Genesis 18:24:11Gen.18.24.W11TAB

לְמַ֛עַן

lemaan

for the sake of the

Transliteration
le-MA-an
Extended
leh-MAH-ahn
IPA
/lə.ˈma.ʕan/

Meaning by language

English
for the sake of the

Hebrew · tap a syllable to hear it

Result
לְ + מַ֛ + עַן
le + ma + an
lemaan

Alphabet Analysis

Lamedl as in law
Shevavocal sheva — a short 'e' (ə), begins a syllable
Memm as in mother
Patachshort 'ah' as in father
Ayindeep guttural stop, voiced pharyngeal
Patachshort 'ah' as in father
Nun Sofitfinal form of Nun — at word end

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Vowels (Niqqud)

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The word

Word in context

  1. word

    le-MA-an

  2. clause

    ha-AF tis-PEH ve-LO-ti-SA la-ma-KOM le-MA-an kha-mi-SHIM ha-tsa-di-KIM a-SHER be-kir-BAH

  3. sentence

    u-LAI YESH kha-mi-SHIM tsa-di-KIM be-TOKH ha-IR ha-AF tis-PEH ve-LO-ti-SA la-ma-KOM le-MA-an kha-mi-SHIM ha-tsa-di-KIM a-SHER be-kir-BAH

Exegesis

La-makom {לַמָּקוֹם | la-mā-qôm} ‘for the place’ functions metonymically for the city, and lemaan chamishim ha-tsaddikim {לְמַעַן חֲמִשִּׁים הַצַּדִּיקִים | lə-ma-ʿan ḥă-miš-šîm haṣ-ṣad-dî-qîm} ‘for the sake of the fifty righteous’ links preservation to moral worth.

In contextGenesis 18:24

Perhaps there are fifty righteous within the city. Will You really sweep it away and not spare the place because of the fifty righteous who are in its midst?

About this coordinate

Genesis 18:24:11 is a BCV:P reference — Book · Chapter · Verse · Word Position. It addresses word 11 of Genesis 18:24, so the Hebrew word לְמַ֛עַן (lemaan) 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 Gen.18.24.W11, which extends further down to each syllable (Gen.18.24.W11.S1) and character.