מַתָּן

From the study of Proverbs 18:16

Range of meaning

A gift or present, something given. It is a noun formed from נָתַן (natan, 'to give') and appears only five times. Gen 34:12 uses it for the gift a suitor gives the bride's family, alongside the bride-price. Num 18:11 uses it for offerings given to the priests. Prov 19:6 says 'everyone is a friend to the man of gifts', and Prov 21:14 says 'a gift in secret calms anger', where it stands in parallel with shoḥad, 'bribe'. In every use it is a transferred object or payment. It never means an ability or aptitude.

Against the English

English 'gift' has two meanings: a present, and a natural talent ('she has a gift for music'). Church language adds a third, 'spiritual gifts', from Paul's charismata. Hebrew mattan has only the first meaning. 'Present' would be the safest English word here.

How it drifted

From the late Middle Ages on, English 'gift' came to mean 'natural endowment', on the idea that a talent is something given by God or nature. The KJV's 'a man's gift' was then heard through that meaning, and later through teaching on spiritual gifts. The result is a reading in which a person's talent opens doors for them. The Hebrew does not support it.

Used elsewhere in the period

The Septuagint (the ancient Greek translation) renders it δόμα (doma), 'a thing given'. Throughout the ancient Near East, gifts were how people made diplomatic and social contact. The Amarna letters (14th c. BC) are full of kings arranging gift exchanges to keep relations open. In the Bible, gifts are brought to gain a hearing or goodwill: Jacob to Esau (Gen 32:13–20), the brothers to Joseph (Gen 43:11), Saul's worry about having nothing to give the seer (1 Sam 9:7), and Abigail to David (1 Sam 25:27).

From the study of Proverbs 19:6

Range of meaning

A gift or present, from nāṯan, "to give." It is rare (Gen 34:12; Num 18:11; Prov 18:16; 21:14). It is neutral: a present, offering or token. It is distinct from shōḥad, the standard word for a bribe that corrupts judgment (Exod 23:8; Prov 17:8, 23).

Against the English

"Gift giver" (BSB) and "him that giveth gifts" (KJV) are accurate. YLT's "man of gifts" keeps the Hebrew way of describing a person by what marks him.

Used elsewhere in the period

Prov 18:16: "A man's gift (mattān) makes room for him and brings him before the great." Prov 21:14: "A gift (mattān) in secret averts anger." Both treat gifts as practical social tools that open doors, without moral comment.