Aramaic word · H3675

כְּנָת

ukhenavatehon

associate

Colleague, fellow official, someone of the same office or rank. It is a technical term of administration and does not mean a friend or ally.

A Biblical Aramaic word, from the parts of the Old Testament written in Aramaic. Why Aramaic?

Appears 7 times in 7 verses of the Aramaic of the Old Testament. ·

What it means

companion, associate

Aramaic of ke.nat (כְּנָת "associate" H3674)

Abridged from Brown, Driver and Briggs, A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament (1906), via STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0).

In depth

From the study of Ezra 4:9

Range of meaning

Colleague, fellow official, someone of the same office or rank. It is a technical term of administration and does not mean a friend or ally.

Against the English

KJV/WEB 'companions' and YLT 'companions' suggest friends or travelling partners. BSB 'associates' is closer. 'Colleagues' is the most exact.

How it drifted

In 1611 'companions' could mean partners in an office. A modern reader hears personal friendship.

Used elsewhere in the period

The word comes from Akkadian kinattu, 'colleague'. It is well attested in Imperial Aramaic: the Elephantine temple petition (Cowley 30 / TAD A4.7) opens with 'Jedaniah and his colleagues the priests'. Ezra uses it again in 4:17, 23; 5:3, 6; 6:6, 13.

Where it appears

Ezra · 7

  1. Ezra 4:9 כְּנָוָתְה֑וֹן associates their

    From Rehum the commander, Shimshai the scribe, and the rest of their associates—the judges and officials over Tripolis, Persia, Erech and Babylon, the Elamites of Susa,

    Here: 'Their colleagues': a technical word in Persian-era Aramaic for fellow officials of the same rank or office. It is not 'friends' or 'companions' in a social sense.

  2. Ezra 4:17 כְּנָוָ֣תְה֔וֹן associates their

    Then the king sent this reply: To Rehum the commander, Shimshai the scribe, and the rest of your associates living in Samaria and elsewhere in the region west of the Euphrates: Greetings.

  3. Ezra 4:23 וּכְנָוָתְה֑וֹן and associates their

    When the text of the letter from King Artaxerxes was read to Rehum, Shimshai the scribe, and their associates, they went immediately to the Jews in Jerusalem and forcibly stopped them.

    Here: 'And their colleagues': fellow officials of similar rank and the groups listed in 4:9–10. The phrase shows a whole regional administration acting together.

  4. Ezra 5:3 וּכְנָוָתְה֑וֹן and associates their

    At that time Tattenai the governor of the region west of the Euphrates, Shethar-bozenai, and their associates went to the Jews and asked, “Who authorized you to rebuild this temple and restore this structure?”

  5. Ezra 5:6 וּכְנָ֣וָתֵ֔הּ and associates his

    This is the text of the letter that Tattenai the governor of the region west of the Euphrates, Shethar-bozenai, and their associates, the officials in the region, sent to King Darius.

    Here: 'And his colleagues': fellow officials of equal or nearby rank, a standard term in Aramaic official letters for the staff who share responsibility. The 'his' is singular, most naturally pointing back to the senior officer (Tattenai) or to Shethar-bozenai.

  6. Ezra 6:6 וּכְנָוָ֣תְה֔וֹן and associates their

    Therefore Darius decreed: To Tattenai governor of the region west of the Euphrates, Shethar-bozenai, and your associates and officials in the region: You must stay away from that place!

  7. Ezra 6:13 וּכְנָוָתְה֑וֹן and associates their

    In response, Tattenai the governor of the region west of the Euphrates, Shethar-bozenai, and their associates diligently carried out what King Darius had decreed.

Word data: STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0), main text only.