Hebrew word · H6059
עָנַק
ta'anik
to ornament
The noun ʿănāq means a neck ornament: a necklace, pendant chain or collar. The verb made from it means "to put a necklace on". The Qal form used here occurs only in this verse. A causative form in Deuteronomy 15:14 means "to load someone's neck", that is, to give generously to a freed slave.
Appears 3 times in 2 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·
What it means
1) to serve as a necklace, adorn with a neck ornament
1a) (Qal) to serve as a necklace
1b) (Hiphil) to make a necklace
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
- Range of meaning
The noun ʿănāq means a neck ornament: a necklace, pendant chain or collar. The verb made from it means "to put a necklace on". The Qal form used here occurs only in this verse. A causative form in Deuteronomy 15:14 means "to load someone's neck", that is, to give generously to a freed slave.
- Against the English
BSB, NIV, ESV and NASB say "necklace", which is accurate. KJV says "compasseth them about as a chain" and WEB says "like a chain around their neck". In 1611 "chain" meant a neck ornament: KJV also uses it for jewellery in Proverbs 1:9 and Song 4:9. Today "chain" suggests a shackle. YLT's "encircled" keeps the idea of something going around them but loses the jewellery.
- How it drifted
The word "chain" moved from ornament to restraint in ordinary English. The Hebrew never meant restraint.
- Used elsewhere in the period
The noun is used for the ornaments on the necks of the Midianite kings' camels, listed with other royal finery (Judges 8:26). Wisdom's teaching is called "a garland for your head and necklaces (ʿănāqîm) for your neck" (Proverbs 1:9). The lover is captivated "by one jewel (ʿănāq) of your necklace" (Song 4:9). The verb is used in Deuteronomy 15:14 (BDB, HALOT s.v. ענק).
Where it appears
Deuteronomy · 2
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Deuteronomy 15:14 הַעֲנֵ֤יק תַּעֲנִיק֙ certainly <to provide>, you will provide
You are to furnish him liberally from your flock, your threshing floor, and your winepress. You shall give to him as the LORD your God has blessed you.
Psalms · 1
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Psalm 73:6 עֲנָקַ֣תְמוֹ [it is] a necklace [for] them
Therefore pride is their necklace; a garment of violence covers them.
Here: A verb made from the noun ʿănāq, "necklace": "it has necklaced them" or "it has hung itself around their necks". The ending -at shows that the subject is feminine (pride), and -mô is an old poetic form of "them". The picture is jewellery worn for display, not a chain that holds them.
Word data: STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0), main text only.