Miktam or Michtam (Hebrew: מִכְתָּם) is a word of unknown meaning found in the headings of Psalms 16 and 56–60 in the Hebrew Bible.[1] These six Psalms, and many others, are associated with King David, but this tradition is more likely to be sentimental than historical.[2] They may have formed one of several smaller collections of psalms which preceded the present psalter and on which it was based.[2]

Miktam corresponds to the Babylonian nakamu, lid, a metal cover for a vessel, but efforts to derive a meaning for the term in the Psalms have not been convincing.[3]

In modern Hebrew, the word has come to mean "epigram", and numerous collections of Hebrew epigrams have used that word in their titles.

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Miktam - Old Testament Hebrew Lexicon - New American Standard". Bible Study Tools.
  2. 1 2 Berry, G. R., The Titles of the Psalms, Journal of Biblical Literature, Vol. 33, No. 3 (Oct., 1914), pp. 198–200, accessed 20 February 2020
  3. ↑ S. Langdon, Babylonian and Hebrew Musical Terms, The Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland, No. 2 (April 1921), pp. 169–191.
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