Lexical Summary
atheq: Old, advanced, aged
Original Word:עָתַק
Part of Speech:Verb
Transliteration:`athaq
Pronunciation:aw-thake'
Phonetic Spelling:(aw-thak')
KJV: copy out, leave off, become (wax) old, remove
NASB:become old, continue, failed, moved, moved away, moves, proceeded
Word Origin:[a primitive root]
1. to remove (intransitive or transitive) figuratively, to grow old
2. specifically, to transcribe
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
copy out, leave off, become wax old, remove
A primitive root; to remove (intransitive or transitive) figuratively, to grow old; specifically, to transcribe -- copy out, leave off, become (wax) old, remove.
NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Origina prim. root
Definitionto move, proceed, advance
NASB Translationbecome old (1), continue (1), failed (1), moved (1), moved away (1), moves (1), proceeded (1), removes (1), transcribed (1).
Brown-Driver-Briggs
[] (Late Hebrew Hiph`il; Assyrian
etêku as H., also transitive
bring, move; Arabic
,
precede, pass forth, become free, grow old; Aramaic
,
grow old, Palmyrene adjective
old); —
Perfect3feminine singularPsalm 6:8, 3pluralJob 21:7;Imperfect3masculine singularJob 14:18;Job 18:4; —
moveJob 14:18, soJob 18:4.
advance (in years; Aramaic sense)Job 21:7 ("" ); hence = grow old and weakPsalm 6:8 (of eye, "" ).
Perfect3pluralJob 32:16 (Gi; van d. H. BaerJob 32:15),Proverbs 25:1;Imperfect3masculine singularGenesis 12:8;Genesis 26:22;ParticipleJob 9:5; —
move forward (that is, tent) = proceedGenesis 12:8 (, locative),Genesis 26:22 (); so figurativeJob 32:16 (see above) wordshave moved away from them (), but see probably gloss (Bu and others).
Job 9:5he who removeth mountains.
Proverbs 25:1transcribe (remove from one book or roll to another; ,transtulerunt; so in mediaeval Hebrew: ZunzZMG xxv (1871), 447 f. = Ges. Schr. iii. 66 f.).
Topical Lexicon
Semantic Range and Thematic Threadsעָתַק carries the idea of shifting from one state or place to another. The movement can be physical (“moved on,”Genesis 12:8), geological (“He moves mountains,”Job 9:5), temporal (“grow old,”Job 21:7), emotional (“words have left them,”Job 32:15), or literary (“copied,”Proverbs 25:1). The single root thus unites diverse scenes under a shared motif of transition—whether of patriarch, terrain, lifespan, conversation, or Scripture itself.
Patriarchal Journeys and Divine Guidance
Genesis twice employs the verb when the covenant family changes location:
•Genesis 12:8—“From there Abram moved on to the hill country east of Bethel…”
•Genesis 26:22—“Then he moved on from there and dug another well…”
In both cases relocation follows conflict or constraint and is answered by God’s continued favor. The verb highlights obedient responsiveness rather than restless wandering. Ministry application: obedient transition, not aimless drift, marks faith-filled pilgrimage.
Sovereign Power Over Physical Creation
Job’s poetry turns the verb toward cosmic scale:
•Job 9:5—“He moves mountains without their knowledge…”
•Job 14:18—“But as a mountain erodes and crumbles and a rock is dislodged from its place,”
•Job 18:4—“…or the rocks be moved from their place?”
Here עָתַק underscores divine omnipotence. What humanity views as immovable lies at the mercy of the Creator. The same root that described a tent shift for Abram now pictures tectonic upheaval, reinforcing continuity between the God of history and the God of nature.
Reflections on Human Life and Mortality
The verb also touches frailty:
•Job 21:7—“Why do the wicked live on, grow old, and become mighty in power?”
•Psalm 6:7—“My eyes fail from grief; they grow dim because of all my foes.”
•Job 32:15—“They are dismayed and have no more to say; words have left them.”
Ageing, failing eyesight, and evaporating speech portray lives inevitably moving toward decline. The same term that celebrates patriarchal progress now signals human limitation, reminding hearers that every advance meets eventual exhaustion apart from divine renewal.
Transmission of Wisdom Literature
Proverbs 25:1—“These are more proverbs of Solomon, which were copied by the men of Hezekiah king of Judah.”
In its final occurrence the verb records scribes transferring earlier wisdom into a fresh setting. The act of copying is itself a “removal” from oral memory to written page, ensuring durability. Scripture’s preservation rests on holy transitions, and faithful copying becomes an act of worship.
Theological Insights
1. Continuity of Purpose—Whether relocating a patriarch or preserving proverbs, God uses movement to further covenant purposes.
2. Transience of Creation—Mountains shift; rocks are dislodged. What seems permanent is provisional under divine rule.
3. Mortality and Hope—Human faculties age and fail, but the God who authors movement also promises resurrection life (implicitly foreshadowed by His power over creation).
4. Reliability of Revelation—Because men “copied” the proverbs, the church today inherits an unbroken testimony. The same Lord who moves mountains safeguards His word.
Practical Ministry Applications
• Encourage believers facing relocation or vocational change: obedient movement can be part of God’s design (Genesis 12:8; 26:22).
• Preach divine sovereignty amid natural disasters, drawing on Job’s imagery to anchor hope in the Lord who “moves mountains.”
• Minister to the aging by acknowledging decline (Psalm 6:7) while pointing to God’s sustaining grace.
• Uphold careful transmission of Scripture—whether in teaching, translation, or digital archiving—as a modern echo of Hezekiah’s scribes (Proverbs 25:1).
Summary
עָתַק threads through Scripture as a verb of transition. From tents to texts, from mountains to mortal bodies, it declares that nothing remains static under the hand of the living God. Every shift—geographical, geological, personal, or textual—ultimately serves His redemptive plan.
Forms and Transliterations
הֶ֝עְתִּ֗יקוּ הֶעְתִּ֖יקוּ הַמַּעְתִּ֣יק המעתיק העתיקו וְיֶעְתַּק־ וַיַּעְתֵּ֣ק וַיַּעְתֵּ֨ק ויעתק ויעתק־ יֶעְתַּ֥ק יעתק עָ֝תְק֗וּ עָֽ֝תְקָ֗ה עתקה עתקו ‘ā·ṯə·qāh ‘ā·ṯə·qū ‘āṯəqāh ‘āṯəqū ateKah ateKu ham·ma‘·tîq hamma‘tîq hammaTik he‘·tî·qū he‘tîqū heTiku vaiyaTek veyetak way·ya‘·têq wayya‘têq wə·ye‘·taq- wəye‘taq- ye‘·taq ye‘taq yeTak
Links
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Englishman's Greek Concordance •
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