לֵאלֹהֵ֖י

Alphabet Analysis

The word

1. word🔊 לֵאלֹהֵ֖י

   le-e-lo-HE

   to the God of
2. clause🔊 וּבִשְׁמוֹנֶ֨ה שָׁנִ֜ים לְמָלְכ֗וֹ וְהוּא֙ עוֹדֶ֣נּוּ נַ֔עַר הֵחֵ֕ל לִדְר֕וֹשׁ לֵאלֹהֵ֖י דָּוִ֣יד אָבִ֑יו

   u-vish-mo-NE sha-NIM le-mal-KHO ve-HU o-DE-nu NA-ar he-KHEL lid-ROSH le-e-lo-HE da-VID a-VIV

   and in eight years of his reigning and he still him, yet a youth, a boy he began to seek, to inquire to the God of David his father
3. sentence🔊 וּבִשְׁמוֹנֶ֨ה שָׁנִ֜ים לְמָלְכ֗וֹ וְהוּא֙ עוֹדֶ֣נּוּ נַ֔עַר הֵחֵ֕ל לִדְר֕וֹשׁ לֵאלֹהֵ֖י דָּוִ֣יד אָבִ֑יו וּבִשְׁתֵּ֧ים עֶשְׂרֵ֣ה שָׁנָ֗ה הֵחֵל֙ לְטַהֵ֗ר אֶת־יְהוּדָה֙ וִיר֣וּשָׁלִַ֔ם מִן־הַבָּמוֹת֙ וְהָ֣אֲשֵׁרִ֔ים וְהַפְּסִלִ֖ים וְהַמַּסֵּכֽוֹת׃

   u-vish-mo-NE sha-NIM le-mal-KHO ve-HU o-DE-nu NA-ar he-KHEL lid-ROSH le-e-lo-HE da-VID a-VIV u-vish-TEIM es-RE sha-NA he-KHEL le-ta-HER ET-ye-hu-DA vi-ru-sha-LA-im min-ha-ba-MOT ve-ha-a-she-RIM ve-hap-se-LIM ve-ham-ma-se-KHOT

   and in eight years of his reigning and he still him, yet a youth, a boy he began to seek, to inquire to the God of David his father and in two ten, -teen year he began to cleanse, to purify {direct object marker} Judah and Jerusalem from the high places and the Asherim and the carved images and the cast images

Exegesis

The construct chain lē-ʾĕlōhê Dāwîḏ ʾā-vîw {לֵאלֹהֵ֖י דָּוִ֣יד אָבִ֑יו | lē-ʾĕ-lō-hê Dā-wîḏ ʾā-vîw} ‘to the God of David his father’ frames David as a spiritual exemplar.

Root and etymology

ʾ-l-h🔊 aleph–lamed–heh

“curse, imprecation”

• 🔊 אָלָהʾālâimprecationNumbers 5:21