Hebrew word · H6266
עָתִיק
'atik
surpassing
A rare adjective. BDB gives 'eminent, choice' and HALOT 'choice, splendid'. The related Hebrew 'attiq' means 'old, ancient' (1 Chr 4:22; Isa 28:9), and Aramaic 'attiq' means 'ancient' (Dan 7:9, the 'Ancient of Days'). Prov 8:18 speaks of hon 'atiq, 'enduring/stately wealth'.
Appears once in the Hebrew Old Testament. ·
What it means
1) eminent, surpassing, choice, splendid
2) (TWOT) durable
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 Isaiah 23:18
- Range of meaning
A rare adjective. BDB gives 'eminent, choice' and HALOT 'choice, splendid'. The related Hebrew 'attiq' means 'old, ancient' (1 Chr 4:22; Isa 28:9), and Aramaic 'attiq' means 'ancient' (Dan 7:9, the 'Ancient of Days'). Prov 8:18 speaks of hon 'atiq, 'enduring/stately wealth'.
- Against the English
KJV/WEB 'durable clothing', YLT 'lasting covering', BSB/NIV/ESV 'fine clothing/clothes', NASB 'choice attire'.
- How it drifted
'Durable' follows the Vulgate ('usque ad vetustatem', 'until old age') and the 'old, lasting' sense of the root. Most modern scholars read it as quality: splendid, fine.
- Used elsewhere in the period
A word that occurs this rarely cannot be pinned down with certainty. Prov 8:18 is the closest parallel and allows both 'lasting' and 'splendid'.
Where it appears
Isaiah · 1
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Isaiah 23:18 עָתִֽיק׃ פ magnificent
Yet her profits and wages will be set apart to the LORD; they will not be stored or saved, for her profit will go to those who live before the LORD, for abundant food and fine clothing.
Here: A rare adjective. Most modern lexicons take it as 'choice, stately, fine'. Older translators linked it to the root 'old, long-lasting' and gave 'durable'. Either way, the clothing is of high quality.
Word data: STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0), main text only.