Hebrew word · H6445

פָּנַק

mefanek

to pamper

'To treat delicately, indulge, pamper, raise in luxury.' This is the only occurrence in the Bible. The word is common in later Hebrew and Aramaic (for example pinnûq, 'delicacy, luxury'), and Arabic has a related root meaning 'to live in comfort'.

Appears once in the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

(Piel) to indulge, pamper, bring up, treat delicately

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 Proverbs 29:21

Range of meaning

'To treat delicately, indulge, pamper, raise in luxury.' This is the only occurrence in the Bible. The word is common in later Hebrew and Aramaic (for example pinnûq, 'delicacy, luxury'), and Arabic has a related root meaning 'to live in comfort'.

Against the English

KJV's 'delicately bringeth up' and YLT's 'bringing up… delicately' keep the sense of a soft upbringing. 'Pamper' (WEB, BSB, NIV) is accurate and adds the right note of spoiling.

Used elsewhere in the period

Later Jewish texts use the root for indulgent upbringing and soft living. The Septuagint renders it kataspatalaō, 'to live wantonly', but it applies the indulgence to the man himself, not to his slave.

Where it appears

Proverbs · 1

  1. Proverbs 29:21 מְפַנֵּ֣ק [one who] pampers

    A servant pampered from his youth will bring grief in the end.

    Here: 'One who pampers.' The verb appears only here in the Bible but is well known in later Hebrew and Aramaic for indulging or spoiling someone with soft living. It describes the master, and the participle form marks a habit, an ongoing way of treating the slave.

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