Hebrew word · H5219

נְכֹאת

nekhot

tragacanth gum

A valuable aromatic gum or resin. The usual identification is gum tragacanth, collected from shrubs of the Astragalus genus, based on the Arabic cognate naka'at, which means this gum.

Appears 2 times in 2 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

1) a spice

1a) perhaps tragacanth gum

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 Genesis 37:25

Range of meaning

A valuable aromatic gum or resin. The usual identification is gum tragacanth, collected from shrubs of the Astragalus genus, based on the Arabic cognate naka'at, which means this gum. Some take it more broadly as 'aromatic gum' or 'incense resin.' It was used in medicine, perfume and incense, and possibly in embalming.

Against the English

KJV has 'spicery,' and BSB and WEB have 'spices.' ESV, NRSV and the Jewish Publication Society version (JPS) prefer 'gum,' and NASB has 'aromatic gum.' 'Gum' is closer. To a modern reader 'spice' suggests the kitchen: pepper, cinnamon, cumin.

How it drifted

In early modern English 'spicery' covered aromatics, drugs and perfumes, not only food seasonings. Over time 'spice' narrowed to cooking ingredients, so the KJV word now gives the wrong picture.

Used elsewhere in the period

In the Bible it appears only here and in Gen 43:11, where Jacob sends nekhot as a gift to the Egyptian official. Some connect it with the 'treasure house' (beit nekhoto) of 2 Kgs 20:13 and Isa 39:2, but that link is debated. The Septuagint (the ancient Greek translation) renders it thymiamata, 'incense.'

Similar words

Where it appears

Genesis · 2

  1. Genesis 37:25 נְכֹאת֙ spice

    And as they sat down to eat a meal, they looked up and saw a caravan of Ishmaelites coming from Gilead. Their camels were carrying spices, balm, and myrrh on their way down to Egypt.

    Here: The first of three plant resins. It is most often identified as gum tragacanth, a gum from a thorny shrub (Astragalus), but it is not a cooking spice. The exact plant is uncertain.

  2. Genesis 43:11 נְכֹ֣את spice

    Then their father Israel said to them, “If it must be so, then do this: Put some of the best products of the land in your packs and carry them down as a gift for the man—a little balm and a little honey, spices and myrrh, pistachios and almonds.

    Here: An aromatic plant gum, often identified as tragacanth from Astragalus shrubs. 'Spices' in KJV and BSB is too general. It is the first item in the Ishmaelite cargo of 37:25.

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