעוּ יָנַ֣ע ינוע ינועו יניע יניעו יניעון ינע כְּנ֥וֹעַ כנוע לָנ֔וּעַ לָנ֖וּעַ לנוע נ֣וֹעַ נָ֑עוּ נָ֤ע נָ֥ע נָּע֔וֹת נָֽעוּ׃ נָע֖וּ נָע֤וּ נָע֥וּ נוע נע נעו נעו׃ נעות תָּנ֤וּעַ תנוע ’ă·nî·‘ă·ḵā ’ănî‘ăḵā aniaCha hă·nî·‘ê·mōw hănî‘êmōw haniEmov hê·nî·‘āh hênî‘āh heNiah kə·nō·w·a‘ keNoa kənōwa‘ lā·nū·a‘ laNua lānūa‘ na nā‘ nā‘ōwṯ nā‘ū nā·‘ō·wṯ nā·‘ū naot Nau nō·w·a‘ Noa nōwa‘ tā·nū·a‘ taNua tānūa‘ vahanioti vaiYana vaiyaNiu vaiyaNuu vatteniEni vayniEm veaNiah venaU veNoa Veyanuu wa·hă·ni·‘ō·w·ṯî wahăni‘ōwṯî wat·tə·nî·‘ê·nî wattənî‘ênî way·ni·‘êm way·yā·na‘ way·yā·ni·‘ū way·yā·nu·‘ū wayni‘êm wayyāna‘ wayyāni‘ū wayyānu‘ū wə’ānî‘āh wə·’ā·nî·‘āh wə·nā·‘ū wə·nō·w·a‘ wə·yā·nū·‘ū wənā‘ū wənōwa‘ wəyānū‘ū yā·na‘ yā·nî·‘ū yā·nî·a‘ yā·nū·‘ū yaNa yāna‘ yānî‘ū yaNia yānîa‘ yaNiu yānū‘ū yaNuu yə·nî·‘ūn yənî‘ūn yeniUn yin·nō·w·‘ū yin·nō·w·a‘ yinNoa yinNou yinnōw‘ū yinnōwa‘Interlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel Texts