סָכַן

From the study of Job 22:2

Range of meaning

Basic stem: be of use, be of service, benefit (Job 15:3; 22:2; 34:9; 35:3). Causative stem: be used to, be in the habit of, be familiar with (Num 22:30, Balaam's donkey: 'have I been in the habit...?'; Ps 139:3, 'you are familiar with all my ways'), and in Job 22:21, 'come to terms with Him, make peace.' Related nouns: sōkēn, 'steward, high official' (Isa 22:15, Shebna 'who is over the house'), and sōkenet, the young woman who 'served' the aged David (1 Kgs 1:2, 4). A separate root with the same letters means 'be in danger' (Eccl 10:9) and is not used here.

Against the English

KJV/WEB 'be profitable' sounds like making money; BSB/NIV 'be of use / benefit' is closer. The word is about being serviceable, the usefulness of a good servant or steward, not financial return. (The money word comes in the next verse, betsa', 'gain'.)

How it drifted

'Profitable' in 1611 meant 'useful, beneficial' (compare 2 Tim 3:16 KJV). Since then it has narrowed toward financial profit.

Used elsewhere in the period

The steward title appears as a Canaanite word in the Amarna letters (14th c. BC), where an official called sākinu / zukini governs a city for a king (Moran, The Amarna Letters). In Job the verb gathers around one question: does serving God 'pay'? Eliphaz uses it in 15:3 ('talk that is of no use') and in 22:2. Elihu quotes Job as saying 'it is of no use to a man to delight in God' (34:9) and asks 'what use is it to you?' (35:3).

From the study of Job 34:9

Range of meaning

In the simple verb form: to be of use, be of service, bring benefit (HALOT, BDB). A related word, sōkēn (Isa 22:15; 1 Kgs 1:2, 4), means a steward or attendant, someone who is 'of service'. The Amarna letters (diplomatic letters from Canaan, 14th century BC) use a related title, sākinu/zukinu, for a local administrator. In another verb form it means 'to be used to, accustomed to' (Num 22:30; Ps 139:3).

Against the English

KJV, BSB and WEB have 'profit'. Older English used 'profit' for any benefit, but today it sounds mostly financial. The Hebrew word is about usefulness and benefit in general, though it fits easily alongside talk of gain.

How it drifted

The drift is mild: 'profit' has narrowed toward money in modern English.

Used elsewhere in the period

Outside this verse the word is almost limited to the Job debate: 15:3 (useless talk), 22:2 twice ('Can a man be of use to God? A wise man is of use to himself'), and 35:3 ('What use is it to you?'). Job 21:15 uses a near-synonym, yāʿal, 'profit': 'What would we gain if we prayed to him?'

From the study of Job 22:21

Range of meaning

In its basic form the verb means 'be of use, benefit, profit' (Job 15:3; 22:2; 34:9; 35:3). In the causative-like Hiphil form used here it means 'be accustomed to, be in the habit of, be familiar with'. Balaam's donkey asks, 'Have I been in the habit of doing this to you?' (Num 22:30). The psalmist says God is 'acquainted with all my ways' (Ps 139:3). Related nouns mean a steward or attendant: Shebna 'this steward' (Isa 22:15), and Abishag as the king's attendant or nurse (1 Kgs 1:2, 4).

Against the English

KJV/WEB 'acquaint thyself' keeps the core idea of familiarity. BSB 'reconcile', ESV 'agree', NIV 'submit' and NASB 'yield' all read the word as making terms with God. That is a fair reading of the context, but it goes beyond what the word itself says.

How it drifted

In 1611 'acquaint' meant 'make thoroughly familiar'. Today an 'acquaintance' is someone you barely know, so the KJV now sounds like a light introduction. In fact it describes settled familiarity, close to habit.

Used elsewhere in the period

In related Semitic languages the root gives words for a royal official or steward: Ugaritic skn ('governor, prefect'), Phoenician skn, and a Canaanite word glossed in the Amarna letters. In Hebrew the noun for 'attendant' (1 Kgs 1) points the same way: someone who lives in close, serving familiarity with a superior. Within Job the root is concentrated in arguments about whether humans 'profit' God (22:2; 35:3) or whether piety 'profits' humans (34:9).