5182. necheth
Lexical Summary
necheth: Descent, rest, quietness

Original Word: נְחַת
Part of Speech: Verb
Transliteration: nchath
Pronunciation: NEH-kheth
Phonetic Spelling: (nekh-ath')
KJV: carry, come down, depose, lay up, place
NASB: deposed, deposit, descended, descending, put, stored
Word Origin: [(Aramaic) corresponding to H5181 (נָחַת - bend)]

1. to descend
2. causatively, to bring away, deposit, depose

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
carry, come down, depose, lay up, place

(Aramaic) corresponding to nachath; to descend; causatively, to bring away, deposit, depose -- carry, come down, depose, lay up, place.

see HEBREW nachath

NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Origin
(Aramaic) corresponding to nacheth
Definition
to descend
NASB Translation
deposed (1), deposit (1), descended (1), descending (1), put (1), stored (1).

Topical Lexicon
Semantic Range and Imagery

The verb carries the concrete picture of movement from a higher place to a lower one—either physically (“coming down”) or metaphorically (“bringing down,” “depositing,” “laying aside,” “deposing”). In Scripture this movement is never random; it is always directed by God’s sovereign purpose, whether He is sending help from above, securing sacred objects, or humbling the proud.

Occurrences in Redemptive History

1. Ezra 5:15; 6:1; 6:5 – post-exilic Jerusalem and the temple vessels
2. Daniel 4:13; 4:23 – the watcher’s descent in Nebuchadnezzar’s dream
3. Daniel 5:20 – the downfall of Babylon’s first great king

These six references cluster around two eras separated by roughly fifty years yet united by a single theological thread: the Lord brings down what is exalted and safeguards what He has chosen.

Ezra: Safeguarding the Holy Vessels

Cyrus, and later Darius, commission the return of the temple treasures taken by Nebuchadnezzar. Twice the royal decree stresses that the articles are to be “deposited” in the rebuilt sanctuary (Ezra 5:15; 6:5), and a search is ordered “where the treasures were stored” (6:1). This deliberate placing down of sacred objects highlights:

• Covenant faithfulness – God “brought down” judgment on Judah, but now “brings down” the vessels to their rightful place, proving His promise to restore (Jeremiah 29:10).
• Holiness – the vessels are not merely carried back; they are carefully laid in the very location prescribed by God, underscoring that worship must be conducted on His terms, not man’s convenience.
• Providence – Persian kings unknowingly fulfill Isaiah 44:28; 45:1, demonstrating that even pagan rulers descend to serve God’s redemptive plan.

Daniel: The Watcher’s Descent and the King’s Humbling

“In the visions of my mind as I lay in bed, I looked, and there before me was a watcher, a holy one, coming down from heaven” (Daniel 4:13). Heaven’s messenger descends to announce that the towering “tree” of Nebuchadnezzar’s empire will be cut down until the king acknowledges that “the Most High rules the kingdom of men” (4:17). The same verb recurs in 4:23 and again in 5:20: “he was deposed from his royal throne and stripped of his glory.” Two key dimensions emerge:

1. Divine Intervention – Heaven is not distant; when human pride reaches its height, God’s servant descends, enforcing the decree that no flesh may boast before Him (cf. 1 Corinthians 1:29).
2. Humiliation-Restoration Pattern – Nebuchadnezzar’s mind is “brought low” so that his eyes may be lifted up to heaven (4:34). The descent is a mercy designed to lead to repentance and subsequent exaltation by grace (James 4:6,10).

Interwoven Themes of Humility and Restoration

Whether it is temple vessels lowered into place or a monarch lowered from his throne, every usage underscores the same principle: “For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted” (Luke 14:11). What is physically placed down by decree is spiritually safeguarded by the Lord of history.

