Original Word: צָמַח
Part of Speech: Verb
Transliteration: tsamach
Pronunciation: tsaw-makh'
Phonetic Spelling: (tsaw-makh')
KJV: bear, bring forth, (cause to, make to) bud (forth), (cause to, make to) grow (again, up), (cause to) spring (forth, up)
NASB: grow, spring, spring forth, sprout, sprouted, grown, branch
Word Origin: [a primitive root]

1. to sprout (transitive or intransitive, literal or figurative)

bear, bring forth, cause to, make to bud forth, make to grow again, cause to spring forth,

A primitive root; to sprout (transitive or intransitive, literal or figurative) -- bear, bring forth, (cause to, make to) bud (forth), (cause to, make to) grow (again, up), (cause to) spring (forth, up).

Word Origin
a prim. root
Definition
to sprout, spring up
NASB Translation
branch (1), grow (8), growing (1), grown (2), spring (5), spring forth (5), springs (1), sprout (4), sprouted (4), sprouts (1), unproductive* (1).

צָמַח verb sprout, spring up (Late Hebrew id., so ᵑ7 צְמַח; Sir. spring or shine forth, shining, also sprout; Phoenician צמח posterity); —

Qal Perfect3masculine singular צָֽמַחבּֿוֺ Leviticus 13:37; 3plural וְצָֽמְחוּ consecutive Isaiah 44:4; Imperfect3masculine singular יִצְמַח Job 5:6, 3feminine plural תִּצְמַחְנָה Isaiah 42:9, etc.; Participle צֹמֵחַ Exodus 10:5, צוֺמֵחַ Ecclesiastes 2:6; feminine plural צֹמְחוֺת Genesis 41:6,23; — sprout, spring up:

1 of plants, trees, etc. Genesis 2:5; Exodus 10:5 (both J), Genesis 41:6,23 (E), Ezekiel 17:6 (in figurative); once (late) יַעַר צוֺמֵחַ עֵצִים Ecclesiastes 2:6 wood sprouting with trees (full of growing trees); figurative of future ruler (see צֶמַח) Zechariah 6:12, posterity Isaiah 44:4, compare Job 8:19, trouble(עָמָל) Isaiah 5:6,truth (אֱמֶת) Psalm 85:12, restoration (אֲרֻכָֽתְךָ) Isaiah 58:8, future events Isaiah 42:9.

2 of hair Leviticus 13:37 (P; compare Pi`el).

Pi`el grow abunduntly, always of hair; — Perfect 3 masculine singular צִמֵּחַ Ezekiel 16:7 (in figurative): Imperfect3masculine singular יִצַמַּח 2 Samuel 10:5 = 1 Chronicles 19:5 (of beard); Infinitive construct לְצַמֵּחַ Judges 16:22 (Samson's hair).

Hiph`il Perfect3masculine singular suffix וְהִצְמִיחָהּ Isaiah 55:10 Imperfect3masculine singular יַצְמִיחַ 2 Samuel 23:5; Isaiah 61: וַיַּצְמַח Genesis 2:9, etc.; Infinitive construct לְהַצְמִיחַ Job 38:27; Participle מַצְמִיחַ Psalm 104:14; Psalm 147:8; —

1 cause to grow, with accusative of plant, subject ׳י Genesis 2:9; Psalm 104:14, compare Job 38:27, with 2accusative Psalm 147:8 who causeth mountains to sprout grass; figurative, object צֶמַח צְדָקָה Jeremiah 33:15; horn (קֶרֶן) of Israel Ezekiel 29:21, of David Psalm 132:17; righteousness, etc. Isaiah 61:11b; compare also 2 Samuel 23:5 (if interrogative, see Dr Bu; otherwise HPS); subject ground Genesis 3:18 compare Isaiah 61:11a (simile), Deuteronomy 29:22 (object omitted); also (figurative) Isaiah 45:8 (compare Di Kit).

