Deuteronomy 20:17:1Deut.20.17.W1TAB
כִּֽי־הַחֲרֵ֣ם
kihakharem
“but you shall utterly destroy”
- Transliteration
- ki-ha-KHA-rem
- Extended
- kee-hah-kha-REHM
- IPA
- /kiː.haħaˈreːm/
Meaning by language
- English
- but you shall utterly destroy
Hebrew · tap a syllable to hear it
Alphabet Analysis
| Kaf | k with dagesh; kh without | |
| Hireq | 'ee' as in machine | |
| Yod | y as in yes; marks long ī | |
| He | h as in house; silent at word end | |
| Patach | short 'ah' as in father | |
| Chet | ch — deep guttural, as in Scottish loch | |
| Hateph Patach | reduced 'ah' | |
| Resh | r guttural, like the French r | |
| Tsere | long 'ey' as in they | |
| Mem Sofit | final form of Mem — at word end |
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The word
Word in context
- word
ki-ha-KHA-rem
- phraseyour reading level
ki-ha-KHA-rem ta-kha-ri-MEM
- clause
ki-ha-KHA-rem ta-kha-ri-MEM ha-khi-TEE ve-ha-e-mo-REE hak-ke-na-a-NEE ve-ha-pe-ri-ZEE ha-khi-VEE ve-ha-ye-vu-SEE
- sentence
ki-ha-KHA-rem ta-kha-ri-MEM ha-khi-TEE ve-ha-e-mo-REE hak-ke-na-a-NEE ve-ha-pe-ri-ZEE ha-khi-VEE ve-ha-ye-vu-SEE ka-a-SHER tsi-VE-kha Ye-ho-VAH e-lo-HE-kha
Exegesis
The verse begins with the conjunction ki {כִּי | kî} ‘for/because,’ linking this decree to its context.
The emphatic infinitive absolute haharem {הַחֲרֵם | ha-ḥărem} ‘utterly destroy’ combines with the Hiphil imperfect tacharimem {תַּחֲרִימֵם | taḥărîmêm} ‘you shall utterly destroy them,’ intensifying the injunction.
Root and etymology
ח־ר־ם
“to devote to destruction”
In context — Deuteronomy 20:17
Yet you are to utterly destroy them—the Hittites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites—just as the LORD your God has commanded you .
About this coordinate
Deuteronomy 20:17:1 is a BCV:P reference — Book · Chapter · Verse · Word Position. It addresses word 1 of Deuteronomy 20:17, so the Hebrew word כִּֽי־הַחֲרֵ֣ם (kihakharem) 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.20.17.W1, which extends further down to each syllable (Deut.20.17.W1.S1) and character.