What does רִנָּה mean in the Bible?
A ringing cry can express joy, appeal or distress, depending on the passage. Psalm 30 places morning joy beside the night of weeping.
Hebrew · H7440
רִנָּה
A ringing cry can express joy, appeal or distress, depending on the passage. Psalm 30 places morning joy beside the night of weeping.
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רִנָּהH7440
What does רִנָּה mean in the Bible?
Reader summary
Full entry for רִנָּה (H7440) · Open the biblical lexicon
Questions this entry answers
How does the BSB render H7440?
The BSB source-word alignment has 33 aligned rows for this entry. Common renderings include in song (4), with shouts of joy (4), of joy (3), the cry (3), with singing (3).
Where does רִנָּה appear in Scripture?
The source-word alignment first shows this entry at 1 Kings 8:28. Its strongest book concentrations include Psalms (15), Isaiah (9), Jeremiah (3), 1 Kings (2).
What This Word Actually Means
A ringing cry can express joy, appeal or distress, depending on the passage. Psalm 30 places morning joy beside the night of weeping. Psalm 61 asks God to hear a cry from a faint heart. First Kings describes a cry passing through the army as the battle day ends and people are told to return home. Elsewhere, the word appears in songs of restoration and in the Lord's rejoicing over His people.
The sound alone does not determine whether a scene is happy, worshipful or distressed. Listen to who cries and what the surrounding words say. A promise of joy should not erase the reality of sorrow, and a distressed prayer should not be judged by the volume or cheerfulness of its expression.
How the Bible Uses It
Morning joy, a faint-hearted prayer and an army's retreat cry demonstrate different functions of an audible cry without requiring every occurrence to express celebration.
- Ps.30.5
For His anger is fleeting, but His favor lasts a lifetime. Weeping may stay the night, but joy comes in the morning.
The psalm places joy beside weeping within praise for the Lord's favor, but the contrast does not set a universal overnight deadline for another person's grief.
- Ps.61.1
Hear my cry, O God; attend to my prayer.
The cry introduces a prayer that soon describes a faint heart seeking a higher rock, so its sound belongs to an appeal for refuge.
- 1Kgs.22.36
As the sun was setting, the cry rang out in the army: “Every man to his own city, and every man to his own land!”
The cry spreads through the army around sunset as the narrative directs people home, showing a public call in the battle's retreat setting rather than worship celebration.
Source Word Evidence
BSB source-word alignment connects this entry to exact verse rows, English rendering, source form, transliteration, and parsing.
How English Renders Itin song4×Isaiah 14:7, Isaiah 44:23, Isaiah 49:13, Isaiah 54:1
with shouts of joy4×Psalms 105:43, Psalms 126:2, Psalms 126:5, Psalms 126:6
of joy3×Psalms 42:4, Psalms 118:15, Isaiah 48:20
the cry3×1 Kings 8:28, 1 Kings 22:36, 2 Chronicles 6:19
with singing3×Isaiah 35:10, Isaiah 51:11, Zephaniah 3:17
my cry2×Psalms 61:1, Psalms 142:6
their cry2×Psalms 106:44, Jeremiah 14:12
to my cry2×Psalms 17:1, Psalms 88:2
a cry1×Jeremiah 11:14
a plea1×Jeremiah 7:16
but joy [comes]1×Psalms 30:5
in which they rejoice1×Isaiah 43:14
into song1×Isaiah 55:12
May my cry1×Psalms 119:169
of triumph1×Psalms 47:1
their shouts1×2 Chronicles 20:22
there are shouts of joy1×Proverbs 11:10
with rejoicing1×Psalms 107:22
Show sample aligned rows
1 Kings 8:28הָֽרִנָּה֙tothe cryArticle | Noun - feminine singular1 Kings 22:36הָרִנָּה֙tothe cryArticle | Noun - feminine singular2 Chronicles 6:19הָרִנָּה֙tothe cryArticle | Noun - feminine singular2 Chronicles 20:22בְרִנָּ֜הtotheir shoutsPreposition-b | Noun - feminine singularPsalms 17:1רִנָּתִ֗יtoto my cryNoun - feminine singular construct | first person common singularPsalms 30:5רִנָּֽה׃tobut joy [comes]Noun - feminine singularPsalms 42:4רִנָּ֥הtoof joyNoun - feminine singularPsalms 47:1רִנָּֽה׃toof triumphNoun - feminine singularPsalms 61:1רִנָּתִ֑יtomy cryNoun - feminine singular construct | first person common singularPsalms 88:2לְרִנָּתִֽי׃toto my cryPreposition-l | Noun - feminine singular construct | first person common singular
Usage map
A compact distribution from source-word alignment before the full evidence tables.