2 of rain, cause the earth to sprout (absolute), Isaiah 55:10.

General Meaning and Imagery

The verb צָמַח paints the picture of hidden life pushing upward into visibility—sprouting, budding, flourishing. It is used of vegetation, horns, human hair, and even abstract qualities such as faithfulness or righteousness. The range of usage underscores a unifying theme: what God has planted, whether physical or spiritual, inevitably manifests itself in the created order.

Agricultural Context in Israel’s World

Ancient Israel depended on seasonal rainfall for crops. Genesis 2:5 notes that “no plant of the field had yet sprouted, for the LORD God had not sent rain upon the earth,” linking sprouting directly to divine provision. Psalm 104:14 celebrates the same reality: “He makes the grass grow for the livestock and provides crops for man to cultivate.” To the agrarian ear that first heard Scripture read aloud, צָמַח was the ordinary yet wondrous rhythm of survival—seedtime followed by God-given growth.

In drought or judgment, the verb turns negative. Deuteronomy 29:23 foresees a cursed land “incapable of producing anything that sprouts,” an image of covenant reversal as stark as a dust-blown field.

Divine Agency in Growth

Though farmers sow and tend, the text consistently attributes the sprouting itself to God. Isaiah 55:10–11 parallels rain that “buds and sprouts” with the unfailing efficacy of God’s word. The growth of a staff in Numbers 17:8—“Aaron’s staff had sprouted, budded, blossomed, and produced almonds”—makes the priesthood’s legitimacy a matter of visible, God-wrought life. Whenever צָמַח appears, the reader is invited to see beyond natural processes to the Sovereign who animates them.

Judgment and Blessing

Growth imagery becomes a theological gauge. Psalm 92:7 observes, “Though the wicked sprout like grass… they will be forever destroyed,” while Psalm 85:11 rejoices, “Faithfulness sprouts from the earth.” Sprouting can signify either fleeting prosperity under judgment or enduring blessing under covenant grace. The prophets exploit both sides: Ezekiel 17 pictures a vine that “sprouted” under foreign control only to wither, whereas Ezekiel 29:21 promises, “I will cause a horn to sprout for the house of Israel.” Context determines whether צָמַח heralds doom or deliverance, but the verb itself remains a testimony to God’s active governance of history.

Messianic Significance: The Righteous Branch

The noun derived from the same root (צֶמַח) becomes a messianic title—“the Branch.” Yet the verb also carries messianic weight. Jeremiah 33:15 records God’s pledge: “I will cause to spring forth for David a righteous Branch.” Zechariah 6:12 adds, “He will branch out from His place and build the temple of the LORD.” The sprouting here is not botanical but royal and redemptive. Just as unseen life breaks through the soil, so the promised Son of David emerges in history, establishing a kingdom whose growth is sure. New Testament writers echo this expectation when they present Jesus as the fulfillment of the Branch prophecies.

Covenantal Renewal and National Restoration

Isaiah 61:11 employs agricultural metaphor for post-exilic hope: “As the soil brings forth its sprouts… so the Lord GOD will cause righteousness and praise to spring up before all the nations.” Restoration after judgment is pictured not merely as rebuilding walls but as fresh, green life bursting forth. Ministries that long for revival can draw from this reservoir of promise, trusting that the same God who made dry staffs bloom can make desert hearts flourish.

Personal and Ethical Growth

Proverbs 11:28 warns, “Those who trust in their riches will fall, but the righteous will thrive like foliage.” Growth vocabulary challenges believers to evaluate what kind of life is sprouting from their choices. Psalm 132:17 points to a “horn” God will “make… grow for David,” suggesting that sanctification and godly leadership are likewise divine productions. Pastoral application flows naturally: cultivate obedience, yet rest in the Lord who alone causes true maturity.

