קוּץ (quts)
quts
to summer
H:VQuick Reference
- Language
- Biblical Hebrew
- Testament
- Old Testament
- Occurrences
- 1 verses
- Root
- —
- Part of speech
- H:V
Word Overview
The Hebrew verb quts appears only once in the Old Testament, found in Isaiah 16:9. Its core meaning is to spend the summer season. In this specific context, it describes the emotional state of Moab as its vineyards are being harvested.
While the word literally refers to the agricultural activity of summer, the prophet uses it metaphorically to express deep grief. The imagery suggests that just as the harvest marks the end of a growing season, the destruction of Moab’s vines brings a painful conclusion to their prosperity. Translators typically render this as "wail" or "lament," capturing the sorrow associated with the loss of the summer yield.
This single occurrence highlights how biblical language often ties human emotion to the rhythms of nature. The verb connects the physical reality of the season with the spiritual weight of mourning, showing that even the changing of seasons can carry a message of sorrow in the prophetic tradition.
Based on public-domain lexicons (Strong's, Thayer, Gesenius, Brown-Driver-Briggs and others).
What This Word Means for Your Faith
The Hebrew word quts appears only once in Scripture, nestled within Isaiah’s lament for Moab. It literally describes the summer harvest, yet here it carries a heavy weight of grief. The prophet uses the imagery of gathering crops to portray a people whose prosperity is being stripped away. What should be a time of abundance becomes a season of loss and mourning.
This rare word reminds us that our emotions are often tied to the rhythms of life around us. When seasons change, so do our circumstances. The text shows that even the natural order can reflect deep sorrow when things are taken from us. It validates the feeling that loss is real and painful, not just a spiritual abstraction.
In your own life, you may face seasons where what you worked for seems to vanish. This verse offers comfort by showing that such grief is recognized in Scripture. You do not have to hide your sorrow. The biblical writers understood that harvest can bring both joy and pain, depending on who holds the sheaf.
How it's translated
How this word is rendered word-by-word in the 1 verses where it appears, by frequency.
- and/ it will pass [the] summer1×
Forms in the text
The inflected forms of this word as they appear in Scripture, by frequency.
- וְ/קָ֤ץ1×
Key Verses
-
Isaiah 18:6
They will be left together for the ravenous birds of the mountains, and for the animals of the earth. The ravenous birds will eat them in the summer, and all the animals of the earth will eat them in the winter.
This verse uses the root concept of summer to describe a desolate fate where birds and beasts consume the remains, highlighting the finality of judgment rather than the joy of harvest.