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מַלְקוֹשׁ

𐤌𐤋𐤒𐤅𐤔

malqôwsh

H4456 noun

SILEX Entry

Root לקש to be late, come late, gather later

Definition

The seasonal rain occurring in the late spring, typically at the end of the agricultural year, vital for the maturing of grain crops. The term refers specifically to the last significant rainfall that occurs before the dry summer season in the land of ancient Israel. In poetic passages, it may metaphorically denote that which brings completion or fulfillment, but its fundamental reference is agricultural and calendrical.

Semantic Range

spring rain, latter rain, seasonal rain for ripening crops, something that comes at the end stage; (rarely, in later poetic usage) completion, fulfillment

Root / Etymology

From the Hebrew root לקש, with a probable core meaning of 'to gather, collect, be late,' indicating something that comes or is collected late in a sequence (here, the last rains of the crop cycle). The noun form מַלְקוֹשׁ is a specific designation for this late rain. The related word לֶקֶשׁ is also connected, possibly denoting a late or final rain or harvest product. Etymology is reasonably secure, connecting to the general sense of something 'late' or 'end-stage.'

Historical & Contextual Notes

In the agricultural calendar of ancient Israel, the מַלְקוֹשׁ (malqôsh) followed the יֹורֶה (yôreh, 'early rain') and was crucial for ripening cereal crops before the harvest (Deuteronomy 11:14; Joel 2:23; Proverbs 16:15). This term reflects the dependence of ancient Israelite farmers on seasonal precipitation cycles, which defined the agricultural economy. Later Hebrew lexica sometimes extended the sense to 'eloquence' or 'effectiveness in speech,' likely in a metaphorical or poetic fashion, but this is rare and not attested in the Hebrew Bible itself. In post-exilic texts, the rain imagery is sometimes spiritualized, but the word's primary reference remains agricultural, not religious or ethnically distinct. English Bibles often render the term as 'latter rain,' which captures the timing but may obscure the specific agricultural and calendrical context. Distinct from words for ordinary rain (מָטָר) or storm (זֶרֶם). The term is not associated with later developments such as the festival calendar of Second Temple Judaism, nor does it indicate geographic distinctions ('Jew', 'Judean') found in later periods.

Original Strong's Gloss (1890)

from לָקַשׁ; (compare לֶקֶשׁ); the spring rain; figuratively, eloquence; latter rain.

Bantu Hebrew

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Root Family

לקש (l-q-sh) — to be late, come late, gather later

Strong's Lemma SIBI-P1
H3953 לָקַשׁ they will glean the late crop

Word Forms

4 distinct forms

SIDANCE Surface Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 Occurrences
H4456-04 וּ/מַלְק֑וֹשׁ umaleqosh HC/Ncmsa and-late-rain late spring rain 4
H4456-03 מַלְק֔וֹשׁ maleqosh HNcmsa of the latter rain late-season rain 2
H4456-01 כְּ/מַלְק֖וֹשׁ kemaleqosh HR/Ncmsa like the spring rain like the late-season rain 1
H4456-02 לְ/מַלְקֽוֹשׁ lemaleqosh HR/Ncmsa as for the spring rain late-season rain 1

Occurrences in Scripture

8 total occurrences

SIDANCE Reference Word Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1
H4456-04 Deuteronomy 11:14 וּ/מַלְק֑וֹשׁ umaleqosh HC/Ncmsa and latter rain late spring rain
H4456-04 Jeremiah 3:3 וּ/מַלְק֖וֹשׁ umaleqosh HC/Ncmsa and the spring rain late spring rain
H4456-04 Jeremiah 5:24 וּ/מַלְק֖וֹשׁ umaleqosh HC/Ncmsa and-late-rain late spring rain
H4456-01 Hosea 6:3 כְּ/מַלְק֖וֹשׁ kemaleqosh HR/Ncmsa like the spring rain like the late-season rain
H4456-04 Joel 2:23 וּ/מַלְק֖וֹשׁ umaleqosh HC/Ncmsa and-latter-rain late spring rain
H4456-03 Zechariah 10:1 מַלְק֔וֹשׁ maleqosh HNcmsa spring-rain late-season rain
H4456-03 Proverbs 16:15 מַלְקֽוֹשׁ maleqosh HNcmsa of the latter rain late-season rain
H4456-02 Job 29:23 לְ/מַלְקֽוֹשׁ lemaleqosh HR/Ncmsa as for the spring rain late-season rain
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