Lexical Summary qayits: Summer, summer fruit, harvest Original Word: קַיִץ Strong's Exhaustive Concordance summer fruit, house From quwts; harvest (as the crop), whether the product (grain or fruit) or the (dry) season -- summer (fruit, house). see HEBREW quwts Topical Lexicon Meaning and Scope of קַיִץקַיִץ denotes the warm, dry season of the Near Eastern year, beginning after the latter rains and extending until the first autumn showers. It also embraces the produce that matures during that period, especially figs and other early fruit. The word therefore carries both temporal and material connotations—“summer” and “summer fruit.” Seasonal Framework in Scripture Genesis 8:22 anchors קַיִץ within the unbreakable rhythm of seedtime and harvest established after the flood: “As long as the earth endures, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night shall never cease.” Summer thus witnesses to the Creator’s covenant faithfulness; every recurrence testifies that divine promises stand. Psalm 74:17 reinforces this confidence: “You established all the boundaries of the earth; You created summer and winter.” The season is not merely a meteorological reality but a deliberate ordinance of God that showcases order and sovereignty. Agricultural Provision and Celebration In the agrarian life of Israel, קַיִץ marked the culmination of growth for figs, grapes, and many grains. Proverbs 6:8 commends the ant, “It prepares its provisions in summer; it gathers its food at harvest,” underscoring diligence in exploiting God-given windows of productivity. Proverbs 10:5 contrasts a “wise son who gathers in summer” with one who sleeps in the harvest, warning that negligence squanders providence. Jeremiah 40:10 depicts the remnant encouraged to “gather wine, summer fruit, and oil,” illustrating how summer fruit was a strategic store for leaner months. The gathering of קַיִץ therefore served both celebration and survival, a twofold blessing from the Lord. Symbolism of Ripeness and Accountability Summer fruit in prophetic texts often symbolizes a decisive moment—ripeness that cannot be delayed. Amos 8 opens with a striking vision: “This is what the Lord GOD showed me: behold, a basket of ripe summer fruit… Then the LORD said to me, ‘The end has come for My people Israel; I will no longer spare them’” (Amos 8:1-2). The luscious readiness of the fruit mirrors Israel’s ripeness for judgment; delay is impossible. Similarly, Micah laments, “Woe is me, for I am like one who gathers summer fruit… not a cluster of grapes to eat; the godly have perished from the earth” (Micah 7:1-2). The prophet feels the emptiness that should have been filled with covenant faithfulness. קַיִץ becomes a lens through which moral maturity—or lack thereof—is measured. Summer Heat as Discipline and Distress Psalm 32:4 employs the withering heat of קַיִץ as a metaphor for conviction: “For day and night Your hand was heavy upon me; my strength was drained as in the summer heat.” The oppressive weather parallels the heavy hand of divine chastening that dries up vitality until repentance is achieved. Isaiah 28:4 pictures “the first-ripe fig before the summer,” which a hungry man devours and discards, conveying how Ephraim’s fleeting glory will be abruptly swallowed. The intensity of summer both nourishes and unnerves, depending on spiritual posture. Prophetic Imagery of Home and Refuge Amos 3:15 foretells, “I will tear down the winter house along with the summer house,” indicating luxury dwellings reserved for different seasons. Their simultaneous destruction underscores the thoroughness of judgment; no alternate refuge remains when the Lord rises to contend. Jeremiah 48:32 connects vine loss with summer fruitlessness in Moab, communicating national collapse through agricultural failure. Zechariah 14:8 reverses the motif with hope: “On that day living water will flow out from Jerusalem, half of it toward the eastern sea and half toward the western sea, in summer and in winter.” The promise spans all seasons, assuring uninterrupted life under the Messiah’s reign. Ministry Implications 1. Urgency of Response: Like ripe summer fruit, hearts can reach a point when delay forfeits blessing (2 Corinthians 6:2). Preaching should press for timely faith and obedience. Eschatological Resonance Just as summer and winter persist by divine ordinance, so the consummation of redemption is sure. The ripening of the earth’s harvest in Revelation 14:15 echoes Amos’s basket of קַיִץ—this time culminating not merely in temporal judgment but in final separation of righteous and wicked. Faithful proclamation of the gospel, therefore, operates in concert with the God who appointed summer and who will soon reap His field. Summary קַיִץ threads through Scripture as the season of fruitfulness, heat, and decisive action. It testifies to covenant constancy, calls for diligent labor, embodies the ripeness of both blessing and judgment, and anticipates the day when every season finds fulfillment in Christ’s reign. Forms and Transliterations בַּ֭קַּיִץ בַּקַּ֗יִץ בַּקַּ֣יִץ בַּקַּ֥יִץ בַקַּ֣יִץ בקיץ הַקָּ֑יִץ הקיץ וְהַקַּ֙יִץ֙ וְקַ֜יִץ וְקַ֧יִץ וָקַ֖יִץ והקיץ וקיץ קֵיצֵ֛ךְ קֵיצֵ֥ךְ קַ֔יִץ קַ֖יִץ קַ֣יִץ קַ֥יִץ קָ֑יִץ קָֽיִץ׃ קיץ קיץ׃ קיצך bakKayitz baq·qa·yiṣ ḇaq·qa·yiṣ baqqayiṣ ḇaqqayiṣ hakKayitz haq·qā·yiṣ haqqāyiṣ Kayitz keiTzech qa·yiṣ qā·yiṣ qayiṣ qāyiṣ qê·ṣêḵ qêṣêḵ vaKayitz vakKayitz vehakKayitz veKayitz wā·qa·yiṣ wāqayiṣ wə·haq·qa·yiṣ wə·qa·yiṣ wəhaqqayiṣ wəqayiṣLinks Interlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel TextsEnglishman's Concordance Genesis 8:22 HEB: וְקֹ֨ר וָחֹ֜ם וְקַ֧יִץ וָחֹ֛רֶף וְי֥וֹם NAS: and heat, And summer and winter, KJV: and heat, and summer and winter, INT: and cold and heat and summer and winter and day 2 Samuel 16:1 2 Samuel 16:2 Psalm 32:4 Psalm 74:17 Proverbs 6:8 Proverbs 10:5 Proverbs 26:1 Proverbs 30:25 Isaiah 16:9 Isaiah 28:4 Jeremiah 8:20 Jeremiah 40:10 Jeremiah 40:12 Jeremiah 48:32 Amos 3:15 Amos 8:1 Amos 8:2 Micah 7:1 Zechariah 14:8 20 Occurrences |
    |