Bible Encyclopedia: Pen

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International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

PEN

(`et, cheret; kalamos): The first writing was done on clay, wax, lead or stone tablets by scratching into the material with some hard pointed instrument. For this purpose bodkins of bronze, iron, bone or ivory were used (Job 19:24 Isaiah 8:1 Jeremiah 17:1). In Jeremiah 17:1 a diamond is also mentioned as being used for the same purpose. In Jeremiah 36 Baruch, the son of Neriah, declares that he recorded the words of the prophet with ink in the book. In Jeremiah 36:23 it says that the king cut the roll with the penknife (literally, the scribe's knife). This whole scene can best be explained if we consider that Baruch and the king's scribes were in the habit of using reed pens. These pens are made from the hollow jointed stalks of a coarse grass growing in marshy places. The dried reed is cut diagonally with the penknife and the point thus formed is carefully shaved thin to make it flexible and the nib split as in the modern pen. The last operation is the clipping off of the very point so that it becomes a stub pen. The Arab scribe does this by resting the nib on his thumb nail while cutting, so that the cut will be clean and the pen will not scratch. The whole procedure requires considerable skill. The pupil in Hebrew or Arabic writing learns to make a pen as his first lesson. A scribe carries a sharp knife around with him for keeping his pen in good condition, hence, the name penknife. The word used in 3 John 1:13 is kalamos, "reed," indicating that the pen described above was used in John's time (compare qalam, the common Arabic name for pen).

See INK; INK-HORN; WRITING.

Figurative: "Written with a pen of iron," i.e. indelibly (Jeremiah 17:1). "My tongue is the pen of a ready writer" (Psalm 45:1; compare Jeremiah 36:18). As the trained writer records a speech, so the Psalmist's tongue impresses or engraves on his hearers' minds what he has conceived.

James A. Patch

Greek

2563. kalamos -- a reed
... a reed. Part of Speech: Noun, Masculine Transliteration: kalamos Phonetic Spelling:
(kal'-am-os) Short Definition: a reed, reed-pen Definition: a reed; a reed ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/2563.htm - 6k

4004. pentekonta -- fifty
... fifty. Part of Speech: Indeclinable Numeral (Adjective) Transliteration: pentekonta
Phonetic Spelling: (pen-tay'-kon-tah) Short Definition: fifty Definition ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/4004.htm - 6k

3995. pentheros -- a father-in-law
... a father-in-law. Part of Speech: Noun, Masculine Transliteration: pentheros Phonetic
Spelling: (pen-ther-os') Short Definition: a father-in-law Definition: a ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/3995.htm - 6k

4003. pentekaidekatos -- fifteenth
... fifteenth. Part of Speech: Adjective Transliteration: pentekaidekatos Phonetic Spelling:
(pen-tek-ahee-ded'-at-os) Short Definition: fifteenth Definition: the ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/4003.htm - 6k

4000. pentakischilioi -- five thousand
... five thousand. Part of Speech: Adjective Transliteration: pentakischilioi Phonetic
Spelling: (pen-tak-is-khil'-ee-oy) Short Definition: five thousand Definition ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/4000.htm - 7k

3996. pentheo -- to mourn, lament
... to mourn, lament. Part of Speech: Verb Transliteration: pentheo Phonetic Spelling:
(pen-theh'-o) Short Definition: I mourn, lament Definition: I mourn, lament ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/3996.htm - 7k

3994. penthera -- a mother-in-law
... a mother-in-law. Part of Speech: Noun, Feminine Transliteration: penthera Phonetic
Spelling: (pen-ther-ah') Short Definition: a mother-in-law Definition: a ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/3994.htm - 6k

3997. penthos -- mourning
... mourning. Part of Speech: Noun, Neuter Transliteration: penthos Phonetic Spelling:
(pen'-thos) Short Definition: mourning, sorrow Definition: mourning, sorrow ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/3997.htm - 6k

4002. pente -- five
... five. Part of Speech: Indeclinable Numeral (Adjective) Transliteration: pente Phonetic
Spelling: (pen'-teh) Short Definition: five Definition: five. ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/4002.htm - 6k