Eschatological Hope

Isaiah 45:8 pleads, “Let the earth open, let salvation spring up.” The final horizon is global: righteousness, salvation, and praise will one day erupt everywhere the curse once reigned. Revelation’s vision of the new earth completes the trajectory: what began as an Edenic sprout ends in an everlasting harvest.

Theological Summary for Ministry Application

1. Growth is God’s prerogative; human labor is vital but never ultimate.
2. Judgments that wither and mercies that make flourish both vindicate God’s covenant fidelity.
3. The Messiah’s advent is the supreme “sprouting,” guaranteeing every lesser renewal.
4. Spiritual leaders labor in confidence, knowing that unseen seeds of the word will, in God’s timing, break the surface.
5. Every blade of grass, every revival of righteousness, and every new believer testifies that צָמַח is still at work, until the earth is filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD as the waters cover the sea.

אַצְמִ֣יחַ אַצְמִ֤יחַ אַצְמִ֥יחַ אצמיח הַמַּצְמִ֖יחַ הַצֹּמֵ֥חַ המצמיח הצמח וְהִצְמִיחָ֑הּ וְצָמְח֖וּ וַיִּצְמַ֡ח וַיַּצְמַ֞ח וּ֝לְהַצְמִ֗יחַ והצמיחה ויצמח ולהצמיח וצמחו יְצַמַּ֥ח יִצְמַ֥ח יִצְמָ֑ח יִצְמָ֔ח יִצְמָֽחוּ׃ יַצְמִ֤יחַ יַצְמִֽיחַ׃ יצמח יצמחו׃ יצמיח יצמיח׃ לְצַמֵּ֖חַ לצמח מַצְמִ֤יחַ מצמיח צִמֵּ֔חַ צָֽמַח־ צֹמְח֖וֹת צוֹמֵ֥חַ צומח צמח צמח־ צמחות תִּצְמַ֖חְנָה תִּצְמָ֑ח תִצְמָ֑ח תִצְמָ֔ח תַּצְמִ֣יחַֽ תַצְמִ֑יחַ תַצְמִ֔חַ תַצְמִ֙יחַ֙ תצמח תצמחנה תצמיח ’aṣ·mî·aḥ ’aṣmîaḥ atzMiach ham·maṣ·mî·aḥ hammaṣmîaḥ hammatzMiach haṣ·ṣō·mê·aḥ haṣṣōmêaḥ hatztzoMeach lə·ṣam·mê·aḥ ləṣammêaḥ letzamMeach maṣ·mî·aḥ maṣmîaḥ matzMiach ṣā·maḥ- ṣāmaḥ- ṣim·mê·aḥ ṣimmêaḥ ṣō·mə·ḥō·wṯ ṣō·w·mê·aḥ ṣōməḥōwṯ ṣōwmêaḥ taṣ·mî·aḥ ṯaṣ·mi·aḥ ṯaṣ·mî·aḥ taṣmîaḥ ṯaṣmiaḥ ṯaṣmîaḥ tatzMiach tiṣ·māḥ ṯiṣ·māḥ tiṣ·maḥ·nāh tiṣmāḥ ṯiṣmāḥ tiṣmaḥnāh titzMach titzMachnah tzamach tzimMeach tzoMeach tzomeChot ū·lə·haṣ·mî·aḥ ūləhaṣmîaḥ ulehatzMiach vaiyatzMach vaiyitzMach vehitzmiChah vetzameChu way·yaṣ·maḥ way·yiṣ·maḥ wayyaṣmaḥ wayyiṣmaḥ wə·hiṣ·mî·ḥāh wə·ṣā·mə·ḥū wəhiṣmîḥāh wəṣāməḥū yaṣ·mî·aḥ yaṣmîaḥ yatzMiach yə·ṣam·maḥ yəṣammaḥ yetzamMach yiṣ·mā·ḥū yiṣ·maḥ yiṣ·māḥ yiṣmaḥ yiṣmāḥ yiṣmāḥū yitzMach yitzMachuInterlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel Texts