The Hebrew nuwd encompasses the idea of movement in response to grief. It can mean to move one's head in sorrow or sympathy (a sign of condolence), to wander as a fugitive, or to console and express compassion. When friends visited Job, they came to 'nuwd' him β to mourn with him and comfort him. The wandering sense also appears in Cain's curse of being a wanderer on the earth.
The ministry of presence in grief is captured by nuwd. When Scripture says to 'mourn with those who mourn' (Romans 12:15), the Old Testament background is this word β the physical act of nodding, weeping, and sitting with the suffering. Nuwd also appears in prophetic laments over fallen cities. Conversely, when God's people suffered, the lack of nuwd-ers was itself a judgment (Psalm 69:20) β the complete isolation of having no one to grieve alongside you.