לְמִלְחָמָ֛ה

Alphabet Analysis

The word

1. word🔊 לְמִלְחָמָ֛ה

   le-mil-kha-MA

   for war
2. phraseyour reading level🔊 וְאִ֧ם לְמִלְחָמָ֛ה

   ve-IM le-mil-kha-MA

   and if for war
3. clause🔊 וְאִ֧ם לְמִלְחָמָ֛ה יָצָ֖אוּ חַיִּ֥ים תִּפְשֽׂוּם׃

   ve-IM le-mil-kha-MA ya-TSU kha-YIM tif-SUM

   and if for war they have come out alive seize them
4. sentence🔊 וַיֹּ֛אמֶר אִם־לְשָׁל֥וֹם יָצָ֖אוּ תִּפְשׂ֣וּם חַיִּ֑ים וְאִ֧ם לְמִלְחָמָ֛ה יָצָ֖אוּ חַיִּ֥ים תִּפְשֽׂוּם׃

   va-YO-mer im-le-sha-LOM ya-TSU tif-SUM kha-YIM ve-IM le-mil-kha-MA ya-TSU kha-YIM tif-SUM

   and he said if for peace they have come out seize them alive and if for war they have come out alive seize them

Exegesis

It presents a protasis introduced by im {אִם | ʾim} ‘if’, specifying motives with the prepositional complements le-shalom {לְשָׁלוֹם | lə-šālôm} ‘for peace’ and le-milchamah {לְמִלְחָמָה | lə-milḥāmāh} ‘for war’.

Root and etymology

Root🔊 ל־ח־םl-ḥ-m

“fight”

• 🔊 לֶחֶםlechembread, provisionGenesis 14:18