1 Samuel 15:22:121 Sam.15.22.W12TAB
מִזֶּ֣בַח
mizevakh
“than a sacrifice”
- Transliteration
- mi-ZE-vakh
- Extended
- mih-ZEH-vahkh
- IPA
- /mizˈzɛ.vaħ/
Meaning by language
- English
- than a sacrifice
Hebrew · tap a syllable to hear it
Alphabet Analysis
| Mem | m as in mother | |
| Hireq | 'ee' as in machine | |
| Zayin | z as in zero | |
| Seghol | short 'eh' as in met | |
| Bet | b with dagesh; v without dagesh | |
| Patach | short 'ah' as in father | |
| Chet | ch — deep guttural, as in Scottish loch |
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Now you try — trace the word:
The word
Word in context
- word
mi-ZE-vakh
- phraseyour reading level
mi-ZE-vakh TOV
- clause
hi-NE she-MO-a mi-ZE-vakh TOV le-hak-SHIV me-KHE-lev E-lim
- sentence
va-yo-MER she-mu-EL ha-KHE-fets la-ye-ho-VAH be-o-LOT u-ze-va-KHIM ki-she-MO-a be-KOL ye-ho-VAH hi-NE she-MO-a mi-ZE-vakh TOV le-hak-SHIV me-KHE-lev E-lim
Exegesis
A chiastic parallelism links šə-mō-ʿ mî-zᵉ-baḥ ṭōḇ {שְׁמֹעַ מִזֶּבַח טוֹב} ‘to obey is better than sacrifice’ with lə-haqq-šîḇ mē-ḥē-leḇ ʾē-lîm {לְהַקְשִׁיב מֵחֵלֶב אֵילִים} ‘to heed is better than the fat of rams.’ The min prepositions mî- and mē- form comparative clauses, emphasizing volitional obedience over cultic rites.
Root and etymology
Rootz-b-ḥ
“to slaughter, sacrifice”
In context — 1 Samuel 15:22
And Samuel said, "Does the LORD delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed is better than the fat of rams."
About this coordinate
1 Samuel 15:22:12 is a BCV:P reference — Book · Chapter · Verse · Word Position. It addresses word 12 of 1 Samuel 15:22, so the Hebrew word מִזֶּ֣בַח (mizevakh) can be cited, linked and studied at exactly this position rather than somewhere in the verse. In the Biblical Knowledge Coordinate System the same position is written 1 Sam.15.22.W12, which extends further down to each syllable (1 Sam.15.22.W12.S1) and character.