The Hebrew verb nua means to shake, to move to and fro, to wander, to stagger, to totter. It depicts unstable, uncontrolled movement — whether of objects swaying in the wind, a drunk person staggering, or a refugee wandering without home.
Nua is God's curse on Cain: 'You will be a restless wanderer on the earth' (Genesis 4:12, 14). The nua — the homeless wanderer — is the one cut off from community and divine presence, the opposite of the one who 'dwells in the shelter of the Most High' (Psalm 91:1). Psalm 107:27 uses the same root for sailors staggering on a storm-tossed sea: 'they staggered and reeled like drunkards; all their courage was melted away.' The picture is of total disorientation without an anchor. But Isaiah 54:10 promises that even if mountains nua (shake), God's unfailing love will not be removed. Jesus is the anchor of the soul (Hebrews 6:19) that ends the staggering and establishes firm ground.