H995 — בִּין (biyn)¶

Core Data¶

Strong's: H995
Original: בִּין
Transliteration: biyn
Pronunciation: bene
Part of Speech: Verb (primitive root)
Root: Primitive root — "to separate mentally, distinguish"
Occurrences: 162 unique verses (189 tokens) across 18 books
First Occurrence: Gen 41:33 — "Now therefore let Pharaoh look out a man discreet and wise, and set him over the land of Egypt."
Hapax Legomenon: No

Lexicon Definition¶

A primitive root; to separate mentally (or distinguish), i.e. (generally) understand: -- attend, consider, be cunning, diligently, direct, discern, eloquent, feel, inform, instruct, have intelligence, know, look well to, mark, perceive, be prudent, regard, (can) skill(-full), teach, think, (cause, make to, get, give, have) understand(-ing), view, (deal) wise(-ly, man).

Verb Stem Distribution¶

Stem	Count	Typical Meaning
Qal	45	understand, discern, perceive (basic mental comprehension)
Hiphil	30	cause to understand, give insight, instruct, make discern
Hithpael	22	consider carefully, give attention to, meditate on
Niphal	21	be discerning (participle: "a discerning person")
Piel	1	instruct (Deut 32:10 — God instructing Israel)

Stem significance: The Hiphil (causative) and Hithpael (reflexive-intensive) stems together account for nearly half of all uses, showing that understanding in biblical thought is both something imparted by a teacher and something requiring deliberate, sustained attention.

Translation Distribution (KJV)¶

Translation	Verses	%
understand / understood / understandeth	~42	26%
consider / considering / considered	~15	9%
prudent / of the prudent	~8	5%
understanding (participle/noun)	~9	6%
perceive / perceived	~5	3%
discern / discerned	~4	2%
wise / wisely	~4	2%
instruct / instructed	~4	2%
regard / regardeth	~4	2%
know / knoweth	~3	2%
skill / skilful	~3	2%
mark	1	1%
teach / teacher	~3	2%
Other (discreet, cunning, eloquent, diligently, direct, inform, feel, viewed)	~57	35%

Distribution by Book¶

Book	Count	Per 100 Verses
Daniel	19	5.3
Proverbs	30	3.3
Job	23	2.1
Nehemiah	8	2.0
Isaiah	20	1.5
Psalms	26	1.1
Hosea	2	1.0
Micah	1	1.0
Ezra	2	0.7
Deuteronomy	5	0.5
1 Kings	4	0.5
Jeremiah	7	0.5
1 Chronicles	5	0.5
2 Chronicles	4	0.5
Ecclesiastes	1	0.5
1 Samuel	2	0.2
Genesis	2	0.1
2 Samuel	1	0.1

Distribution notes: Highest density in Daniel (5.3 per 100 verses) — nearly double the next-highest book (Proverbs). Concentrated in wisdom literature (Proverbs, Job, Psalms, Ecclesiastes = 80 of 162) and prophetic-apocalyptic texts (Daniel, Isaiah, Jeremiah = 46 of 162). Absent from the Torah except Deuteronomy and two Genesis occurrences.

Semantic Categories¶

1. Mental Discernment / Comprehension¶

The core meaning: perceiving, grasping, understanding truth or reality. - Dan 9:2 — "I Daniel understood (biyn, Qal) by books the number of the years" - Dan 12:8 — "I heard, but I understood (biyn, Qal) not" - Dan 12:10 — "none of the wicked shall understand; but the wise shall understand" - Isa 6:9 — "Hear ye indeed, but understand (biyn, Qal) not"

2. Causing Understanding / Revelation (Hiphil)¶

God or an angel imparts understanding to a human recipient. - Dan 8:16 — "Gabriel, make this man to understand (biyn, Hiphil) the vision" - Dan 10:14 — "I am come to make thee understand (biyn, Hiphil) what shall befall thy people" - Dan 9:22 — "he informed me (biyn, Hiphil), and talked with me, and said, O Daniel, I am now come forth to give thee skill and understanding" - Neh 8:8 — "gave the sense, and caused them to understand (biyn, Hiphil) the reading"

3. Careful Consideration / Attentive Study (Hithpael)¶

Deliberate, sustained mental engagement with something complex. - Dan 8:5 — "as I was considering (biyn, Hiphil participle), behold, an he goat came" - Jer 2:10 — "send unto Kedar, and consider diligently" - Job 37:14 — "stand still, and consider the wondrous works of God" - Psa 119:95 — "the wicked have waited for me to destroy me: but I will consider thy testimonies"

4. Discerning Character / Quality of a Person (Niphal Participle)¶

The niphal participle nabown functions as an adjective: "discerning, prudent." - Gen 41:33 — "let Pharaoh look out a man discreet (nabown) and wise" - 1 Sam 16:18 — David described as "prudent (nabown) in matters" - Pro 16:21 — "the wise in heart shall be called prudent (nabown)" - Isa 5:21 — "Woe unto them that are wise in their own eyes, and prudent in their own sight!"

