נָתַשׁ (na.tash)
na.tash
to uproot
H:VQuick Reference
- Language
- Biblical Hebrew
- Testament
- Old Testament
- Occurrences
- 15 verses
- Root
- —
- Part of speech
- H:V
Word Overview
The Hebrew verb nātash means to pull something out by the roots, whether it is a plant or a people from their land. It describes a forceful removal that leaves nothing behind. This word appears fifteen times in the Old Testament, with a heavy concentration in Jeremiah, where it often accompanies the threat of judgment against nations and Israel itself.
Its imagery is agricultural but applied to political and spiritual realities. In 1 Kings 9:7, Solomon warns that if Israel turns away from God, He will uproot them from the land He gave them. Similarly, Jeremiah uses nātash to describe how Babylon would tear down Jerusalem’s foundations (Jeremiah 51:26). The action is not just displacement; it is total eradication.
Translators often render this word as "pluck up," "root out," or "destroy." The Hebrew root suggests a violent, decisive act that cannot be easily reversed. Unlike gentle gardening, nātash implies a tearing away of something firmly established. This reflects the seriousness of covenant breaking in biblical theology.
While most common in prophetic warnings, the verb also appears in Chronicles and Kings to describe historical judgments. Its repeated use underscores a key theme: fidelity to God ensures stability, while rebellion leads to being uprooted from one’s place in history.
Based on public-domain lexicons (Strong's, Thayer, Gesenius, Brown-Driver-Briggs and others).
What This Word Means for Your Faith
The word nātash paints a vivid picture of being pulled from the ground by the roots. In the Old Testament, this imagery describes the severe consequences when people break their covenant with God. It is not a gentle removal but a decisive act that leaves no foundation behind. Prophets like Jeremiah used it to warn Israel and surrounding nations that turning away from faithfulness leads to total loss of place and identity.
Yet this theme does not end with destruction. The same prophets who spoke of being uprooted also promised restoration. God declares that He will plant His people again, securing them so they are never pulled out a second time. This contrast offers hope: our stability comes not from our own strength but from God’s commitment to rebuild what was lost.
For your faith life, this word reminds us that true security is found in remaining connected to God. When we face instability or change, we can trust that He is the one who plants and sustains us. His desire is not to remove us but to establish us firmly in His presence.
How it's translated
How this word is rendered word-by-word in the 15 verses where it appears, by frequency.
- to/ pluck up3×
- it will be plucked up2×
- they will be plucked up1×
- plucking up1×
- have plucked up/ I1×
- are they plucked up1×
- and/ he will pluck up1×
- and/ I will pluck up/ them1×
- and/ I will pluck up1×
- [am] about to pluck up/ them1×
- [am] about to pluck up1×
- I will pluck up1×
Forms in the text
The inflected forms of this word as they appear in Scripture, by frequency.
- לִ/נְת֥וֹשׁ2×
- תִנָּתֵשׁ֙1×
- נֹתֵ֑שׁ1×
- נֹֽתְשָׁ/ם֙1×
- נָתְשִׁ֣/י1×
- נָת֥וֹשׁ1×
- לִ/נְת֧וֹשׁ1×
- יִנָּתֵ֧שׁ1×
- יִנָּתְשׁ֜וּ1×
- יִנָּתְשׁ֗וּ1×
- וּ/נְתַשְׁתִּ֗י/ם1×
- וְ/נָתַ֣שׁ1×
Key Verses
-
I Kings 14:15
For Yahweh will strike Israel, as a reed is shaken in the water; and he will root up Israel out of this good land which he gave to their fathers, and will scatter them beyond the River, because they have made their Asherah poles, provoking Yahweh to anger.
This verse uses the imagery of a reed shaken in water to show how completely Israel will be removed from the land due to idolatry.
-
Jeremiah 12:15
It will happen that after I have plucked them up, I will return and have compassion on them. I will bring them again, every man to his heritage, and every man to his land.
Here God promises that after plucking up His people, He will return with compassion and restore them to their heritage.
-
Jeremiah 31:28
It will happen that, like as I have watched over them to pluck up and to break down and to overthrow and to destroy and to afflict, so I will watch over them to build and to plant,” says Yahweh.
This passage contrasts the old era of destruction with a new promise where God watches over His people to build and plant them instead.
-
Amos 9:15
I will plant them on their land, and they will no more be plucked up out of their land which I have given them,” says Yahweh your God.
The final word on this theme in the prophetic books, assuring that God will plant Israel so they are never uprooted again.