2593. chanik
Lexical Summary
chanik: Trained

Original Word: חָנִיךְ
Part of Speech: Adjective
Transliteration: chaniyk
Pronunciation: khaw-neek'
Phonetic Spelling: (kaw-neek')
KJV: trained
NASB: trained men
Word Origin: [from H2596 (חָנַך - dedicated)]

1. initiated
2. i.e. practiced

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
trained

From chanak; initiated; i.e. Practiced -- trained.

see HEBREW chanak

NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Origin
from the same as chek
Definition
trained, tried, experienced
NASB Translation
trained men (1).

Brown-Driver-Briggs
[חָנִיךְ] adjective trained, tried, experienced, only plural suffix חֲנִיכָיו יְלידֵי בֵיתוֺ, Genesis 14:14 i.e. his tried and trusty men, born in his house.

Topical Lexicon
Root Concept of Dedication and Training

The noun חָנִיךְ conveys the idea of one who has been initiated, instructed, or formally dedicated to a task. Its verbal root is shared with verbs that describe “training” or “dedicating” (as in Proverbs 22:6 and Deuteronomy 20:5), revealing a thematic link between preparation and consecration. Thus, the word carries both pedagogical and covenantal overtones: the individual is not only skilled but also set apart for a larger purpose.

Historical Context in Genesis

Genesis 14 records Abram’s pursuit of the coalition that captured Lot. Verse 14 states, “And when Abram heard that his relative had been taken captive, he mobilized the three hundred eighteen trained men born in his household, and pursued them as far as Dan.” This lone appearance portrays חָנִיךְ as a selected corps within Abram’s larger retinue—men who were drilled, disciplined, and ready for rapid deployment.

Identity of the Trained Men

1. Household-born: They were native to Abram’s estate, suggesting covenantal loyalty rather than hired service.
2. Militarily prepared: Their training was sufficient to wage a night assault against seasoned kings (Genesis 14:15).
3. Spiritually aligned: Abram’s later charge in Genesis 18:19—that he would “command his children and his household after him to keep the way of the LORD”—indicates that these men were being shaped not merely as soldiers but as participants in the patriarch’s faith-based mission.

Abram’s Household as Proto-Covenant Community

Genesis portrays Abram’s household as a microcosm of the future nation: circumcised (Genesis 17:23–27), instructed, and mission-minded. The presence of the חָנִיךְ illustrates how covenant households can blend vocational skill with spiritual fidelity, foreshadowing Israel’s later expectation that every tribe field both warriors and worshipers (Numbers 1:3; Deuteronomy 20:1–4).

Military Preparedness and Divine Dependence

While the men were competent, Scripture attributes victory to the LORD. Melchizedek blesses Abram: “Blessed be Abram by God Most High, Creator of heaven and earth, and blessed be God Most High, who has delivered your enemies into your hand” (Genesis 14:19–20). The passage holds training and divine sovereignty together, demonstrating that human readiness is meant to operate under God’s providential rule.

Foreshadowing Israel’s Martial Capacity

The concept of a dedicated, well-trained minority anticipates Israel’s later élite units—such as the thirty valiant men of David (2 Samuel 23:13–17) and the standing guard described in 1 Chronicles 27. In each case, disciplined service functions within the overarching narrative of God’s redemptive plan.

Spiritual Application in Discipleship and Ministry

New Testament writers pick up the motif of deliberate preparation:
Luke 6:40—“A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone who is fully trained will be like his teacher.”
2 Timothy 2:2—Paul instructs Timothy to commit truth to “faithful men who will be qualified to teach others also.”

Like Abram’s חָנִיךְ, believers today are called to intentional formation that combines knowledge, skill, and dedication to the Lord’s mission.

Household Leadership and Multi-Generational Faithfulness

Abram’s example encourages heads of families to treat their homes as centers of both nurture and readiness. Proverbs 22:6 enjoins parents to “Train up a child in the way he should go,” tying the root idea of חָנִיךְ to everyday discipleship. Ephesians 6:4 echoes the same responsibility for fathers in the church era.

Typological Reflections

Abram’s rescue of Lot anticipates the Messiah’s work:
• Initiative—Abram sets out unbidden, as Christ comes “to seek and to save the lost” (Luke 19:10).
• Substitution—Abram risks his own welfare for another’s deliverance, prefiguring the sacrificial love of the cross.
• Victory—Abram returns triumphant, a pattern fulfilled in Christ’s resurrection and exaltation (Colossians 2:15).

Summary

Although appearing only once, חָנִיךְ provides a window into the fusion of training, dedication, and covenant loyalty. In Genesis it underscores Abram’s capacity to muster a prepared, faithful contingent; in theology it becomes a lens for understanding how God shapes His people—then and now—for both physical and spiritual engagement in His redemptive purposes.

Forms and Transliterations
חֲנִיכָ֜יו חניכיו chaniChav ḥă·nî·ḵāw ḥănîḵāw
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Englishman's Concordance
Genesis 14:14
HEB: וַיָּ֨רֶק אֶת־ חֲנִיכָ֜יו יְלִידֵ֣י בֵית֗וֹ
NAS: he led out his trained men, born
KJV: he armed his trained [servants], born
INT: his relative armed his trained born his house

1 Occurrence

Strong's Hebrew 2593
1 Occurrence


ḥă·nî·ḵāw — 1 Occ.

2592
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