---
title: מִסְכֵּן — poor · The Tanakh dictionary
description: מִסְכֵּן (4542), a word of Biblical Hebrew, used 4 times: poor. BDB 1906: adj. poor. With 2 verses in Hebrew, word for word and JPS 1917.
---

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# מִסְכֵּן

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«מִסְכֵּן» in the Tanakh dictionary: **poor** — how often it is used, MACULA's glosses, its meanings in the printed dictionaries and why they were chosen, and 2 verses in layers.

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**Used:** 4 times · **Key:** 4542 · **BDB:** מִסְכֵּן

### Glosses

poor (3); the.poor.\[person\] (1)

### Meaning (OSHB)

poor [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/tanakh/1502/4542/#m1)

### Meaning (BDB 1906)

adj. poor [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/tanakh/1502/4542/#m2)

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**The whole BDB entry:** adj. poor, only Ec. (NH id.; Aramaic id., ܡܶܣܟܶܝܢ PS2632; Arabic مِسْكِينٌ; Ethiopic ምስኪን Di382; √ dub.; usually der. from III. סכן q.v.; perhaps loan-wd.; according to JenZA iv (1889), 271 f Zimib. vii (1892), 353=Assyrian muškênu, beggar, needy one);—always abs. מ׳:—יֶלָד מ׳ וְחָכָם Ec 4:13 (opp. מֶלֶךְ זָקִן וּכְסִיל); אִישׁ מ׳ חָכָם 9:15, הָאִישׁ הַמּ׳ v 15; as subst. הַמּ׳ v 16 the poor man.

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Why these entries: BDB: headword, part of speech agrees, 3 of its verses cited, 1 words shared with the glosses, lists its Strong's number (1 candidates); OSHB: headword, part of speech agrees, 1 words shared with the BDB entry, 1 with the glosses (1 candidates)

### Trees and pragmatics

[Every English meaning of «מִסְכֵּן» parsed by Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/tanakh/1502/4542/), each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.

### In the verses

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[Ecclesiastes 4:13](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/ketuvim/ECC.4.13/)

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ט֛וֹב יֶ֥לֶד מִסְכֵּ֖ן וְחָכָ֑ם מִמֶּ֤לֶךְ זָקֵן֙ וּכְסִ֔יל אֲשֶׁ֛ר לֹא־יָדַ֥ע לְהִזָּהֵ֖ר עֽוֹד׃

*Word for word:* \[is\].good a.youth poor and wise more than.a.king old and a.fool who not he.knows to be.warned still

*JPS 1917:* Better is a poor and wise child than an old and foolish king, who knoweth not how to receive admonition any more.

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[Ecclesiastes 9:16](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/ketuvim/ECC.9.16/)

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וְאָמַ֣רְתִּי אָ֔נִי טוֹבָ֥ה חָכְמָ֖ה מִגְּבוּרָ֑ה וְחָכְמַ֤ת הַמִּסְכֵּן֙ בְּזוּיָ֔ה וּדְבָרָ֖יו אֵינָ֥ם נִשְׁמָעִֽים׃

*Word for word:* and I.said I \[is\].good wisdom more than.strength and the.wisdom of the.poor.\[person\] \[is\].despised and words his not they \[are\].heard

*JPS 1917:* Then said I: 'Wisdom is better than strength; nevertheless the poor man's wisdom is despised, and his words are not heard.'

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- ← previous: [מַסֵּכָה](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/tanakh/w/lemma_3a_5de_5b7_5e1_5b5_5bc_5db_5b8_5d4.md)
- next →: [מִסְכְּנוֹת](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/tanakh/w/4543.md)
- ↑ back to [מ](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/tanakh/1502-6.md)