Original Word: רָקַד
Part of Speech: Verb
Transliteration: raqad
Pronunciation: rah-KAHD
Phonetic Spelling: (raw-kad')
KJV: dance, jump, leap, skip
NASB: skip, bounding, dance, frolic, leap, leaping, skip about
Word Origin: [a primitive root]

1. (properly) to stamp, i.e. to spring about (wildly or for joy)

dance, jump, leap, skip

A primitive root; properly, to stamp, i.e. To spring about (wildly or for joy) -- dance, jump, leap, skip.

Word Origin
a prim. root
Definition
to skip about
NASB Translation
bounding (1), dance (1), frolic (1), leap (1), leaping (1), skip (2), skip about (1), skipped (1).

רָקַד verb skip about (Late Hebrew Pi`el, Hiph`il = Biblical Hebrew; so Aramaic רְקַד Pa`el, Pa`el; Assyrian ra‡âdu, skip, dance;, Arabic IX. run with leaps and bounds, leaping up briskly); —

Qal skip about, Perfect3masculine plural רָֽקְדוּ Psalm 114:4 (of mountains, כְּאֵילִים); Imperfect2masculine plural תִּרְקְדוּ Psalm 114:6 (id.; both of Sinai quaking at law-giving); Infinitive construct עֵת רְקוֺד Ecclesiastes 3:4 a time to mourn (סְפֹד), and a time to skip about (gaily).

Pi`el dance, leap: Imperfect3masculine plural יְרַקְּדוּ Isaiah 13:21 (of שְׂעִירִים); יְרַקֵּר֑וּן Job 21:11 (of children; merrily), Joel 2:5(of locusts); Participle מְרַקֵּד 1 Chronicles 15:29 (of David; = מְכַרְכֵּר, מְפַזֵּז, in "" 2 Samuel 6:14,16); feminine singular מְרַקֵּדָה Nahum 3:2 (of jolting chariots); in 2 Samuel 6:21 a insert אֲרַקֵּד I will dance, after ׳לִפְנֵי י, ᵐ5 Th We Dr Bu HPS (מְרַקֵּד).

Hiph`il Imperfect3masculine singular suffix וַיַּרְקִידֵם Psalm 29:6 he (׳י) made them skip like calves (trees, by lightning).

רַקָּה see I. רקק. רַקּוֺן see II. רקק.

Range of Meaning

The verb רָקַד portrays vigorous bodily movement—leaping, skipping, springing, or dancing—often issuing from exuberant joy. Scripture applies it to humans, animals, and even the natural order, weaving a picture of unrestrained celebration in response to God’s presence, blessing, or judgment.

Occurrences in Scripture

1 Chronicles 15:29; Job 21:11; Psalm 29:6; Psalm 114:4; Psalm 114:6; Ecclesiastes 3:4; Isaiah 13:21; Joel 2:5; Nahum 3:2.

Human Joy and Worship

David’s procession with the ark provides the most striking personal instance: “And as the ark of the covenant of the LORD entered the City of David, Michal daughter of Saul watched from a window and saw King David leaping and dancing” (1 Chronicles 15:29). Here רָקַד embodies wholehearted, God-centered celebration, challenging every generation to uninhibited praise. Ecclesiastes 3:4 pairs “a time to weep” with “a time to dance,” acknowledging that redeemed life embraces both lament and festive movement. Such dance is not mere entertainment; it is covenantal response.

Childlike Freedom

Job 21:11 records the carefree skipping of children—“They send forth their little ones like a flock; their children skip about.” The verse underscores that the impulse to leap springs from a heart unburdened by fear, something the righteous are promised eternally.

Nature Personified

Creation itself is pictured as dancing. “He makes Lebanon skip like a calf and Sirion like a young wild ox” (Psalm 29:6). When the Red Sea fled, “the mountains skipped like rams, the hills like lambs” (Psalm 114:4), a refrain repeated in verse 6. These scenes teach that all creation exults under Yahweh’s sovereign voice; cosmic joy mirrors human worship.

Eschatological and Prophetic Overtones

Prophets employ רָקַד to depict both terror and triumph. Joel likens invading warhorses to warriors who “leap on the tops of the mountains” (Joel 2:5), signaling judgment’s swiftness. Nahum 3:2 uses the sound of prancing steeds in Nineveh’s downfall, while Isaiah 13:21 speaks of desert creatures skipping in desolated Babylon. The same verb that describes joyful dance can thus portray the restless energy of judgment, reminding hearers that God’s purposes move history with unstoppable vigor.

Ministry Application

• Worship leaders find theological warrant for physical expression; reverent dance may embody truth proclaimed.
• Pastoral counseling can draw on Job 21:11 and Ecclesiastes 3:4 to affirm the goodness of embodied joy amid life’s seasons.
• Preachers may contrast the jubilant skipping of Zion with the frantic prancing in prophetic judgment, urging repentance and hope.
• Children’s ministries can celebrate that Scripture honors youthful exuberance, encouraging intergenerational praise.

Christological Reflections

The Gospels do not record Jesus dancing, yet He affirmed childlike joy (Matthew 11:17) and proclaimed that stones would cry out if disciples kept silent (Luke 19:40). These echoes of רָקַד anticipate the consummation when creation and redeemed humanity “leap like calves released from the stall” (Malachi 4:2), a promise fulfilled in the resurrection life secured by Christ.

Conclusion

רָקַד calls believers to a robust, holistic response to God—body, soul, and creation united in jubilant movement. Whether in celebration or in warning, the verb pulses with the certainty that the LORD reigns and will complete His redemptive dance in history.

וַיַּרְקִידֵ֥ם וירקידם יְרַקְּדוּ־ יְרַקֵּד֔וּן יְרַקֵּדֽוּן׃ ירקדו־ ירקדון ירקדון׃ מְרַקֵּ֣ד מְרַקֵּדָֽה׃ מרקד מרקדה׃ רְקֽוֹד׃ רָקְד֣וּ רקדו רקוד׃ תִּרְקְד֣וּ תרקדו mə·raq·qê·ḏāh mə·raq·qêḏ merakKed merakkeDah məraqqêḏ məraqqêḏāh rā·qə·ḏū rakeDu rāqəḏū rə·qō·wḏ reKod rəqōwḏ tir·qə·ḏū tirkeDu tirqəḏū vaiyarkiDem way·yar·qî·ḏêm wayyarqîḏêm yə·raq·qə·ḏū- yə·raq·qê·ḏūn yerakkedu yerakkeDun yəraqqəḏū- yəraqqêḏūnInterlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel Texts