What Does Ezekiel 46:16 Mean in the King James?
Thus saith the Lord GOD; If the prince give a gift unto any of his sons, the inheritance thereof shall be his sons’; it shall be their possession by inheritance.
The analysis reads the King James wording.
King James Version The King James Version, first published in 1611. Selah Verse shows the standard text.
THE KEY
Here, giving does more than transfer value: it places lasting belonging into a son’s hands.
THE MEANING
A gift given to a son becomes more than a moment of generosity: it settles into a share he can hold as inheritance. The verse joins giving, belonging, and continuity, the gift placed in the son’s hands becomes a continuing possession.
WHAT THIS UNDOES
It undoes the assumption that every gift from someone in authority is only temporary: a gift given to a son becomes his possession by inheritance.
THE ROOT
מַתָּנָה
mattanah
GROWS FROM
נתן
natan
give, set, place
Mattanah, “gift,” grows from natan, “give, set, place.” The shared seed makes the gift an act of placing a share into the sons’ keeping; the verse’s next movement turns that placement into inheritance.
ALSO GROWS
natan: give, set, place
נָתַן
The verb behind “gift” presents giving as placing something into another’s care.
mattan: gift, present
מַתָּן
This related noun names what is given, tying the gift directly to the act that places it.
נַחֲלָה
nahalah
GROWS FROM
נחל
nachal
inherit, receive or assign as a share
Nahalah names the share received through inheritance, while forms of the same root describe receiving or assigning an inheritance. Here, the son receives the gift as a share meant to continue with him.
ALSO GROWS
nachal: inherit, receive as a share
נָחַל
The verb shows inheritance as something received, not merely named.
hinchil: cause to inherit, assign as an inheritance
הִנְחִיל
This form shows the other side of the verse’s movement: a share is placed with someone as an inheritance.
אֲחֻזָּה
achuzzah
GROWS FROM
אחז
achaz
take hold, grasp, hold
The sons’ possession is described with the language of holding. The verse joins holding with receiving: inheritance is the share they receive and then hold as their own.
ALSO GROWS
achaz: take hold, grasp, hold
אָחַז
The verb reveals the concrete action beneath the word “possession.”
achuzzah: possession, property
אֲחֻזָּה
The noun names what is held, framing the sons’ inheritance as a share in their keeping.
THE PATTERN
A received share belongs to its heir, and inheritance carries that belonging forward.
And thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel, saying, If a man die, and have no son, then ye shall cause his inheritance to pass unto his daughter.A good man leaveth an inheritance to his children’s children: and the wealth of the sinner is laid up for the just.Wherefore thou art no more a servant, but a son; and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ.THE THREAD
But if he give a gift of his inheritance to one of his servants, then it shall be his to the year of liberty; after it shall return to the prince: but his inheritance shall be his sons’ for them.Both verses use the word for “gift,” מַתָּנָה (mattanah), from נָתַן (natan), “give, set, place.” Verse 17 turns on who receives it: a servant’s gift returns, while the son’s gift in verse 16 becomes an inheritance.
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