Ministry and Devotional Applications

• Stewardship – Just as the vessels were meticulously deposited, ministry resources today should be handled reverently and in accordance with God’s revealed will.
• Accountability of Leaders – Nebuchadnezzar’s account warns every leader that authority is a trust from God; pride invites a precipitous descent.
• Hope for the Humble – The same God who brings low also restores. Believers undergoing seasons of humiliation can look to the pattern of Ezra and Daniel for assurance that obedience positions them for renewal.

Anticipation of the Gospel

The verb’s dual action of descending and restoring anticipates the incarnational arc of the Lord Jesus Christ, who “came down from heaven” (John 6:38) and “humbled Himself” (Philippians 2:8) that He might “bring many sons to glory” (Hebrews 2:10). Every scriptural descent ultimately points to His redemptive descent and the exaltation that followed.

Related Biblical Motifs

• Sanctified vessels – Exodus 40:9; 2 Timothy 2:21
• Heavenly messengers – Genesis 28:12; Revelation 10:1
• The great reversal – 1 Samuel 2:7–8; Isaiah 40:4; 1 Peter 5:6

Thus the six appearances of נְחַת weave a rich tapestry of divine faithfulness, humbling, and restoration—threads that run through all of Scripture and find their fullest expression in the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Forms and Transliterations
אֲחֵ֣ת אחת הָנְחַת֙ הנחת וְתַחֵ֖ת ותחת מְהַחֲתִ֥ין מהחתין נָחִ֣ת ׀ נָחִֽת׃ נחת נחת׃ ’ă·ḥêṯ ’ăḥêṯ aChet hā·nə·ḥaṯ haneChat hānəḥaṯ mə·ha·ḥă·ṯîn mehachaTin məhaḥăṯîn nā·ḥiṯ naChit nāḥiṯ vetaChet wə·ṯa·ḥêṯ wəṯaḥêṯ
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Englishman's Concordance
Ezra 5:15
HEB: שֵׂ֚א אֵֽזֶל־ אֲחֵ֣ת הִמּ֔וֹ בְּהֵיכְלָ֖א
NAS: go [and] deposit them in the temple
KJV: go, carry them
INT: Take go deposit them the temple

Ezra 6:1
HEB: דִּ֧י גִנְזַיָּ֛א מְהַחֲתִ֥ין תַּמָּ֖ה בְּבָבֶֽל׃
NAS: the treasures were stored in Babylon.
KJV: the treasures were laid up in Babylon.
INT: forasmuch the treasures were stored where Babylon

Ezra 6:5
HEB: בִירֽוּשְׁלֶם֙ לְאַתְרֵ֔הּ וְתַחֵ֖ת בְּבֵ֥ית אֱלָהָֽא׃
NAS: in Jerusalem; and you shall put [them] in the house
KJV: [every one] to his place, and place [them] in the house
INT: Jerusalem to their places shall put the house of God

Daniel 4:13
HEB: מִן־ שְׁמַיָּ֖א נָחִֽת׃
NAS: a holy one, descended from heaven.
KJV: and an holy one came down from
INT: from heaven descended

Daniel 4:23
HEB: עִ֣יר וְקַדִּ֣ישׁ נָחִ֣ת ׀ מִן־ שְׁמַיָּ֡א
NAS: a holy one, descending from heaven
KJV: and an holy one coming down from
INT: an watcher A holy descending from heaven

Daniel 5:20
HEB: תִּֽקְפַ֣ת לַהֲזָדָ֑ה הָנְחַת֙ מִן־ כָּרְסֵ֣א
NAS: that he behaved arrogantly, he was deposed from his royal
KJV: in pride, he was deposed from
INT: became behaved was deposed from throne

6 Occurrences

Strong's Hebrew 5182
6 Occurrences


’ă·ḥêṯ — 1 Occ.
hā·nə·ḥaṯ — 1 Occ.
mə·ha·ḥă·ṯîn — 1 Occ.
nā·ḥiṯ — 2 Occ.
wə·ṯa·ḥêṯ — 1 Occ.

5181
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