First aligned row1 Kings 8:28
Aligned rows33
Books represented7
1 Kings22 Chronicles2Psalms15Proverbs1Isaiah9Jeremiah3Zephaniah1
Source forms
רִנָּֽה׃4xrin·nāhPsalms 30:5, Psalms 47:1, Proverbs 11:10, Isaiah 14:7
בְּרִנָּ֔ה2xbə·rin·nāhIsaiah 35:10, Isaiah 51:11
הָרִנָּה֙2xhā·rin·nāh1 Kings 22:36, 2 Chronicles 6:19
רִנָּ֥ה2xrin·nāhPsalms 42:4, Jeremiah 7:16
רִנָּ֔ה2xrin·nāhIsaiah 44:23, Isaiah 55:12
רִנָּתָֽם׃2xrin·nā·ṯāmPsalms 106:44, Isaiah 43:14
בְרִנָּ֜ה1xḇə·rin·nāh2 Chronicles 20:22
בְרִנָּ֑ה1xḇə·rin·nāhPsalms 126:6
Parsing patterns
Noun - feminine singular14xPsalms 30:5, Psalms 42:4, Psalms 47:1, Psalms 118:15
Preposition-b | Noun - feminine singular8x2 Chronicles 20:22, Psalms 105:43, Psalms 107:22, Psalms 126:5
Noun - feminine singular construct | first person common singular4xPsalms 17:1, Psalms 61:1, Psalms 119:169, Psalms 142:6
Article | Noun - feminine singular3x1 Kings 8:28, 1 Kings 22:36, 2 Chronicles 6:19
Noun - feminine singular construct | third person masculine plural3xPsalms 106:44, Isaiah 43:14, Jeremiah 14:12
Preposition-l | Noun - feminine singular construct | first person common singular1xPsalms 88:2
Using This Word Well
Be careful not to...
- Do not measure a grieving person's faith by volume or cheerfulness.
- Avoid using a promise of joy to silence someone describing sorrow.
Avoid claiming...
- Do not claim this word always means joyful worship; the faint-heart prayer and battle cry have different purposes.
- Do not claim grief must end overnight; Psalm thirty's praise does not set another person's emotional deadline.
Evidence Summary
Hebrew word. properly, a creaking (or shrill sound), i.e. shout (of joy or grief)
Source Gloss
properly, a creaking (or shrill sound), i.e. shout (of joy or grief)
Extended definitionSource: Open Scriptures Hebrew Lexicon + Brown-Driver-Briggs
properly, a creaking (or shrill sound), i.e. shout (of joy or grief) BDB: ringing cry Usage: cry, gladness, joy, proclamation, rejoicing, shouting, sing(-ing), triumph.
Grammatical Forms
How this word appears across different grammatical cases and numbers.
Word Origins
רִנָּה is built from this root:
For the Preacher and Teacher
Psalm 61 begins by asking God to hear. The next lines reveal a heart that is faint and seeks refuge, so the cry should not be replaced with an expectation of cheerful performance. Psalm 30 offers a different setting, praising the Lord while placing joy beside the reality of weeping. Psalm 126 similarly keeps tears in view when speaking of joyful reaping. These passages let sorrow and hope appear together without prescribing the same emotional timetable for every reader.
First Kings adds a public call that belongs to an army's retreat rather than to a gathering for worship. Follow the scene before interpreting the sound. That practice protects the particular promise, prayer or announcement and avoids judging faithfulness by loudness or visible happiness.
Anchor passage
Ps.61.1
Doctrinal connections
- Psalm 30:5 holds weeping and morning joy together within praise of the Lord's favor.
- Psalm 61:1-3 joins the cry to a faint heart's request for refuge.
- First Kings 22:36 places the army's public cry within its return-home battle setting.
- Psalm 126:5 links tears and joyful reaping within a song seeking restoration.
- Zephaniah 3:17 portrays the Lord rejoicing over His people within promised restoration.
- Proverbs 11:10 depicts a city's rejoicing in relation to the wellbeing of the righteous.
The licensed Hebrew comparison describes a ringing cry with joy or grief in its range. The BSB scenes include joy, prayer and a public cry; their setting supplies the emotional and communicative purpose.
From Old to New Testament
Christian reflection on sorrow and hope can be compared thematically with these prayers and restoration songs. The comparison must not claim that every cry quotes a New Testament promise, or that a grieving believer must display immediate joy to prove faithfulness.