Hebrew word · H7009

קִים

kimanu

adversary

This word appears only here in the Hebrew Bible. It comes from the root qum, 'to rise, stand'. Two senses are possible: (1) 'one who rises up (against)', an adversary, like the common qamenu, 'those who rise against us' (e.g.

Appears once in the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

adversary

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 Job 22:20

Range of meaning

This word appears only here in the Hebrew Bible. It comes from the root qum, 'to rise, stand'. Two senses are possible: (1) 'one who rises up (against)', an adversary, like the common qamenu, 'those who rise against us' (e.g. Exod 15:7; Ps 44:5); (2) 'what stands, exists', meaning substance or living property, like yequm, 'every living thing', in the flood story (Gen 7:4, 23).

Against the English

BSB, NIV, ESV, NASB and WEB choose 'foes / adversaries / those who rose up against us'. KJV and YLT choose 'our substance'. The choice changes who is speaking about what: the righteous celebrating that their enemies are gone, or (in KJV) the righteous contrasting their own preserved property with the wicked's burned leftovers.

How it drifted

KJV's 'substance' was accurate English in 1611, when it meant possessions or wealth. It reads oddly to a modern ear (see drift).

Used elsewhere in the period

No other occurrence in biblical Hebrew. The Septuagint's 'their substance' (hypostasis autōn) supports sense (2) and a 'their' suffix. BDB lists 'adversary' but marks the text as doubtful, and HALOT likewise notes the uncertainty and the proposed emendations (to qamenu, 'our adversaries', or qimam, 'their substance').

Where it appears

Job · 1

  1. Job 22:20 קִימָ֑נוּ adversary our

    ‘Surely our foes are destroyed, and fire has consumed their excess.’

    Here: A word found only here, built on the root 'rise up' plus 'our'. Most modern versions read 'those who rise against us', meaning our enemies. Older versions read 'what stands / exists', meaning substance or property. The meaning is genuinely uncertain.

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