Tag Archives: Zephaniah 3:4

The Use of the Construct Chain (סְמִיכוּת) in Biblical Hebrew (Zephaniah 3:4)

Zephaniah 3:4 in Hebrew נְבִיאֶ֨יהָ֙ פֹּֽחֲזִ֔ים אַנְשֵׁ֖י בֹּֽגְדֹ֑ות כֹּהֲנֶ֨יהָ֙ חִלְּלוּ־קֹ֔דֶשׁ חָמְס֖וּ תֹּורָֽה׃ Introduction to the Construct Chain In Zephaniah 3:4, we encounter multiple instances of סְמִיכוּת (smikhut), also known as the construct chain, a grammatical structure in Biblical Hebrew where two or more nouns are linked together, with the first noun being in the construct state and the second noun determining its meaning. The construct chain in Hebrew is similar to the genitive (“of”) relationship in English but is expressed through word order and specific changes in noun forms.… Learn Hebrew
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