Tektōn

The Ancient Greek noun tektōn (τέκτων) 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 (χαλκεύς) and stone-worker or mason (λιθολόγος, λαξευτής).[1]

Etymology

Tektōn (τέκτων) is derived from the Proto-Indo-European root *tetḱ-, which means "to carve, to chisel, to mold." It is comparable to the Sanskrit takṣan, literally "wood-cutter".[2]

"Architect" derives from ἀρχιτέκτων (arkhitéktōn, "master builder", "chief tektōn).[3]

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:

So the carpenter (tektōn) encouraged the goldsmith, and he that smootheth with the hammer him that smote the anvil, saying, ...

— Isaiah 41:7[4]

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[5] and builders, that wrought upon the house of the LORD,... And to masons, and hewers of stone, and to buy timber and hewed stone to repair the breaches of the house of the LORD", in 2 Kings 12:11–12. This same incident is recounted in similar language, using tektōn again, in the account of Josephus.[6]

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.[7]

New Testament

Gospel references
Jesus in the workshop of Joseph the Carpenter, by Georges de La Tour, 1640s.

The term is chiefly notable for New Testament commentators' discussion of the employment of Jesus and his father Joseph, both described as tektōn 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[8] to describe the occupation of Jesus.[9]

Is not this the carpenter (ho tektōn) the son of Mary and brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon, and are not his sisters here with us?[9]

The term is also used in the Gospel of Matthew in relation to Jesus' adoptive father Joseph.[10]

Is not this the carpenter's son (ho tou tektōnos huios)?[9]

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.[9] In his 2021 Neotestamentica article, Matthew K. Robinson argues that, due to its vagueness (particularly in light of influence from the LXX), tektōn in Mark 6:3 should be translated according to contextual clues. Referencing ancient literature and recent archeological evidence, Robinson posits that the best translation for tektōn is "builder-craftsman."[7]

Hebrew naggar interpretation

In the Septuagint, the Greek noun tektōn either stands for the generic Hebrew noun kharash (חרש), "craftsman," (as Isaiah 41:7) or tekton xylon (τέκτων ξύλον) as a word-for-word rendering of kharash-'etsim (חָרַשׁ עֵצִים) "craftsman of woods." (as Isaiah 44:13).[11] The term kharash occurs 33 times in the Masoretic Text of the Hebrew Bible.

As an alternative to kharash, some authors have speculated that the Greek term corresponds to the Aramaic term naggara (Hebrew נגר, naggar, "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.[12] This theory was later popularized by A. N. Wilson to suggest that Jesus had some sort of elevated status.[13][14]

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.[15] In the modern English version of the Talmud Jacob Neusner the passage reads as follows:

1.5 A. Said R. Joseph bar Abba ... "people may remove worms from a tree or patch the bark with dung during the Sabbatical Year, but people may not remove worms or patch the bark during the intermediate days of a festival. ... But there is no craftsman let alone a disciple of a craftsman who can unravel this teaching." B. Said Rabina, "I am not a craftsman let alone a disciple of a craftsman, but I can unravel this teaching. What is the problem anyhow? ..."[16]

However, the Greek term tektōn does not carry this meaning, and the nearest equivalent in the New Testament is Paul's comparison to Timothy of a "workman" (ἐργάτης, ergatēs) rightly "dividing" the word of truth. This has been taken as carpentry imagery by some Christian commentators.[17] The suggested term naggar ("craftsman") is not found in biblical Aramaic or Hebrew, or in Aramaic documents of the New Testament period,[18] 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.[19][20]

