שָׂהֵד

From the study of Job 16:19

Range of meaning

Witness, one who testifies. This is the ordinary Aramaic word, related to Aramaic śāhădû "testimony" and Syriac sāhdā "witness, martyr." In biblical Hebrew it appears only here.

Against the English

BSB, NIV, NASB and NLT render it "advocate." ESV and WEB use "he who testifies for / vouches for me." KJV has "record," which in 1611 meant "witness." "Advocate" adds the idea of a professional defence lawyer, which the word itself does not carry.

How it drifted

"Advocate" probably came in partly to vary the English after "witness" and partly through the Christian echo of 1 John 2:1, where Christ is our "advocate" (paraklētos). The Hebrew line simply repeats "witness" in Aramaic.

Used elsewhere in the period

The exact same word pair appears in Gen 31:47. Laban names the heap of stones in Aramaic, Yegar-śāhădûtāʾ ("heap of witness"), and Jacob names it in Hebrew, Galʿēd (from gal + ʿēd). So ʿēd and śāhēd were a known bilingual pair meaning the same thing. The book of Job has many Aramaic-flavoured words. HALOT and BDB both give "witness." The Septuagint has synistōr ("one who shares knowledge, co-witness") and the Vulgate has conscius ("one who knows with me").