Tektōn

The Ancient Greek noun () is a common term for an artisan/craftsman, in particular a carpenter, woodworker, or builder. The term is frequently contrasted with an ironworker, or smith () and stone-worker or mason ().

Etymology

() is derived from the Proto-Indo-European root ', which means "to carve, to chisel, to mold." It is comparable to the Sanskrit , literally "wood-cutter".

"Architect" derives from (, "master builder", "chief ).

Septuagint

The characteristic Ancient Greek distinction between the general worker or wood-worker and the stonemason and the metal-worker occurs frequently in the Septuagint:

The distinction occurs in lists of workmen working on building or repairs to the temple in Jerusalem, for example in the repairs carried out under the priest Jehoiada and "the carpenters and builders, that wrought upon the house of the ,... And to masons, and hewers of stone, and to buy timber and hewed stone to repair the breaches of the house of the ", in 2 Kings 12:11–12. This same incident is recounted in similar language, using again, in the account of Josephus.

However, in the Septuagint, tektōn is especially broad and vague; a modifier is often necessary to disambiguate the term. This is likely due to the influence of the broad Hebrew term חָרָשׁ on the Greek translation (LXX). Thus, tektōn in the Septuagint can only be specifically defined (i.e. woodworker, blacksmith, etc.) via an accompanying modifier or contextual clues.

New Testament

Gospel references

The term is chiefly notable for New Testament commentators' discussion of the employment of Jesus and his father Joseph, both described as in the New Testament. This is translated as "carpenter" in English-language Bibles.

The term occurs in combination with the definite article in Mark 6:3 to describe the occupation of Jesus.

The term is also used in the Gospel of Matthew in relation to Jesus' adoptive father Joseph.

In modern scholarship, the word has sometimes been re-interpreted from the traditional meaning of carpenter and has sometimes been translated as craftsman, as the meaning of builder is implied, but can be applied to both wood-work and stone masonry. In his 2021 article in Neotestamentica, Matthew K. Robinson argues that, due to its vagueness (particularly from influence from the LXX), tektōn in Mark 6:3 should be translated according to contextual clues. Referencing ancient literature and recent archeological evidence, Robinson argues that the best translation for tektōn in Mark 6:3 is "builder-craftsman."

Hebrew interpretation

In the Septuagint, the Greek noun either stands for the generic Hebrew noun (), "craftsman," (as Isaiah 41:7) or () as a word-for-word rendering of () "craftsman of woods." (as Isaiah 44:13). The term occurs 33 times in the Masoretic Text of the Hebrew Bible term (Hebrew , , "craftsman") and in 1983 Geza Vermes (1983) suggested that given that the use of the term in the Talmud "carpenter" can signify a very learned man, the New Testament description of Joseph as a carpenter could indicate that he was considered wise and literate in the Torah. This theory was later popularized by A. N. Wilson to suggest that Jesus had some sort of elevated status., Page 29: "The term translated into English as 'carpenter' represents the much wider sense of the ancient Greek, ho tekton, which is a rendition of the Semitic word naggar.5 As pointed out by the Semitic scholar Dr. Geza Vermes, this descriptive word aggarcould perhaps be applied to a trade craftsman, but could equally well define a scholar."

The original text with "There is no carpenter or son of carpenter that can take it apart" is found in Avodah Zarah 50b in discussion of whether to prune a tree on the Sabbath, with "carpenter" used in Isidore Epstein (Soncino) and Michael Rodkinson's translations and Ezra Zion Melamed's Lexicon. In the modern English version of the Talmud Jacob Neusner the passage reads as follows:

However, the Greek term does not carry this meaning, and the nearest equivalent in the New Testament is Paul's comparison to Timothy of a "workman" (, ) rightly "dividing" the word of truth. This has been taken as carpentry imagery by some Christian commentators. The suggested term ("craftsman") is not found in biblical Aramaic or Hebrew, or in Aramaic documents of the New Testament period, but is found in later Talmudic texts where the term "craftsman" is used as a metaphor for a skilled handler of the word of God.

References

Further reading

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Tekton
New Testament Greek words and phrases
Construction trades workers
History of construction