Overseer Appointed Officer

† I. [נָצַח] vb. be pre-eminent, enduring (Ecclus [Pi.] make brilliant 43:5, 13 [?] (cf. Oxford ed.xxxiii); NH נָצַח conquer, etc.; Ph. נצח, Aramaic נְצַח, ܢܨܰܚ shine, be illustrious, pre-eminent, victorious; Arabic نَصَحَ be pure, reliable; Ethiopic ነድሐ be pure, innocent; both classes of meaning prob. derived from shine, be bright, brilliant, v. also Dr 1 S 15:29);— Niph. Pt. act. f. נִצַּ֫חַת Je 8:5 enduring (מְשֻׁבָה apostasy). Piel = act as overseer, superintendent, director, only Chr. and ψ-titles;—Inf. לְנַצֵּחַ 1 Ch 15:21 + 4 times; pt. לַמְנַצֵּחַ Hb 3:19 ψ 4:1 + 54 times ψψ; pl. מְנַצְּחִים 2 Ch 2:1, 17; 34:13;— 1. in building temple 2 Ch 2:1, 17; Ezr 3:8, 9, cf. 2 Ch 34:12, 13. 2. in ministry of house of י׳ 1 Ch 23:4. 3. in liturgical service of song, על־השׁמינית, over the bass voices, leading them with כִּנֹּרוֹת 1 Ch 15:21; לַמְנַצֵּחַ in titles of ψψ has prob. sim. meaning, = musical director or choirmaster; Gk. Vrss. of 2nd cent. a.d., Aq Theod Sym, and so Jer, think of Aramaic victorious, but no clear explan.; 𝔊 εἰς τὸ τέλος (prob. לַמִּנְצָח) follows ordinary meaning of noun נֵצַח, which may be expl. in eschatological sense as referring to end of age of world after Euseb Theod; or for full rendering after De; neither satisfactory. Chr., near in date, gives the clue which is intrinsically prob.: לְ indicates, not assignment (nothing special in these ψψ to suggest it, and assignment of ψψ for such use a matter of course), but that these ψψ were taken by final editor from an older major Psalter known as the Director’s Collection, cf. the still earlier collections known as (ל)דוד, (ל)אסף, (ל)בני קרח. The 55 ψψ with למנצח were taken 39 from Davidic, 9 from Korahite, and 5 from Asaphic Psalters; only 2 anonymous. Hb 3 originally belonged to Director’s Psalter. This and other Director’s ψψ have musical directions in titles. The Director’s Psalter was prob. the prayer-book of synagogue of Gk. period, presupposed by our Hab., the collection of the twelve Minor Prophets, the prophetic canon, and Daniel (v. BrGen. Intr. 123).

† פָּקִיד n.m. commissioner, deputy, overseer;—abs. פ׳ Je 20:1 +; cstr. פְּקִיד 2 Ch 24:11; Ne 11:22; sf. פְּקִידוֹ Ju 9:28; pl. פְּקִדִים Gn 41:34 Je 29:26, פְּקִידִים 2 Ch 31:13; Est 2:3;—commissioner, for special duty Gn 41:34 (E), Est 2:3; permanent deputy of king Ju 9:28, of priest 2 Ch 24:11, of Levites 31:13; overseer, one in charge of men, c. עַל of soldiers 2 K 25:19 = Je 52:25, Benjamites Ne 11:9, priests v 14; abs., without עַל Je 29:26 (of priest in temple, reading פָּקִיד Vrss Gie), cf. 20:1 (v. נָגִיד 3); c. sf. of Levites Ne 11:22, singers 12:42.

ἐπίσκοπ-ος, ὁ, __A (σκοπός 1) one who watches over, overseer, guardian, ἦ γὰρ ὄλωλας ἐπίσκοπος, ὅς τέ μιν αὐτὴν ῥύσκευ (i.e. τὴν πόλιν), of Hector, Refs 8th c.BC+; ἐπίσκοποι ἁρμονιάων watchers over compacts, of the gods, Refs 8th c.BC+; ἐ. ὀϊστῶν, of an archer, variant in Refs 3rd c.BC+; in education, tutor, Refs 5th c.BC+; especially of tutelary gods (compare ἐπισκοπέὠ, Παλλὰς ἐ. Refs 6th c.BC+; Χάριτες Μινυᾶν ἐ. Refs 5th c.BC+; πατρῴων δωμάτων ἐ. Refs; τὸ δεινὸν.. φρενῶν ἐπίσκοπον guardian of the mind, Refs; νυχίων φθεγμάτων ἐ., of Bacchus, Refs 5th c.BC+; [Χριστὸς] ἐ. τῶν ψυχῶν NT+5th c.BC+ __A.2. scout, watch, c.dative, ἐ. Τρώεσσι, νήεσσιν ἡμετέρῃσιν, one set to watch them, Refs 8th c.BC+ __A.3. supervisor, inspector, sent by Athens to subject states, Refs 5th c.BC+; of municipal officials at Rhodes, Refs 3rd c.BC+ __A.4. ecclesiastical superintendent, ἐπίσκοποι καὶ διάκονοι NT

† מֶלְצָר n.m. a Bab. title; dubious; perhaps guardian? (SchrCOT Dn 1:11 DlBaer Dn xi conj. loan-word from Assyrian maṣ(ṣ)aru, keeper, guardian, cf. DlHWB 423; hardly connected with (mod.) Pers. mulsaru ‘kellermeister’ (cf. Meinh), v. against this Bevan);—only c. art. הַמּ׳ Dn 1:11, 16.