טְעֵם30 H2942
Decree, command; regard, heed; discretion, judgment (Aramaic, in Ezra-Daniel)
The Aramaic noun te'em (טְעֵם) appears exclusively in the Aramaic portions of Ezra and Daniel, where it serves the administrative vocabulary of the Persian and Babylonian courts. Its dominant sense is 'decree' or 'command' — the official edicts that drive the narrative of Ezra's temple correspondence (Ezra 4:8-21; 5:3-17; 6:1-14; 7:13-23) and the royal decrees of Nebuchadnezzar and Darius in Daniel (Dan 3:10, 29; 4:6; 6:26). In the idiom sim te'em ('set regard'), it means to pay heed or show deference (Dan 3:12; 6:13). A single use in Daniel 2:14 preserves the root meaning of 'discretion' or 'good judgment,' when Daniel responds to the captain of the guard with counsel and te'em.
Senses
1. decree, command — A royal or governmental decree, edict, or command — the dominant sense covering the great majority of occurrences in the Aramaic sections of Ezra and Daniel. The Ezra correspondence revolves around decrees to stop and then to authorize temple construction (Ezra 4:8-21; 5:3-17; 6:1-14; 7:13-23), while Daniel records Nebuchadnezzar's decree about the golden image (Dan 3:10, 29) and Darius's edict about the lions' den (Dan 6:26). Spanish decreto/orden, French commandement/ordre, and German Befehl uniformly render the bureaucratic, authoritative force of Persian imperial administration. 21×
AR["أَمْر","أَمْرًا","أَمْرٌ","الأَمْرِ"]·ben["আদেশ","আদেশের"]·DE["Befehl"]·EN["a-decree","decree"]·FR["commandement","ordre"]·heb["דין-ו-חשבון","טעם","פקודה"]·HI["आज्ञा","आदेश","एक-आज्ञा","एक-आज्ञा-विषय-में","सेनापति"]·ID["ketetapan","perintah","wilayah"]·IT["decreto","ordine"]·jav["dhawuh","kang-Gusti-Allah","kang-griya","kang-juru-tulis","lan-Simsai","parentah"]·KO["명령","명령-이","명령-이니","명령을"]·PT["decreto","do-decreto","um-decreto","é-decreto"]·RU["приказ","приказа","указ"]·ES["decreto","ley","orden","un-decreto"]·SW["-","amri"]·TR["buyruk","emir","hukumetin"]·urd["جاری-کیا-گیا","حکم","حکم-کے","فرمان"]
2. regard, heed — Regard, heed, or deference — used in the Aramaic idiom sim te'em al ('set regard upon'), meaning to pay attention to or show proper respect for a command or authority. In Daniel 3:12, the three Jewish youths are accused of not 'paying regard' to Nebuchadnezzar's decree, and in Daniel 6:13 Daniel is charged with showing no 'regard' for Darius's interdict. Spanish atención and the idiomatic construction distinguish this from the decree itself: te'em here names the mental act of heeding rather than the thing commanded. 2×
AR["اعْتِبَارًا"]·ben["আদেশ","মনোযোগ"]·DE["Befehl"]·EN["regard"]·FR["commandement"]·heb["דין-ו-חשבון","טעם"]·HI["आज्ञा","ध्यान"]·ID["perhatian"]·IT["decreto"]·jav["dhawuh","parentah"]·KO["명령을","주의-를"]·PT["atenção","caso"]·RU["внимания"]·ES["atención"]·SW["uangalifu"]·TR["dikkat"]·urd["پروا","پرواہ"]
3. discretion, judgment — Discretion, prudence, or sound judgment as a faculty of mind. Daniel 2:14 describes Daniel responding to Arioch, captain of the king's guard, with 'counsel and discretion' (eta u-te'em). This preserves the root sense of the Hebrew cognate ta'am ('taste, discernment') and points to the word's sensory-cognitive etymology: just as the palate discriminates flavors, the mind discriminates wise from foolish action. Spanish prudencia and the singular occurrence mark this as the word's most basic meaning, from which the administrative senses developed. 1×
AR["وَ-حِكْمَةً"]·ben["এবং-বিচক্ষণতায়"]·DE["und-Befehl"]·EN["and-discretion"]·FR["et-commandement"]·heb["ו-טעם"]·HI["और-विवेक-से"]·ID["dan-kebijaksanaan"]·IT["e-decreto"]·jav["lan-lantip"]·KO["그리고-분별력을"]·PT["e-prudência"]·RU["и-благоразумием"]·ES["y-prudencia"]·SW["na-akili"]·TR["ve-akıl"]·urd["اور-سمجھداری"]
Related Senses
H5921a 1. upon, on, over (spatial) (5443×)H0413 1. directional: to, toward (5366×)H1121a 1. son, male offspring, descendant (4914×)H3808 1. simple negation (not) (4839×)H4428 1. king, human ruler (2518×)G1722 1. locative: in, within (2442×)H1004b 1. house, dwelling, building (2015×)H6440 1. before, in front of (spatial) (1870×)G3756 1. not (negation particle) (1635×)H3027 1. physical hand (body part) (1596×)H1697 1. word, speech, utterance (1235×)H4480a 1. source or separation (1198×)H5892b 1. city, town (1093×)G1519 1. direction: into, to, toward (1061×)H3427 1. Qal: to dwell, inhabit (937×)G1537 1. from, out of (source/origin) (886×)H8034 1. Name (designation / identifier) (856×)G3361 1. subjective negation (not) (834×)G1909 1. on, upon (spatial surface) (757×)H0369 1. existential negation: there is not (738×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
טְעֵם30 n.m. Ezr 4:21 taste, judgment, command (BH טַ֫עַם (late sense));—abs. ט׳ Dn 3:10 +, cstr. ט׳ 5:2 Ezr 6:14, טַ֫עַם (of God, mere scribal distinction Nö LCB 1896, 305 Str§ 8 c KAramaismen 40) Ezr 6:14; 7:23; emph. מַעְמָא 4:21 +;— †1. Dn 5:2 in the taste of the wine (while they were enjoying it). †2. judgment, discretion, in reply, הֲתִיב עֵטָא וּט׳ Dn 2:14 (Pr 26:16); in act (pers.) שִׂים…