3486. yashesh

Lexical Summary

yashesh: To be old, to grow old

Original Word: יָשֵׁשׁ
Part of Speech: Adjective
Transliteration: yashesh
Pronunciation: yah-SHAYSH
Phonetic Spelling: (yaw-shaysh')
KJV: stoop for age
NASB: infirm
Word Origin: [from an unused root meaning to blanch]

1. gray-haired, i.e. an aged man

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance

stoop for age

From an unused root meaning to blanch; gray-haired, i.e. An aged man -- stoop for age.

NAS Exhaustive Concordance

Word Origin
from an unused word
Definition
aged, decrepit
NASB Translation
infirm (1).

Brown-Driver-Briggs

יָשֵׁשׁ adjective aged, decrepit, only זָקֵן וְיָשֵׁשׁ2Chronicles 36:17.

Topical Lexicon

Definition and Connotation

יָשֵׁשׁ depicts the “very aged,” a person whose gray hair testifies to an advanced stage of life. The term carries a nuance beyond the ordinary זָקֵן (“elder”); it paints the picture of extreme age, frailty and venerability.

Respect for Great Age in the Old Testament

• Reverence for the hoary head is woven into Israel’s law and wisdom literature. “You are to rise in the presence of the gray-headed and honor the aged” (Leviticus 19:32).
• Gray hair is called “a crown of glory” when found in the way of righteousness (Proverbs 16:31).
• The aged enjoy God’s special promise of sustaining grace: “Even to your old age and gray hairs I will carry you” (Isaiah 46:4).

The Sole Occurrence: 2 Chronicles 36:17

“So He brought up against them the king of the Chaldeans, who killed their young men with the sword in the house of their sanctuary. He had no compassion on young man or virgin, old man or elderly; He delivered them all into his hand”.

1. The Chronicler lists four vulnerable groups—young men, virgins, old men (זָקֵן), and the very aged (יָשֵׁשׁ)—to stress the totality of God’s disciplinary judgment.
2. The inclusion of יָשֵׁשׁ heightens the tragedy. Those normally shielded by social custom became victims when covenant breakers forfeited divine protection.
3. The verse completes a theological arc: after decades of prophetic warnings (2 Chronicles 36:15-16), the final Babylonian assault spares no one. National sin erases generational privilege.

Theological Themes Drawn from יָשֵׁשׁ

• Divine Impartiality. Judgment cuts across age lines when rebellion is persisted in (compare Ezekiel 9:5-7).
• Communal Responsibility. The fate of the very aged reminds all generations that covenant loyalty is corporate; elders and youth share consequences.
• Broken Safeguards. In normal society the frail find refuge in the sanctuary; here they are slain “in the house of their sanctuary,” underscoring the collapse of spiritual and social order.

Old Age and Divine Compassion

Elsewhere Scripture underlines God’s tenderness toward the elderly:
• “Do not cast me off in my old age” (Psalm 71:9).
• “Even when I am old and gray, do not forsake me, O God, until I proclaim Your power to the next generation” (Psalm 71:18).

By contrasting these assurances with 2 Chronicles 36:17, the reader feels the weight of Judah’s apostasy and the cost of spurning covenant mercy.

Ministry Implications

1. Protection of the Elderly. The church must champion the vulnerable who bear years and weakness, reflecting God’s own character (James 1:27).
2. Honor and Listening. Older saints possess experiential wisdom (Job 12:12) vital for mentoring (Titus 2:2-3).
3. Intercessory Burden. The fall of the יָשֵׁשׁ in Jerusalem warns believers to pray for societal repentance so that judgment does not sweep away the defenseless.
4. Finishing Well. Advanced age is not a spiritual retirement but a calling to steadfast testimony until life’s final breath (Psalm 92:14).

Christological and Eschatological Reflections

• In Christ, the church becomes “one new man,” where age distinctions no longer confer privilege but provide complementary service (1 Corinthians 12:12-26).
• The New Jerusalem pictures a restored community safe from sword or exile, where every tear is wiped away and longevity is swallowed by eternal life (Revelation 21:4).

The lone use of יָשֵׁשׁ thus moves the reader from the sorrow of covenant breach to hope in the ultimate kingdom where the aged, along with all God’s people, are forever secure.

Forms and Transliterations

וְיָשֵׁ֑שׁ וישש veyaShesh wə·yā·šêš wəyāšêš

Englishman's Concordance

2 Chronicles 36:17
HEB: וּבְתוּלָ֖ה זָקֵ֣ן וְיָשֵׁ֑שׁ הַכֹּ֖ל נָתַ֥ן
NAS: old man or infirm; He gave
KJV: old man, or him that stooped for age: he gave
INT: virgin old infirm all gave

1 Occurrence

Strong's Hebrew 3486
1 Occurrence

wə·yā·šêš — 1 Occ.