Hebrew word · H7075

קִנְיָן

kinyan

acquisition

Something acquired: property, possessions, goods, wealth (Gen 34:23; 36:6; Josh 14:4; Ezek 38:12–13). In Lev 22:11 it is a slave 'bought with his money'. In Ps 104:24 it is the creatures God has made, 'the earth is full of your qinyān'.

Appears 10 times in 10 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

1) thing acquired, acquisition, possession, purchased property, wealth

1a) thing acquired (by purchase)

1b) creatures (more general)

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 4:7

Range of meaning

Something acquired: property, possessions, goods, wealth (Gen 34:23; 36:6; Josh 14:4; Ezek 38:12–13). In Lev 22:11 it is a slave 'bought with his money'. In Ps 104:24 it is the creatures God has made, 'the earth is full of your qinyān'. It is a concrete noun for what you own, not mainly the activity of acquiring.

Against the English

KJV 'with all thy getting' and NASB 'with all your acquiring' keep the wordplay but make it sound like an activity. Today 'in all your getting' is usually heard as 'while you're busy acquiring other things, also get understanding'. WEB 'though it costs all your possessions' and NIV 'though it cost all you have' take it as the price paid. BSB 'whatever you may acquire' and ESV 'whatever you get' sit in between.

How it drifted

In 1611 'getting' could also mean 'what one has gotten, gains' (as in 'ill-gotten'). Modern readers hear only the process, which weakens the sense of 'everything you own'.

Used elsewhere in the period

In the Pentateuch and Ezekiel the word refers to livestock, goods and property. Joined to the preposition bə-, which commonly marks the price in buying ('buy with silver'), the phrase most naturally means 'at the cost of all your property'. The Vulgate's 'in omni possessione tua' ('in/with all your possession') also takes it as possessions.

From the study of Psalm 104:24

Range of meaning

Something acquired: property, goods, possessions. Often livestock (Gen 34:23; 36:6; Josh 14:4; Ezek 38:12-13), once a purchased slave ('the acquisition of his silver', Lev 22:11), and in Proverbs 4:7 figuratively ('with all your acquiring, acquire understanding'). From the verb qanah, 'to get, acquire, buy', which in a few texts about God means 'to create, bring into being' (Gen 14:19, 22; Deut 32:6; Ps 139:13; Prov 8:22).

Against the English

KJV and WEB 'riches' suggest wealth or treasure, even money. BSB, NIV, ESV and NRSV 'creatures' identify what is meant (the animals) but drop the idea of ownership. NASB and YLT 'possessions' keep the ownership. Each English choice keeps one half of the word.

How it drifted

In 1611 'riches' could mean a person's goods and property in general, herds included. Today it means wealth or luxury, so the KJV picture has shifted.

Used elsewhere in the period

The verb's 'create' sense is supported outside the Bible: in Ugaritic texts the goddess Athirat (Asherah) is qnyt ilm, 'creatress of the gods'; the Phoenician Karatepe inscription (8th century BCE) names 'El, creator (qn) of the earth'; Genesis 14:19 has 'God Most High, qoneh of heaven and earth'. The Greek Septuagint renders this verse 'the earth was filled with your creation (ktisis)'.

Where it appears

Genesis · 3

  1. Genesis 31:18 קִנְיָנ֔וֹ acquisition his

    and he drove all his livestock before him, along with all the possessions he had acquired in Paddan-aram, to go to his father Isaac in the land in Canaan.

  2. Genesis 34:23 וְקִנְיָנָם֙ and possession[s] their

    Will not their livestock, their possessions, and all their animals become ours? Only let us consent to them, and they will dwell among us.”

  3. Genesis 36:6 קִנְיָנ֔וֹ possession[s] his

    Later, Esau took his wives and sons and daughters and all the people of his household, along with his livestock, all his other animals, and all the property he had acquired in Canaan, and he moved to a land far away from his brother Jacob.

Leviticus · 1

  1. Leviticus 22:11 קִנְיַ֣ן [the] acquisition of

    But if a priest buys a slave with his own money, or if a slave is born in his household, that slave may eat his food.

Joshua · 1

  1. Joshua 14:4 וּלְקִנְיָנָֽם׃ and for possession[s] their

    The descendants of Joseph became two tribes, Manasseh and Ephraim. And no portion of the land was given to the Levites, except for cities in which to live, along with pasturelands for their flocks and herds.

Psalms · 2

  1. Psalm 104:24 קִנְיָנֶֽךָ׃ creature[s] your

    How many are Your works, O LORD! In wisdom You have made them all; the earth is full of Your creatures.

    Here: 'Your property / what you have acquired.' Elsewhere the word means a household's acquired goods, especially livestock. The living creatures are God's estate, made by him and therefore belonging to him. The root qanah ('acquire', also 'create') makes both ideas audible.

  2. Psalm 105:21 קִנְיָנֽוֹ׃ possession his

    He made him master of his household, ruler over all his substance,

Proverbs · 1

  1. Proverbs 4:7 קִ֝נְיָנְךָ֗ acquisition your

    Wisdom is supreme; so acquire wisdom. And whatever you may acquire, gain understanding.

    Here: A noun from the same root as 'buy': what you have bought or gained, so your possessions or wealth (as in Gen 34:23; 36:6). It makes a play on words: 'buy… with all your buyings, buy'.

Ezekiel · 2

  1. Ezekiel 38:12 וְקִנְיָ֔ן and possession[s]

    in order to seize the spoil and carry off the plunder, to turn a hand against the desolate places now inhabited and against a people gathered from the nations, who have acquired livestock and possessions and who live at the center of the land.’

  2. Ezekiel 38:13 וְקִנְיָ֔ן and possession[s]

    Sheba and Dedan and the merchants of Tarshish with all its villages will ask, ‘Have you come to capture the plunder? Have you assembled your hordes to carry away loot, to make off with silver and gold, to take cattle and goods, to seize great spoil?’

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