3993. penés
Strong's Lexicon
penés: Poor, needy

Original Word: πενής
Part of Speech: Noun, Masculine
Transliteration: penés
Pronunciation: pe-NAYS
Phonetic Spelling: (pen'-ace)
Definition: Poor, needy
Meaning: one who works for his living; a laborer, poor man.

Word Origin: Derived from the Greek verb πένομαι (penomai), meaning "to toil" or "to work for one's daily bread."

Corresponding Greek / Hebrew Entries: The Hebrew equivalent often associated with "penés" is עָנִי (ani, Strong's H6041), which also means poor or afflicted. Another related term is דָּל (dal, Strong's H1800), meaning low, poor, or weak.

Usage: The term "penés" refers to someone who is economically disadvantaged, often living in a state of poverty or need. Unlike "ptochos," which denotes absolute destitution, "penés" implies a person who has limited resources and must work hard to meet basic needs. It is used to describe individuals who are not wealthy and may struggle to make ends meet, but who are not entirely without means.

Cultural and Historical Background: In the Greco-Roman world, poverty was a common condition, with a significant portion of the population living as "penés." These individuals often worked as laborers, farmers, or craftsmen, earning just enough to survive. The social structure of the time did not provide much opportunity for upward mobility, and the poor were often marginalized. In Jewish culture, caring for the poor was a significant aspect of religious life, with the Law of Moses including provisions for their support.

NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Origin
from penomai (to work for one's daily bread)
Definition
one who works for his living
NASB Translation
poor (1).

Thayer's Greek Lexicon
STRONGS NT 3993: πένης

πένης, πένητος, (πένομαι to work for one's living; the Latinpenuria and Greek πεινάω are akin to it (cf. Vanicek, p. 1164); hence, πένης equivalent to ἐκ πόνου καί ἐνεργείας τό ζῆν ἔχων, Etym. Magn.), poor: 2 Corinthians 9:9. (From Sophocles and Herodotus down; the Sept. for אֶבְיון, עָנִי, דַּל, רָשׁ, etc.) [SYNONYMS: πένης, πτωχός: "πένης occurs but once in the N. T., and then in a quotation from the O. T., while πτωχός occurs between thirty and forty times .... The πένης may be so poor that he earns his bread by daily labor; the πτωχός that he only obtains his living by begging." Trench, § xxxvi.; cf. Schmidt, chapter 85, 4; chapter 186.]

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
poor.

From a primary peno (to toil for daily subsistence); starving, i.e. Indigent -- poor. Compare ptochos.

see GREEK ptochos

Forms and Transliterations
πένης πενησιν πένησιν πένητα πένητας πένητες πένητι πένητος πενήτων penesin penēsin pénesin pénēsin
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Interlinear GreekInterlinear HebrewStrong's NumbersEnglishman's Greek ConcordanceEnglishman's Hebrew ConcordanceParallel Texts
Englishman's Concordance
2 Corinthians 9:9 N-DMP
GRK: ἔδωκεν τοῖς πένησιν ἡ δικαιοσύνη
NAS: ABROAD, HE GAVE TO THE POOR, HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS
KJV: he hath given to the poor: his
INT: he gave to the poor the righteousness

Strong's Greek 3993
1 Occurrence


πένησιν — 1 Occ.















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