Hebrew word · H6274

עׇתְנִיאֵל

'ateni'el

Othniel

A family description that can be read two ways: (a) 'Othniel son of Kenaz, [Othniel being] Caleb's brother, younger than him'; or (b) 'Othniel son of Kenaz, [Kenaz being] Caleb's brother, younger than him,' which would make Othniel Caleb's nephew.

Appears 7 times in 6 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

A Judge living before Israel's Monarchy, first mentioned at Jos.15.17;

son of: Kenaz (H7073I);

brother of: Seraiah (H8304J); married to Achsah (H5915);

father of: Hathath (H2867) and Meonothai (H4587)(?)

§ Othniel = "lion of God"

son of Kenaz, younger brother of Caleb, and husband of Achsah the daughter of Caleb and his own niece; first judge of Israel, who after the death of Joshua, delivered the Israelites from the oppression of Chushanrishathaim

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 Judges 3:9

Range of meaning

A family description that can be read two ways: (a) 'Othniel son of Kenaz, [Othniel being] Caleb's brother, younger than him'; or (b) 'Othniel son of Kenaz, [Kenaz being] Caleb's brother, younger than him,' which would make Othniel Caleb's nephew.

Against the English

BSB settles it as reading (b): 'son of Caleb's younger brother Kenaz.' KJV and WEB keep the ambiguity of the Hebrew ('Othniel the son of Kenaz, Caleb's younger brother'), though most readers take 'brother' to refer to Othniel.

Used elsewhere in the period

The same phrase appears in Joshua 15:17 and Judges 1:13 (without 'than him'). Caleb is 'son of Jephunneh,' yet also 'the Kenizzite' (Num 32:12; Josh 14:6, 14). So 'son of Kenaz' may be a clan name rather than a father's name. The Septuagint ('Gothoniēl son of Kenez, brother of Chaleb, the younger') and the Vulgate ('fratrem Caleb minorem') give 'brother' and 'younger' the same case as Othniel, which reads them as describing Othniel. The Masoretic accents put a major pause after 'son of Kenaz,' which also favours taking what follows as describing Othniel.

From the study of 1 Chronicles 27:15

Range of meaning

A personal name, possibly 'God is my strength' or a similar meaning (the derivation is uncertain). Here it is used as a clan name.

Against the English

KJV, WEB and YLT keep the bare 'of Othniel'. BSB spells out 'from the family of Othniel', which is the right sense of the Hebrew lə-.

Used elsewhere in the period

Othniel son of Kenaz took Kiriath-sepher and married Caleb's daughter Achsah (Josh 15:17; Judg 1:13). He was the first of the deliverer-judges (Judg 3:9–11). His descendants are listed in Judah's genealogy (1 Chr 4:13).

From the study of Joshua 15:17

Range of meaning

A personal name ending in ʾel, 'God'. The first part (ʿotni) is obscure. Proposals include a root meaning 'strength' or 'power' (giving something like 'God is my strength') and links to Arabic or South Arabian words. None is certain, and lexicons such as HALOT and BDB list it as uncertain.

Against the English

English simply transliterates. The Septuagint spells it Gothoniēl, showing that the first letter (ʿayin) was heard as a throaty sound.

Used elsewhere in the period

Josh 15:17; Judg 1:13; 3:9–11 (the first judge, who defeats Cushan-rishathaim); 1 Chr 4:13 ('the sons of Kenaz: Othniel and Seraiah'); 1 Chr 27:15 (Heldai, 'of Othniel', a family descended from him).

Where it appears

Joshua · 1

  1. Joshua 15:17 עָתְנִיאֵ֥ל Othniel

    So Othniel son of Caleb’s brother Kenaz captured the city, and Caleb gave his daughter Acsah to him in marriage.

    Here: The man who meets the challenge. Judges 3:9–11 later presents him as Israel's first 'judge' (a God-raised deliverer). The name ends in -el, 'God'. What the first part means is uncertain.

Judges · 3

  1. Judges 1:13 עָתְנִיאֵ֣ל Othniel

    So Othniel son of Caleb’s younger brother Kenaz captured the city, and Caleb gave his daughter Acsah to him in marriage.

  2. Judges 3:9 עָתְנִיאֵ֣ל Othniel

    But when the Israelites cried out to the LORD, He raised up Othniel son of Caleb’s younger brother Kenaz as a deliverer to save them.

    Here: The first judge, already known from Joshua 15:17 and Judges 1:13 as the man who captured Kiriath-sepher (Debir) and won Caleb's daughter Achsah. The name ends in -el, 'God,' but what the first part means is uncertain.

  3. Judges 3:11 עָתְנִיאֵ֥ל Othniel

    So the land had rest for forty years, until Othniel son of Kenaz died.

1 Chronicles · 3

  1. 1 Chronicles 4:13 עָתְנִיאֵ֖ל עָתְנִיאֵ֖ל Othniel

    The sons of Kenaz: Othniel and Seraiah. The sons of Othniel: Hathath and Meonothai.

  2. 1 Chronicles 27:15 לְעָתְנִיאֵ֑ל of Othniel

    The twelfth, for the twelfth month, was Heldai the Netophathite, from the family of Othniel. There were 24,000 men in his division.

    Here: Literally 'belonging to Othniel'. It names his clan: the descendants of Othniel, the Kenazite hero and first judge (Judg 1:13; 3:9–11). So he is placed by town and by lineage.

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