Aramaic word · H5142

נְזַק

nazik

to suffer injury

In the causative form, 'to cause damage, inflict loss'. In Aramaic it often refers to material or financial harm, and later Jewish legal Aramaic and Hebrew use the root (nezeq) for damages and losses.

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

Appears 4 times in 4 verses of the Aramaic of the Old Testament. ·

What it means

1) to suffer injury

1a) (P'al) to suffer injury

1b) (Aphel) to injure

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 4:13

Range of meaning

In the causative form, 'to cause damage, inflict loss'. In Aramaic it often refers to material or financial harm, and later Jewish legal Aramaic and Hebrew use the root (nezeq) for damages and losses.

Against the English

KJV 'endamage', BSB 'suffer', WEB 'be hurtful'. All are fine. 'Suffer' (BSB) shifts the sentence to passive and loses the claim that the city itself would do the damage.

Used elsewhere in the period

Ezra 4:15 ('hurtful to kings and provinces'), 4:22 ('why should damage grow to the hurt of the kings?'), Daniel 6:2 [6:3 Aramaic] (satraps appointed so that 'the king should suffer no loss'). This was the working vocabulary of Persian administration.

Where it appears

Ezra · 3

  1. Ezra 4:13 תְּהַנְזִֽק׃ it will injure

    Let it now be known to the king that if that city is rebuilt and its walls are restored, they will not pay tribute, duty, or toll, and the royal treasury will suffer.

    Here: 'It will damage' or 'you will damage' (same spelling). The verb is about real financial loss to the crown. The same root comes back in vv. 15 and 22 ('harmful to kings', 'damage grow').

  2. Ezra 4:15 וּֽמְהַנְזְקַ֤ת and injuring

    that a search should be made of the record books of your fathers. In these books you will discover and verify that the city is a rebellious city, harmful to kings and provinces, inciting sedition from ancient times. That is why this city was destroyed.

  3. Ezra 4:22 לְהַנְזָקַ֖ת to injury

    See that you do not neglect this matter. Why allow this threat to increase and the royal interests to suffer?

Daniel · 1

  1. Daniel 6:2 נָזִֽק׃ suffering injury

    and over them three administrators, including Daniel, to whom these satraps were accountable so that the king would not suffer loss.

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