Deuteronomy 18:4:5Deut.18.4.W5TAB
וְרֵאשִׁ֛ית
vereshit
“and the first”
- Transliteration
- ve-re-shIT
- Extended
- veh-reh-sheeT
- IPA
- /vəreːʃiˈt/
Meaning by language
- English
- and the first
Hebrew · tap a syllable to hear it
Alphabet Analysis
| Vav | v as in vine; marks long ō / ū | |
| Sheva | vocal sheva — a short 'e' (ə), begins a syllable | |
| Resh | r guttural, like the French r | |
| Tsere | long 'ey' as in they | |
| Aleph | silent — a glottal stop; holds vowel points | |
| Shin | shin with right dot; sin with left dot | |
| Hireq | 'ee' as in machine | |
| Yod | y as in yes; marks long ī | |
| Tav | t as in top |
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The word
Word in context
- word
ve-re-shIT
- sentence
re-shIT de-GAN-kha ti-ROSH-kha ve-yits-ha-RE-kha ve-re-shIT GEZ tsON-kha ti-TEN-lo
Exegesis
The repetition of vereshit {וְרֵאשִׁ֛ית | wə-rē-šîṯ} ‘and the first’ applies the same priority to the fleece gez {גֵּ֥ז | gēz} ‘fleece, shearing’ of the sheep tsonkha {צֹאנְךָ֖ | ṣō-ʾānə-ḵā}, reinforcing the concept of best produce.
Root and etymology
Rootresh–aleph–shin
“beginning; firstfruits”
In context — Deuteronomy 18:4
The first of your grain, your new wine, and your oil, and the first fleece of your sheep, you shall give to him.
About this coordinate
Deuteronomy 18:4:5 is a BCV:P reference — Book · Chapter · Verse · Word Position. It addresses word 5 of Deuteronomy 18:4, so the Hebrew word וְרֵאשִׁ֛ית (vereshit) 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 Deut.18.4.W5, which extends further down to each syllable (Deut.18.4.W5.S1) and character.