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יֶלֶק

𐤉𐤋𐤒

yeleq

H3218 noun

SILEX Entry

Root ילק to lick up, devour

Definition

A type of locust or destructive larval insect, specifically referring in biblical contexts to a stage or species of locust associated with agricultural devastation; used figuratively for destructive forces or agents of devastation that consume crops or the land.

Semantic Range

locust (specific stage or species); devouring insect; an agent of agricultural devastation; metaphor for destructive force

Root / Etymology

Derived from the unused root יל״ק, suggested to mean 'to lick up,' based on presumed semantic parallels—though no direct verbal form is attested in Biblical Hebrew. The noun יֶלֶק appears as a denominative term for a locust or crop-devouring insect.

Historical & Contextual Notes

יֶלֶק is attested especially in poetic and prophetic texts describing locust plagues as acts of ecological disaster or divine judgment (e.g., Joel 1:4; 2:25; Amos 4:9; Nahum 3:15). Its identification as a particular species or developmental stage of the locust remains debated; some scholars associate it with a nymph or larval stage of the migratory locust (Locusta migratoria), while others see it as a general term for crop-destroying insects. In translation traditions, יֶלֶק has often been rendered as 'cankerworm' or 'caterpillar,' though these do not correspond to exact biological categories. The word often appears in lists with other locust terms (גָּזָם, אַרְבֶּה, חָסִיל), each possibly denoting specific phases of the locust life cycle or varying species, but the precise distinctions remain uncertain. English translations (KJV, etc.) sometimes obscure the agricultural context by using non-specific insect terms. The usage of יֶלֶק in prophetic and poetic passages emphasizes total devastation rather than precise entomological classification. Later Jewish interpretive traditions continued to associate the word with destructive insects, and it appears in post-biblical Hebrew with similar meanings.

Original Strong's Gloss (1890)

from an unused root meaning to lick up; a devourer; specifically, the young locust; cankerworm, caterpillar.

Bantu Hebrew

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Root Family

ילק (y-l-q) — to lick up, devour

Word Forms

7 distinct forms

SIDANCE Surface Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 Occurrences
H3218-02 הַ/יֶּ֔לֶק hayeleq HTd/Ncmsa of the creeping locust the devouring locust 2
H3218-04 כַּ/יֶּ֔לֶק kayeleq HRd/Ncmsa like locusts like a devouring locust 2
H3218-07 יֶ֥לֶק yeleq HNcmsa the locust devouring locust 1
H3218-05 כְּ/יֶ֥לֶק keyeleq HR/Ncmsa like locusts like a devouring locust 1
H3218-01 הַ/יָּ֑לֶק hayaleq HTd/Ncmsa the creeping locust the devouring locust 1
H3218-06 וְ֝/יֶ֗לֶק veyeleq HC/Ncmsa and young locusts and devouring locust 1
H3218-03 כַּ/יָּ֑לֶק kayaleq HRd/Ncmsa like the locust like a devouring locust 1

Occurrences in Scripture

9 total occurrences

SIDANCE Reference Word Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1
H3218-04 Jeremiah 51:14 כַּ/יֶּ֔לֶק kayeleq HRd/Ncmsa like locusts like a devouring locust
H3218-05 Jeremiah 51:27 כְּ/יֶ֥לֶק keyeleq HR/Ncmsa like locusts like a devouring locust
H3218-01 Joel 1:4 הַ/יָּ֑לֶק hayaleq HTd/Ncmsa the creeping locust the devouring locust
H3218-02 Joel 1:4 הַ/יֶּ֔לֶק hayeleq HTd/Ncmsa of the creeping locust the devouring locust
H3218-02 Joel 2:25 הַ/יֶּ֖לֶק hayeleq HTd/Ncmsa the-hopper-locust the devouring locust
H3218-03 Nahum 3:15 כַּ/יָּ֑לֶק kayaleq HRd/Ncmsa like the locust like a devouring locust
H3218-04 Nahum 3:15 כַּ/יֶּ֔לֶק kayeleq HRd/Ncmsa like the locust like a devouring locust
H3218-07 Nahum 3:16 יֶ֥לֶק yeleq HNcmsa the locust devouring locust
H3218-06 Psalms 105:34 וְ֝/יֶ֗לֶק veyeleq HC/Ncmsa and young locusts and devouring locust
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