Exodus 13:15:14Exod.13.15.W14TAB
עַל־כֵּן֩
alken
“therefore”
- Transliteration
- al-KEN
- Extended
- ahl-KEHN
- IPA
- /ʕalˈkeːn/
Meaning by language
- English
- therefore
Hebrew · tap a syllable to hear it
Alphabet Analysis
| Ayin | deep guttural stop, voiced pharyngeal | |
| Patach | short 'ah' as in father | |
| Lamed | l as in law | |
| Kaf | k with dagesh; kh without | |
| Tsere | long 'ey' as in they | |
| Nun Sofit | final form of Nun — at word end |
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Now you try — trace the word:
The word
Word in context
- word
al-KEN
- phraseyour reading level
al-KEN a-NI zo-VE-akh
- clause
al-KEN a-NI zo-VE-akh la-ye-ho-VAH kol-PE-ter RE-khem haz-ze-kha-RIM ve-kol-be-KHOR ba-NAI ef-DE
- sentence
va-ye-HI ki-hik-SHAA par-O le-shal-le-KHE-nu va-ya-ha-ROG Ye-ho-VAH kol-be-KHOR be-E-rets mits-RA-yim mib-be-KHOR a-DAM ve-ad-be-KHOR be-he-MA al-KEN a-NI zo-VE-akh la-ye-ho-VAH kol-PE-ter RE-khem haz-ze-kha-RIM ve-kol-be-KHOR ba-NAI ef-DE
Exegesis
The result marker alken {עַל־כֵּן | ’al-kên} introduces the cultic response in zoveaḥ layhwh {זֹבֵחַ לַיהוָה | zō-ḇē-aḥ la-yə-hō-wāh} ‘I sacrifice to the LORD’, which contrasts with ve’efdeh {וְכָל־בְּכֹר בָּנַי אֶפְדֶה | wə-kol bə-ḵôr ba-nā-y ’ĕf-deh} ‘and I redeem every firstborn of my sons’, underscoring the tension between sacrifice and redemption.
In context — Exodus 13:15
And it came to pass, when Pharaoh was stubborn about sending us away, that the LORD killed every firstborn in the land of Egypt, both the firstborn of man and the firstborn of animals. Therefore I sacrifice to the LORD every male that opens the womb, but I redeem every firstborn of my sons.
About this coordinate
Exodus 13:15:14 is a BCV:P reference — Book · Chapter · Verse · Word Position. It addresses word 14 of Exodus 13:15, so the Hebrew word עַל־כֵּן֩ (alken) 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 Exod.13.15.W14, which extends further down to each syllable (Exod.13.15.W14.S1) and character.