3958. pascho -- to suffer, to be acted on
... Including the forms patho (path'-o), and pentho (pen'-tho), used only in certain
tenses for it apparently a primary verb; to experience a sensation or ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/3958.htm - 9k

Strong's Hebrew

6434. pen -- corner
... 6433, 6434. pen. 6435 . corner. Transliteration: pen Phonetic Spelling: (pane)
Short Definition: corner. ... 6433, 6434. pen. 6435 . Strong's Numbers.
/hebrew/6434.htm - 5k

6435. pen -- lest
... 6434, 6435. pen. 6436 . lest. Transliteration: pen Phonetic Spelling: (pane)
Short Definition: or. ... see HEBREW panah. 6434, 6435. pen. 6436 . Strong's Numbers
/hebrew/6435.htm - 6k

5842. et -- a stylus
... 5841, 5842. et. 5843 . a stylus. Transliteration: et Phonetic Spelling:
(ate) Short Definition: pen. Word Origin ... stylus (2). pen. ...
/hebrew/5842.htm - 6k

2747. cheret -- engraving tool, stylus
... graving tool, pen. From a primitive root meaning to engrave; a chisel or graver;
also a style for writing -- graving tool, pen. 2746, 2747. cheret. 2748 . ...
/hebrew/2747.htm - 6k

6439. Penuel -- "face of God," a place East of the Jordan, also ...
... Penuel. 6440 . "face of God," a place East of the Jordan, also two Israelites.
Transliteration: Penuel Phonetic Spelling: (pen-oo-ale') Short Definition: Penuel ...
/hebrew/6439.htm - 6k

8471. Tachpanches -- a city in Egypt
... 30:18) {tekh- af-nekh-ace'}; or Tachpnec (Jeremiah 2:16) {takh-pen-ace'}; of Egyptian
derivation; Tachpanches, Techaphneches or Tachpenes, a place in Egypt ...
/hebrew/8471.htm - 6k

6438. pinnah -- a corner
... Feminine of pen; an angle; by implication, a pinnacle; figuratively, a chieftain --
bulwark, chief, corner, stay, tower. see HEBREW pen. 6437, 6438. ...
/hebrew/6438.htm - 6k

6856. tsipporen -- fingernail, stylus point
... From tsaphar (in the denominative sense (from tsippowr) of scratching); properly,
a claw, ie (human) nail; also the point of a style (or pen, tipped with ...
/hebrew/6856.htm - 6k

8472. Tachpenes -- an Eg. queen
... 8471, 8472. Tachpenes. 8473 . an Eg. queen. Transliteration: Tachpenes
Phonetic Spelling: (takh-pen-ace') Short Definition: Tahpenes. ...
/hebrew/8472.htm - 6k

6441. penimah -- toward the side or inside, within
... 6440, 6441. penimah. 6442 . toward the side or inside, within. Transliteration:
penimah Phonetic Spelling: (pen-ee'-maw) Short Definition: within. ...
/hebrew/6441.htm - 6k

Library

A Pen Sketch.
... Jesus' Habits of Prayer A Pen Sketch. When God would win back His prodigal
world He sent down a Man. That Man while more than man ...
//christianbookshelf.org/gordon/quiet talks on prayer/a pen sketch.htm

Pen-Y-Gwrydd: to Tom Hughes, Esq.
... PEN-Y-GWRYDD: TO TOM HUGHES, ESQ. There is no inn in Snowdon which is not
awful dear, Excepting Pen-y-gwrydd (you can't pronounce ...
/.../kingsley/andromeda and other poems/pen-y-gwrydd to tom hughes esq.htm

Here My Pen Trembles in My Hand; but When...
... Address 202: Here my pen trembles in my hand; but when� Here my pen trembles
in my hand; but when, O when will one single Christian ...
/.../address 202 0 0 here my pen.htm

But I, Lord, if I Would, by My Tongue and My Pen...
... Book XII Chapter VI But I, Lord, if I would, by my tongue and my pen�
But I, Lord, if I would, by my tongue and my pen, confess ...
/.../augustine/the confessions of saint augustine/chapter vi but i lord.htm

By Far the Ablest of These Seven Essays is from the Pen of the " ...
... VI. By far the ablest of these seven Essays is from the pen of the "Rev.� By far
the ablest of these seven Essays is from the pen of the "Rev. ...
/.../burgon/inspiration and interpretation/vi by far the ablest.htm

