שְׁנֵי֙

Alphabet Analysis

The word

1. word🔊 שְׁנֵי֙

   she-NEI

   years of
2. clause🔊 מְעַ֣ט וְרָעִ֗ים הָיוּ֙ יְמֵי֙ שְׁנֵ֣י חַיַּ֔י וְלֹ֣א הִשִּׂ֗יגוּ אֶת־יְמֵי֙ שְׁנֵי֙ חַיֵּ֣י אֲבֹתַ֔י בִּימֵ֖י מְגוּרֵיהֶֽם׃

   me-AT ve-ra-IM ha-YU ye-MEI she-NEI khai-YAI ve-LO hi-SI-gu et-ye-MEI she-NEI khai-YEI a-vo-TAI bi-MEI me-gu-REI-hem

   few and evil were days of years of my life and not attained days of years of life of my fathers in days of their sojourning
3. sentence🔊 וַיֹּ֤אמֶר יַעֲקֹב֙ אֶל־פַּרְעֹ֔ה יְמֵי֙ שְׁנֵ֣י מְגוּרַ֔י שְׁלֹשִׁ֥ים וּמְאַ֖ת שָׁנָ֑ה מְעַ֣ט וְרָעִ֗ים הָיוּ֙ יְמֵי֙ שְׁנֵ֣י חַיַּ֔י וְלֹ֣א הִשִּׂ֗יגוּ אֶת־יְמֵי֙ שְׁנֵי֙ חַיֵּ֣י אֲבֹתַ֔י בִּימֵ֖י מְגוּרֵיהֶֽם׃

   va-YO-mer ya-a-KOV el-par-O ye-MEI she-NEI me-gu-RAI she-lo-SHIM u-me-AT sha-NA me-AT ve-ra-IM ha-YU ye-MEI she-NEI khai-YAI ve-LO hi-SI-gu et-ye-MEI she-NEI khai-YEI a-vo-TAI bi-MEI me-gu-REI-hem

   Jacob {And} said to Pharaoh days of years of my sojourning thirty and one hundred years few and evil were days of years of my life and not attained days of years of life of my fathers in days of their sojourning

Exegesis

The construct chain yemē šənê megūrāy {יְמֵי שְׁנֵי מְגוּרַי | yə-mê šə-nê mə-gû-rāy} ‘days of the years of my sojournings’ layers temporal measurement with the transient status of Jacob’s life.

The negative clause wə-lōʾ hissīgû {וְלֹא הִשִּׂיגוּ | wə-lōʾ his-sî-gû} ‘and they did not reach’ governs the object chain ʾet yemē šənê ḥayyê ʾăvoṯay {אֶת־יְמֵי שְׁנֵי חַיֵּי אֲבֹתַי | ʾet-yə-mê šə-nê ḥay-yê ʾă-vo-ṭay}, explicitly comparing Jacob’s life with that of his fathers.