שְׁלֹ֥שֶׁת

Alphabet Analysis

The word

1. word🔊 שְׁלֹ֥שֶׁת

   she-LO-shet

   three
2. phraseyour reading level🔊 שְׁלֹ֥שֶׁת שָׁבֻעִ֖ים

   she-LO-shet sha-vu-IM

   three weeks
3. clause🔊 עַד־מְלֹ֕את שְׁלֹ֥שֶׁת שָׁבֻעִ֖ים יָמִֽים׃

   ad-me-LOT she-LO-shet sha-vu-IM ya-MIM

   until the completion of three weeks days
4. sentence🔊 לֶ֣חֶם חֲמֻד֞וֹת לֹ֣א אָכַ֗לְתִּי וּבָשָׂ֥ר וָיַ֛יִן לֹא־בָ֥א אֶל־פִּ֖י וְס֣וֹךְ לֹא־סָ֑כְתִּי עַד־מְלֹ֕את שְׁלֹ֥שֶׁת שָׁבֻעִ֖ים יָמִֽים׃

   LE-khem kha-mu-DOT LO a-KHAL-ti u-va-SAR va-YA-yin lo-VA el-PI ve-SOKH lo-SAKH-ti ad-me-LOT she-LO-shet sha-vu-IM ya-MIM

   not ate delicacies bread of and meat and wine did not enter to my mouth did not anoint myself and anointing oil until the completion of three weeks days

Exegesis

Finally, the temporal clause ad-melot {עַד־מְלֹאת | ʿaḏ-məlōṯ} ‘until the completion of’ combined with sheloshet {שְׁלֹשֶׁת | šəlōšeṯ} ‘three’ and shavuim yamim {שָׁבֻעִים יָמִים | šāvûʿîm yāmîm} ‘weeks of days’ forms a Hebrew idiom for a precise three-week period. The English parallels the triadic structure and adds “at all” and “whole” to convey emphatic scope.