קָטֹן

From the study of Isaiah 54:7

Range of meaning

Small, little, young, minor / great, large, important, older. A basic pair of opposites in Hebrew, used for size, age, rank and importance.

Against the English

KJV and WEB "small … great" keep the exact opposition. "Brief … great" (BSB) keeps the sense but breaks the word-pair. "Brief … deep" changes both words.

Used elsewhere in the period

Common merism and contrast pair (e.g., "small and great" for everyone, Gen 19:11; Deut 1:17). Here they are placed in matching slots in two parallel lines.

From the study of 2 Kings 2:23

Range of meaning

Small in size, young in age, the youngest in a family, or of little importance.

Against the English

KJV 'little', ESV 'small', YLT 'little', NASB 'young'. NIV, NLT and BSB fold it into 'boys' and do not translate it separately.

Used elsewhere in the period

'Small na'ar' (na'ar qaton) elsewhere: Jonathan's arrow-boy (1 Samuel 20:35); Hadad, who fled to Egypt as a 'small boy' (1 Kings 11:17); Naaman's skin restored 'like the flesh of a small boy' (2 Kings 5:14); 'a little boy shall lead them' (Isaiah 11:6). Solomon calls himself a na'ar qaton in 1 Kings 3:7, but that is royal self-humbling ('I am just a boy'), not a statement of age.

From the study of Jeremiah 6:13

Range of meaning

'Small' and 'great' together cover status (common people and nobles), age (young and old) and importance. Naming the two ends is a Hebrew way of saying 'absolutely everyone'.

Against the English

'From the least to the greatest' is accurate and has passed into English idiom. Nothing is lost.

Used elsewhere in the period

The same phrase appears in Jer 8:10; 31:34 ('they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest'); 42:1, 8; 44:12; and Jonah 3:5.