בַּמִּדְבָּ֖ר

Alphabet Analysis

The word

1. word🔊 בַּמִּדְבָּ֖ר

   ba-mid-BAR

   in the wilderness
2. clause🔊 וָאֹמַ֗ר לִשְׁפֹּ֤ךְ חֲמָתִי֙ עֲלֵיהֶ֔ם בַּמִּדְבָּ֖ר לְכַלּוֹתָֽם׃

   va-o-MAR lish-POKH kha-ma-TI a-le-HEM ba-mid-BAR le-khal-lo-TAM

   and I said to pour out my wrath upon them in the wilderness to bring them to an end, to finish them
3. sentence🔊 וַיַּמְרוּ־בִ֨י בֵּית־יִשְׂרָאֵ֜ל בַּמִּדְבָּ֗ר בְּחֻקּוֹתַ֣י לֹֽא־הָלָ֙כוּ֙ וְאֶת־מִשְׁפָּטַ֣י מָאָ֗סוּ אֲשֶׁ֨ר יַעֲשֶׂ֤ה אֹתָם֙ הָאָדָ֔ם וָחַ֣י בָּהֶ֔ם וְאֶת־שַׁבְּתֹתַ֖י חִלְּל֣וּ מְאֹ֑ד וָאֹמַ֗ר לִשְׁפֹּ֤ךְ חֲמָתִי֙ עֲלֵיהֶ֔ם בַּמִּדְבָּ֖ר לְכַלּוֹתָֽם׃

   va-yam-RU-VI BEIT-yis-ra-EL ba-mid-BAR be-khu-ko-TAI LO-ha-la-KHU ve-et-mish-pa-TAI ma-A-SU a-SHER ya-a-SE o-TAM ha-a-DAM va-KHAI ba-HEM ve-et-shab-be-to-TAI khil-le-LU me-OD va-o-MAR lish-POKH kha-ma-TI a-le-HEM ba-mid-BAR le-khal-lo-TAM

   and they rebelled against me the house of Israel in the wilderness in my statutes they did not walk and my judgments they rejected which he does them the human, the man and lives by them, in them and my Sabbaths they profaned greatly, very much and I said to pour out my wrath upon them in the wilderness to bring them to an end, to finish them

Exegesis

The setting phrase ba-midbar {בַּמִּדְבָּר | bam-mid-bār} ‘in the wilderness’ recalls the Exodus testing.

The first-person judgment sequence concludes with wāʼōmar lə-šə-pōḵ ḥă-mā-tî ʿă-lê-hem bam-midbār lə-ḵal-lō-ṯām {וָאֹמַר לְשְׁפֹךְ חֲמָתִי עֲלֵיהֶם בַּמִּדְבָּר לְכַלּוֹתָם | wā-ʾō-mar lə-šə-pōḵ ḥă-mā-tî ʿă-lê-hem bam-mid-bār lə-ḵal-lō-ṯām} ‘then I said, “To pour out My wrath upon them in the wilderness to consume them,”’ highlighting YHWH’s threatened divine judgment.

Root and etymology

Root🔊 ד־ב־רDalet, Bet, Resh

“to speak”

• 🔊 דִּבֵּרdĭ-bērhe spokeExodus 20:1
• 🔊 דָּבָרdā-vārmatter, thingGenesis 15:1