But How Shall I Suffice with the Tongue of My Pen to Utter all Thy ...
... Book XI Chapter II But how shall I suffice with the tongue of my pen to
utter all Thy� But how shall I suffice with the tongue ...
/.../augustine/the confessions of saint augustine/chapter ii but how shall.htm

Could I Command with Voice or Pen
... ORIGINAL HYMNS HYMN CXXXVII. Could I command with voice or pen. 8.8.8.8.8.8 James
Montgomery. ... Could I command with voice or pen. The tongues of Angels and of men ...
/.../montgomery/sacred poems and hymns/hymn cxxxvii could i command.htm

Synodical Epistle of the Synod in Illyricum Concerning the Faith.
... And it seemed fitting to pen a letter to you, not that we write what concerns the
worship of the Trinity in vain disputation, but in humility deemed worthy of ...
/.../chapter viii synodical epistle of the.htm

On the End of Man
... The end of a watch is to keep time. The end of a pen is to write, etc. ... The same may
be said of the pen, or of anything else. Now for what purpose was man made? ...
/.../christianbookshelf.org/kinkead/baltimore catechism no 4/lesson 1 on the end.htm

Perfect Consecration and Devotion to God: what it Is.
... "My tongue is a pen," [2644] an organ of wisdom; for the Word of the Spirit writes
by it in clearest letters, from the depth and power of the Scriptures, even ...
/.../chapter iv perfect consecration and devotion.htm

Smith's Bible Dictionary

Pen

[WRITING]

ATS Bible Dictionary

Pen

The ancient pen was a stylus of hardened iron, Jeremiah 17:1, sometimes pointed with diamond, for writing on hard substances, like metallic plates; when waxen tablets were used, the stylus had one end made broad and smooth, for erasing errors, 2 Kings 21:13. For parchment, cloth, and similar substances, a reed pen was used, or a fine hair pencil, with ink, Jud 5:14 Job 19:24 Isaiah 8:1 Jeremiah 36:23 3 John 1:13.

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary

1. (n.) A feather.

2. (n.) A wing.

3. (n.) An instrument used for writing with ink, formerly made of a reed, or of the quill of a goose or other bird, but now also of other materials, as of steel, gold, etc. Also, originally, a stylus or other instrument for scratching or graving.

4. (n.) Fig.: A writer, or his style; as, he has a sharp pen.

5. (n.) The internal shell of a squid.

6. (n.) A female swan.

7. (v. t.) To write; to compose and commit to paper; to compose; as, to pen a sonnet.

8. (n. & v.) To shut up, as in a pen or cage; to confine in a small enclosure or narrow space; to coop up, or shut in; to enclose.

9. (n.) A small enclosure; as, a pen for sheep or for pigs.

Thesaurus

Pen (16 Occurrences)
... 4. (n.) Fig.: A writer, or his style; as, he has a sharp pen. ... 7. (vt) To write;
to compose and commit to paper; to compose; as, to pen a sonnet. ...
/p/pen.htm - 14k

Pen-knife (1 Occurrence)
Pen-knife. Penknife, Pen-knife. Penned . Multi-Version Concordance
Pen-knife (1 Occurrence). Jeremiah 36:23 And it came ...
/p/pen-knife.htm - 6k

Dot (2 Occurrences)
... 1. (n.) A marriage portion; dowry. 2. (n.) A small point or spot, made with
a pen or other pointed instrument; a speck, or small mark. ...
/d/dot.htm - 7k

Stroke (26 Occurrences)
... stroking. 6. (n.) A mark or dash in writing or printing; a line; the touch
of a pen or pencil; as, an up stroke; a firm stroke. 7 ...
/s/stroke.htm - 16k

Stylus (2 Occurrences)
... 4. (n.) A pen-shaped pointing device used to specify the cursor position on a graphics
tablet. Multi-Version Concordance Stylus (2 Occurrences). ...
/s/stylus.htm - 7k

Zebulun (46 Occurrences)
... In Deborah's song the words, "Out of Zebulun they that handle the pen of the writer"
(Judges 5:14) has been rendered in the RV, "They that handle the marshal's ...
/z/zebulun.htm - 29k