References
  1. LSJ lexicon entry for tektov "A. worker in wood, carpenter, joiner, "τέκτονες ἄνδρες, οἵ οἱ ἐποίησαν θάλαμον καὶ δῶμα καὶ αὐλήν" Il.6.315, cf. Sapph.91; "τέκτονος υἱόν, Ἁρμονίδεω . . ὂς καὶ Ἀλεξάνδρῳ τεκτήνατο νῆας ἐΐσας" Il.5.59; νηῶν, δούρων τ., Od.9.126, 17.384, cf. 19.56, 21.43; ["πίτυν] οὔρεσι τέκτονες ἄνδρες ἐξέταμον πελέκεσσι" Il.13.390; "τ., ὅς ῥά τε πάσης εὖ εἰδῇ σοφίης" 15.411; "τ. γὰρ ὢν ἔπρασσες οὐ ξυλουργικά" E.Fr.988, cf. A.Fr.357, S.Fr.474, X.Mem.1.2.37: it is freq. opp. to a smith (χαλκεύς), Pl.Prt.319d, R.370d, X.HG3.4.17; to a mason (λιθολόγος), Th.6.44, cf. Ar.Av.1154: freq. in Inscrr., IG12.373.245, etc., and Papyri, PCair.Zen.27.3 (3rd century BC), etc.:—but also,.."
  2. Comparative etymological Dictionary of classical Indo-European languages: Indo-European - Sanskrit - Greek - Latin, 2013, pg.201
  3. Harper, Douglas. "architect | Search Online Etymology Dictionary". www.etymonline.com. Retrieved 5 December 2022.
  4. Septuagint Isaiah 41:7: "ἴσχυσεν ἀνὴρ τέκτων καὶ χαλκεὺς τύπτων σφύρῃ ἅμα ἐλαύνων ποτὲ μὲν ἐρεῖ σύμβλημα καλόν ἐστιν ἰσχύρωσαν αὐτὰ ἐν ἥλοις θήσουσιν αὐτὰ καὶ οὐ κινηθήσονται"
  5. Septuagint 2 Kings 12:11–12 τοῖς τέκτοσι τῶν ξύλων
  6. Josephus, Flavius (1990). Josephus: The Essential Writings. Kregel Academic. p. 166. ISBN 978-0-8254-9621-9. When a large amount had been collected, the king and Jehoiada the high priest put carpenters and masons to work and thus restored the temple.
  7. Robinson, Matthew K. (2021). "'Is This Not the Τέκτων?': Revisiting Jesus's Vocation in Mark 6:3". Neotestamentica. 55 (2): 431–445. doi:10.1353/neo.2021.0038. S2CID 247590352.
  8. Mark 6:3
  9. Evans, Craig A. (2001). "Context, family and formation". In Bockmuehl, Markus (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Jesus. pp. 11–24. doi:10.1017/CCOL0521792614.002. ISBN 978-0-521-79678-1.
  10. Matthew 13:55
  11. 44:13 τέκτων ξύλον ἔστησεν αὐτὸ ἐν μέτρῳ καὶ ἐν κόλλῃ ἐρρύθμισεν αὐτό ἐποίησεν αὐτὸ ὡς μορφὴν ἀνδρὸς καὶ ὡς ὡραιότητα ἀνθρώπου στῆσαι αὐτὸ ἐν οἴκῳ
  12. Vermès, Géza (1981). "Jesus the Carpenter". Jesus the Jew: A Historian's Reading of the Gospels. Fortress Press. pp. 21–22. ISBN 978-1-4514-0880-5.
  13. A.N. Wilson (27 May 2003). Jesus. Random House UK. pp. 82–. ISBN 978-0-7126-0697-4. Retrieved 17 November 2012., 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 [naggar] could perhaps be applied to a trade craftsman, but could equally well define a scholar."
  14. Larry W. Hurtado (15 September 2005). Lord Jesus Christ: Devotion to Jesus in Earliest Christianity. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing. pp. 319–. ISBN 978-0-8028-3167-5. Retrieved 17 November 2012.
  15. Ezra Zion Melamed Aramaic-Hebrew-English Dictionary of the Babylonian Talmud 200, page 353 "NGR – There is no carpenter or son of carpenter (that can take it apart, i.e., solve it) " אסורות ולית נגר ולא בר נגר דיפרקינה אמר רב ששת אנא לא נגר אנא ולא בר נגר
  16. The Talmud of Babylonia. Tractate Abodah Zarah: chapters 3–5 – Page 57 Jacob Neusner, 1991
  17. Lee, Witness (1986). The Life-pulse of the Lord's Present Move. Living Stream Ministry. p. 61. ISBN 978-0-87083-245-1. In 2 Timothy 2:15 Paul said, 'Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, an unashamed workman, cutting straight the word of the truth.' To cut ... You as an unashamed workman have to cut the word straight as in carpentry.
  18. McNamara, Martin (2011). Targum and New Testament: Collected Essays. Mohr Siebeck. p. 207. ISBN 978-3-16-150836-3. The corresponding Aramaic (or Hebrew) term would be NGR or NGRA (naggar, naggara'). This word, however, is not found in biblical Aramaic or Hebrew, or in Aramaic documents of the New Testament period.
  19. Stangle, Krisztina; Stangle, John (2006). Finding Our Way Together. Lulu Enterprises Incorporated. p. 308. ISBN 978-1-84728-561-4. Geza Vermes highlights the Aramaic use of the term carpenter or craftsman ('naggar') to metaphorically describe a 'scholar' or 'learned man' in Talmudic sayings (Cf. Geza Vermes, Jesus the Jew, (London: Collins, 1973) p.21.)
  20. Kennard, Douglas Welker (2008). Messiah Jesus: Christology in His Day and Ours. Peter Lang. p. 71. ISBN 978-0-8204-9739-6. However, if this term is dependent upon the Aramaic nagger (craftsman), the Talmud later takes this metaphor to refer to 'scholar' or 'learned man,' that is, a rabbi. Such a later Talmudic meaning would place Jesus within a rabbinically schooled family but there seems to be some surprise among Jewish priests, at the level of boy Jesus' development that it is more likely to take the word as a 'carpenter' or 'builder' or 'day laborer.' So others knew him as a carpenter and the son of the carpenter.

Further reading
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