To learn to read and to understand the words of Scripture
Biblical Hebrew Grammar
וַיִּשְׁלַ֤ח אֱלֹהִים֙ ר֣וּחַ רָעָ֔ה בֵּ֣ין אֲבִימֶ֔לֶךְ וּבֵ֖ין בַּעֲלֵ֣י שְׁכֶ֑ם וַיִּבְגְּד֥וּ בַעֲלֵי־שְׁכֶ֖ם בַּאֲבִימֶֽלֶךְ׃ (Judges 9:23) And God sent an evil spirit between Abimelekh and the lords of Shekhem, and the lords of Shekhem dealt treacherously with Abimelekh. This verse from Judges introduces a turning point in the Abimelekh narrative. It depicts divine intervention in the form…
דַּבֵּ֗ר כֹּ֚ה נְאֻם־יְהוָ֔ה וְנָֽפְלָה֙ נִבְלַ֣ת הָֽאָדָ֔ם כְּדֹ֖מֶן עַל־פְּנֵ֣י הַשָּׂדֶ֑ה וּכְעָמִ֛יר מֵאַחֲרֵ֥י הַקֹּצֵ֖ר וְאֵ֥ין מְאַסֵּֽף׃ (Jeremiah 9:22) Speak, thus says YHWH: “The corpse of man shall fall like dung upon the open field, and like sheaves after the reaper, with none to gather them.” Jeremiah 9:22 presents a solemn oracle of devastation. It combines imperative speech,…
וַיֹּ֨אמֶר מֹשֶׁ֜ה אֶֽל־אַהֲרֹ֗ן קְרַ֤ב אֶל־הַמִּזְבֵּ֨חַ֙ וַעֲשֵׂ֞ה אֶת־חַטָּֽאתְךָ֙ וְאֶת־עֹ֣לָתֶ֔ךָ וְכַפֵּ֥ר בַּֽעַדְךָ֖ וּבְעַ֣ד הָעָ֑ם וַעֲשֵׂ֞ה אֶת־קָרְבַּ֤ן הָעָם֙ וְכַפֵּ֣ר בַּֽעֲדָ֔ם כַּאֲשֶׁ֖ר צִוָּ֥ה יְהוָֽה׃ (Leviticus 9:7) And Moshe said to Aharon, “Draw near to the altar and make your sin offering and your burnt offering, and atone for yourself and for the people; and make the people’s offering and…
אַךְ־בָּשָׂ֕ר בְּנַפְשֹׁ֥ו דָמֹ֖ו לֹ֥א תֹאכֵֽלוּ׃ (Genesis 9:4) But flesh with its life, its blood, you shall not eat. This short but powerful prohibition in the covenant with Noah establishes one of the foundational food laws in the Bible: the ban on consuming blood. The grammar is deceptively compact. Through a careful interplay of emphatic particles,…
הִנֵּ֨ה יַד־יְהוָ֜ה הֹויָ֗ה בְּמִקְנְךָ֙ אֲשֶׁ֣ר בַּשָּׂדֶ֔ה בַּסּוּסִ֤ים בַּֽחֲמֹרִים֙ בַּגְּמַלִּ֔ים בַּבָּקָ֖ר וּבַצֹּ֑אן דֶּ֖בֶר כָּבֵ֥ד מְאֹֽד׃ (Exodus 9:3) Behold, the hand of YHWH is upon your livestock that are in the field, upon the horses, the donkeys, the camels, the cattle, and the sheep, a very severe plague. This verse belongs to the plague narrative against Pharaoh,…
וּמֹורַאֲכֶ֤ם וְחִתְּכֶם֙ יִֽהְיֶ֔ה עַ֚ל כָּל־חַיַּ֣ת הָאָ֔רֶץ וְעַ֖ל כָּל־עֹ֣וף הַשָּׁמָ֑יִם בְּכֹל֩ אֲשֶׁ֨ר תִּרְמֹ֧שׂ הָֽאֲדָמָ֛ה וּֽבְכָל־דְּגֵ֥י הַיָּ֖ם בְּיֶדְכֶ֥ם נִתָּֽנוּ׃ (Genesis 9:2) And the fear of you and the dread of you shall be upon every beast of the earth, and upon every bird of the heavens, in everything that creeps on the ground, and in all the…
וָֽאֶהְיֶ֥ה אֶצְלֹ֗ו אָ֫מֹ֥ון וָֽאֶהְיֶ֣ה שַׁ֭עֲשֻׁעִים יֹ֤ום יֹ֑ום מְשַׂחֶ֖קֶת לְפָנָ֣יו בְּכָל־עֵֽת׃ (Proverbs 8:30) Then I was beside Him, like a master-worker, and I was His delight day by day, playing before Him at all times. This verse is a masterpiece of Hebrew poetic artistry, where the speaker—personified Wisdom—uses verbal repetition and parallelism to create rhythm, emphasis,…
בְּאַמְּצֹ֣ו שְׁחָקִ֣ים מִמָּ֑עַל בַּ֝עֲזֹ֗וז עִינֹ֥ות תְּהֹום׃ (Proverbs 8:28) When He strengthened the skies above, in the strengthening of the fountains of the deep. This verse compresses creation imagery into a poetic frame, showcasing two distinctive features of Biblical Hebrew: (1) the temporal use of בְּ prefixed to an infinitive-construct–type form, and (2) the elegant binding…
וַיֵּצְא֣וּ הָעָם֮ וַיָּבִיאוּ֒ וַיַּעֲשׂוּ֩ לָהֶ֨ם סֻכֹּ֜ות אִ֤ישׁ עַל־גַּגֹּו֙ וּבְחַצְרֹ֣תֵיהֶ֔ם וּבְחַצְרֹ֖ות בֵּ֣ית הָאֱלֹהִ֑ים וּבִרְחֹוב֙ שַׁ֣עַר הַמַּ֔יִם וּבִרְחֹ֖וב שַׁ֥עַר אֶפְרָֽיִם׃ (Nehemiah 8:16) And the people went out and brought and made for themselves booths, each on his roof and in their courtyards and in the courtyards of the house of God and in the square of the…
הַיֹּושֶׁ֣בֶת בַּגַּנִּ֗ים חֲבֵרִ֛ים מַקְשִׁיבִ֥ים לְקֹולֵ֖ךְ הַשְׁמִיעִֽינִי׃ (Song of Songs 8:13) The one dwelling in the gardens, companions are listening to your voice, let me hear it. Opening Scene This verse, part of the closing dialogue of the Song of Songs, blends description and direct address. The speaker portrays the addressee as dwelling in gardens while…