Bible dictionaries

Zaphnathpaaneah

What Bible dictionaries say about “Zaphnathpaaneah”, one article after the other.

Easton’s Bible Dictionary & Webster’s 1828 Dictionary

Zaphnathpaaneah - (Easton's Bible Dictionary)

The name which Pharaoh gave to Joseph when he raised him to the rank of prime minister or grand vizier of the kingdom (Gen. 41:45). This is a pure Egyptian word, and has been variously explained. Some think it means "creator," or "preserver of life." Brugsch interprets it as "governor of the district of the place of life", i.e., of Goshen, the chief city of which was Pithom, "the place of life." Others explain it as meaning "a revealer of secrets," or "the man to whom secrets are revealed."

Matthew George Easton, Easton’s Bible Dictionary; Noah Webster, American Dictionary of the English Language (1828)

The article in Easton + Webster 1828

Smith’s Bible Dictionary

a name given by Pharaoh to Joseph. (Genesis 41:45) The rabbins interpreted Zaphnath-paaneah as Hebrew in the sense revealer of a secret . As the name must have been Egyptian, it has been explained from the Coptic as meaning the preserver of the age.

William Smith; revised by F. N. Peloubet and M. A. Peloubet; CrossWire SWORD module Smith 1.3

The article in Smith