StrongerBible

avnet

אַבְנֵט

HebrewH0073sash, girdle, ...

Appears 9 times · tap a cell to see the verses

Exo 28:4Exo 28:39Exo 28:40Exo 29:9Exo 39:29Lev 8:7Lev 8:13Lev 16:4Isa 22:21
Word studyav-NAYTnoun

What avnet means

a sash: a long band of cloth wound around the waist over a tunic, worn as part of Israel's priestly dress and as a mark of the office its wearer holds.

TranslatabilityApproximateCertaintySettled

Almost every time this word appears, it is in the instructions for making Israel's priestly clothing or in the ceremony where that clothing is put on. It names a long band of cloth wound around the waist over the tunic, holding the loose garment close to the body so a priest could work at the altar. Exodus 39:29 describes the one made for Aaron: fine twisted linen with blue, purple and scarlet yarn, the work of an embroiderer. Aaron's sons were given plainer ones of their own.

Wearing it was part of the job rather than decoration. In the ordination ceremony of Leviticus 8, Moses dresses Aaron and ties the sash on him, then does the same for his sons, and the whole outfit is called holy. On the Day of Atonement the high priest set the colored garments aside and wore plain linen instead, sash included, before going in behind the curtain (Leviticus 16:4). One thing to keep straight when reading those lists: this sash is a different item from the woven band of the ephod (חֵשֶׁב), which is named right beside it in Leviticus 8:7.

The single appearance away from the sanctuary shows what the sash signified. In Isaiah 22:21 God removes Shebna from the post of royal steward and hands his robe, his sash and his authority to Eliakim. The sash there does exactly what it does for the priest: to wear it is to hold the position.

Nuances

1athe sash of the priests' official clothing, made for the sanctuary and tied on when a priest is installed
Exo 28:4Exo 28:39Exo 28:40Exo 29:9Exo 39:29Lev 8:7Lev 8:13Lev 16:4
1ba senior official's sash, worn as the badge of the position he holds
Isa 22:21

What scholars say about avnet

The lexica are unanimous that אַבְנֵט denotes the sash or waistband of the priestly vestments (HALOT, BDB, DCH), and eight of its nine occurrences stand in the vestment prescriptions of Exodus 28 and 39 and their execution in Leviticus 8 and 16. The term is generally classed as a foreign loanword, most often traced to Egyptian; the derivation remains unsettled and has no bearing on the established sense. Haran and Milgrom situate the sash within the graded vestment system: the embroidered belt of fine linen with blue, purple and scarlet worn by the high priest (Exod 39:29) stands against the plain linen sash of the Day of Atonement rite (Lev 16:4) and against the simpler sashes issued to the ordinary priests (Exod 28:40). The single non-cultic occurrence, Isaiah 22:21, applies investiture imagery to the royal steward, which commentators read as a straightforward transfer of office rather than a priestly allusion.

Sources

  • HALOT (Koehler-Baumgartner), s.v. אַבְנֵטlexicon
  • BDB (Brown-Driver-Briggs), s.v. אַבְנֵטlexicon
  • DCH (Clines, ed.), s.v. אַבְנֵטlexicon
  • Jacob Milgrom, Leviticus 1-16, Anchor Bible 3 (1991)commentary
  • Menahem Haran, Temples and Temple-Service in Ancient Israel (1978)monograph
  • Hans Wildberger, Isaiah 13-27, Continental Commentaries (1997)commentary

All attested forms of אַבְנֵט

m s absolute

אַבְנֵט

Exo 28:4, Exo 28:39, Exo 29:9, Exo 39:29, Lev 8:7, Lev 8:13

m p absolute

אַבְנֵטִים

Exo 28:40

m s construct

אַבְנֵט

Lev 16:4

m s construct

אַבְנֵטְךָ

Isa 22:21