כְּנֵ֫מָא
ke.ne.ma
thus
Lexicon Entry
Lexicon data from STEPBible TIPNR, Tyndale House, Cambridge. Licensed under CC BY 4.0.
What Original Readers Understood
Supported# כְּנֵמָא (ke.ne.ma) — "Thus" The Hebrew word *ke.ne.ma* functions as an adverb meaning "thus" or "in this manner," appearing only five times in the biblical text. This rarity suggests it represents a specific stylistic or linguistic choice rather than a common everyday expression. The word serves to introduce or emphasize a particular way of doing something, pointing to actions or statements that follow as examples of the manner just described. While the lexical data provided does not specify which biblical passages contain this word, its limited occurrence indicates it was likely reserved for particular rhetorical moments where the writer wished to draw attention to how something was done or said. The brevity of its use in Scripture means this term occupied a minor role in Hebrew communication, even if it served a clear functional purpose when employed. Understanding such rare words helps scholars appreciate the full range of linguistic resources available to biblical writers, even when those resources were seldom deployed.
Source data & methodology
Occurrences in Scripture
5 total occurrences across the text
Rehum the chancellor and Shimshai the scribe wrote a letter against Jerusalem to Artaxerxes the king as follows,
Ezra 5:4They also asked for the names of the men were who were making this building.
Ezra 5:9Then we asked those elders, and said to them thus, “Who gave you a decree to build this house, and to finish this wall?”
Ezra 5:11Thus they returned us answer, saying, “We are the servants of the God of heaven and earth, and are building the house that was built these many years ago, which a great king of Israel built and finished.
Ezra 6:13Then Tattenai, the governor beyond the River, Shetharbozenai, and their companions did accordingly with all diligence, because Darius the king had sent a decree.