5. Instructing / Teaching Others¶

The causative use where one person enables another's understanding. - Dan 11:33 — "they that understand (biyn, Hiphil) among the people shall instruct many" - Neh 8:7 — "the Levites, caused the people to understand the law" - 1 Chr 25:8 — "the teacher as the scholar" (biyn = teacher) - Deut 32:10 — "he instructed him (biyn, Piel), he kept him as the apple of his eye"

6. Attending / Regarding¶

Directing attention toward something; the opposite is failing to attend. - Job 30:20 — "I stand up, and thou regardest me not" - Dan 11:37 — "Neither shall he regard the God of his fathers, nor the desire of women, nor regard any god" - Pro 29:7 — "the wicked regardeth not to know it"

Common Collocations¶

Word	Strong's	Co-occurrences	Typical Pattern
יָדַע (yada)	H3045	35x	Paired knowing: "know and understand" (Isa 43:10, Dan 9:25)
חָכָם (chakam)	H2450	20x	"discreet and wise" / "wise... understanding" (Gen 41:33, Pro 16:21)
לֵב (leb)	H3820	18x	Understanding as heart-activity: "understanding heart" (1 Ki 3:9)
דָּבָר (dabar)	H1697	16x	Object of understanding: "understand the words" (Dan 10:11)
רָאָה (raah)	H7200	16x	Seeing paired with mental seeing: "see... consider" (Isa 14:16)
שָׁמַע (shama)	H8085	15x	Hearing paired with comprehension: "hear but not understand" (Isa 6:9)
אֱלֹהִים (elohim)	H430	15x	Divine context: God as source/object of understanding
יוֹם (yowm)	H3117	14x	Temporal reference: "latter days" (Dan 10:14)

Word Family / Cognates¶

H998 בִּינָה (biynah) — feminine noun: understanding, insight, discernment (38x). Nominal form of the same root. H998-biynah.md
H999 בִּינָה (biynah) — Aramaic cognate of H998 (appears in Daniel Aramaic sections)
H8394 תָּבוּן (tabuwn) — masculine noun from same root: understanding, intelligence, discretion (42x)

Synonyms¶

H2450 חָכָם (chakam) — overlaps with biyn in the wisdom/discernment field.
H3045 יָדַע (yada) — overlaps where discernment leads to knowledge.
מָצָא דַּעַת — idiom listed by search_relationships.py within the knowledge field.
H238 אָזַן (azan) — attentive weighing or listening in order to discern.
H2142 זָכַר (zakar) — reflective recall grouped with discernment by search_relationships.py.
H7200 רָאָה (raah) — perception language that overlaps with mental seeing.
H7919 שָׂכַל (sakal) — prudent insight with practical success.
H7592 שָׁאַל (shaal) — inquiry as a path toward understanding.
H8085 שָׁמַע (shama) — hearing that moves into comprehension.
H3384 יָרָה (yarah) — instruction that produces understanding.
H3925 לָמַד (lamad) — learning and training in wisdom.
H5336 נָצַר (natsar) — attentive guarding of wisdom.
H5437 סָבַב (sabab) — reflective turning or considering, as grouped by search_relationships.py.

Antonyms¶

H191 אֱוִיל (eviyl) — folly term opposed to discernment in the wisdom field.
חֲסַר־לֵב — "lacking heart," the non-discerning person in wisdom discourse.
H3684 כְּסִיל (kesil) — stubborn folly set over against prudent understanding.
H3887 לִיץ (liyts) — scoffing posture that resists instruction.
H5530 סָכָל (cakal) — foolishness returned by search_relationships.py as an opposing wisdom term.
H8527 תַּלְמִיד (talmiyd) — included by search_relationships.py in its opposing set for this wisdom cluster.
H6030 עָנָה ('anah) — included by search_relationships.py in its opposing set for this wisdom cluster.

Easily Confused Words¶

Word	Strong's	Shared Translation	Key Difference
שָׂכַל (sakal)	H7919	"understand," "wise," "prudent"	sakal emphasizes prudent action and its successful outcome; biyn emphasizes mental perception and discernment
יָדַע (yada)	H3045	"understand," "know," "perceive"	yada is experiential knowledge or relational knowing; biyn is analytical discernment — separating and distinguishing
שָׁמַע (shama)	H8085	"understand," "perceive"	shama is primarily hearing/obeying; overlaps with biyn only when hearing leads to comprehension
בִּינָה (biynah)	H998	"understanding"	biynah is the noun (the faculty/result); biyn is the verb (the act of understanding)
חָכָם (chakam)	H2450	"wise," "prudent"	chakam is broad practical wisdom/skill; biyn is specifically analytical mental discernment

Semantic Domains¶

UBS / Relationship Domains¶

[002001002029] Wise — other words: אחז (H270), אשׁר (H833), בוא (H935), דַּעַת (H1847), זִכָּרוֹון (H2146), זָקֵן (H2205).
[002004002007] Know — other words: אוה (H183), אוה (H184), אֹות (H226), אַחֲוָה (H262), אַחֲוָה (H264), אלף (H502).
[002003003019] Safe — other words: אָב (H1), אסף (H622), אֲרוּכָה (H724), בוא (H935), גְּאוּלִים (H1350), גאל (H1350).

LXX Mapping¶

Greek Equivalent	Co-occ	PMI Score	Notes
συνίημι (syniemi) G4920	63	27.04	Primary equivalent — "put together mentally"
συνετός (synetos) G4908	18	18.19	Adjective form — "intelligent, discerning"
νοιέω (noieo) G3539	12	15.90	"Perceive, observe mentally"
φρόνιμος (phronimos) G5429	8	12.07	"Prudent, sensible"
σοφός (sophos) G4680	17	11.84	"Wise" (broader than biyn)
σύνεσις (synesis) G4907	11	10.58	Nominal form: "understanding, comprehension"
σοφία (sophia) G4678	12	9.33	"Wisdom"

Primary bridge: G4920 syniemi (63 co-occurrences) dominates the LXX rendering, preserving the analytical/compositional sense ("put together" = "comprehend"). See TR-biyn-syniemi.md.