Least (76 Occurrences)
... Matthew 5:18 For most certainly, I tell you, until heaven and earth pass away, not
even one smallest letter or one tiny pen stroke shall in any way pass away ...
/l/least.htm - 31k

Writer (4 Occurrences)
... a root of them against Amalek; after thee, Benjamin, among thy people; out of Machir
came down governors, and out of Zebulun they that handle the pen of the ...
/w/writer.htm - 8k

Ink (4 Occurrences)
... INK. ink (deyo, from root meaning "slowly flowing," BDB, 188; melan, "black"): Any
fluid substance used with pen or brush to form written characters. ...
/i/ink.htm - 10k

Inkhorn (4 Occurrences)
... This may have been the Egyptian palette (Budge, Mummy, 350-52) seen so often in
the monuments of all periods, or the later form of pen-case with ink-well ...
/i/inkhorn.htm - 10k

Bible Concordance

Pen (16 Occurrences)

Matthew 5:18 For most certainly, I tell you, until heaven and earth pass away, not even one smallest letter or one tiny pen stroke shall in any way pass away from the law, until all things are accomplished.
(WEB NIV)

Luke 16:17 But it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away, than for one tiny stroke of a pen in the law to fall.
(WEB NIV)

John 10:1 "Most certainly, I tell you, one who doesn't enter by the door into the sheep fold, but climbs up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber.
(See NIV)

John 10:16 I have other sheep, which are not of this fold. I must bring them also, and they will hear my voice. They will become one flock with one shepherd.
(See NIV)

3 John 1:13 I had many things to write to you, but I am unwilling to write to you with ink and pen;
(WEB KJV WEY ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)

Judges 5:14 Out of Ephraim was there a root of them against Amalek; after thee, Benjamin, among thy people; out of Machir came down governors, and out of Zebulun they that handle the pen of the writer.
(KJV WBS)

1 Samuel 6:7 "Now therefore take and prepare yourselves a new cart, and two milk cows, on which there has come no yoke; and tie the cows to the cart, and bring their calves home from them;
(See NIV)

2 Samuel 7:8 Now therefore you shall tell my servant David this,'Thus says Yahweh of Armies, "I took you from the sheep pen, from following the sheep, that you should be prince over my people, over Israel.
(WEB)

1 Chronicles 17:7 "Now therefore, you shall tell my servant David,'Thus says Yahweh of Armies, "I took you from the sheep pen, from following the sheep, that you should be prince over my people Israel.
(WEB)

Job 19:24 That with an iron pen and lead they were engraved in the rock forever!
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE WBS YLT RSV)

Psalms 45:1 For the Chief Musician. Set to "The Lilies." A contemplation by the sons of Korah. A wedding song. My heart overflows with a noble theme. I recite my verses for the king. My tongue is like the pen of a skillful writer.
(WEB KJV ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)

Isaiah 8:1 Yahweh said to me, "Take a large tablet, and write on it with a man's pen,' For Maher Shalal Hash Baz;'
(WEB KJV ASV WBS NIV)

Jeremiah 8:8 How do you say, We are wise, and the law of Yahweh is with us? But, behold, the false pen of the scribes has worked falsely.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)

Jeremiah 17:1 The sin of Judah is written with a pen of iron, and with the point of a diamond: it is engraved on the tablet of their heart, and on the horns of your altars;
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE WBS YLT RSV)

Micah 2:12 I will surely assemble, Jacob, all of you; I will surely gather the remnant of Israel; I will put them together as the sheep of Bozrah, as a flock in the midst of their pasture; they will swarm with people.
(See NIV)

Habakkuk 3:17 For though the fig tree doesn't flourish, nor fruit be in the vines; the labor of the olive fails, the fields yield no food; the flocks are cut off from the fold, and there is no herd in the stalls:
(See NIV)

Subtopics

Pen

Pen: General Scriptures Concerning

Pen: Made of Iron

Related Terms

Pen-knife (1 Occurrence)

Dot (2 Occurrences)

Stroke (26 Occurrences)

Stylus (2 Occurrences)

Zebulun (46 Occurrences)

Least (76 Occurrences)

Writer (4 Occurrences)