לֶאֱכֹ֥ל

Alphabet Analysis

The word

1. word🔊 לֶאֱכֹ֥ל

   le-e-KHOL

   to eat
2. phraseyour reading level🔊 לֶאֱכֹ֥ל וּלְהַשְׁחִֽית׃

   le-e-KHOL u-le-hash-KHIT

   to eat and to destroy
3. clause🔊 וְאֶת־ע֧וֹף הַשָּׁמַ֛יִם וְאֶת־בֶּהֱמַ֥ת הָאָ֖רֶץ לֶאֱכֹ֥ל וּלְהַשְׁחִֽית׃

   ve-et-OF ha-sha-MA-yim ve-et-be-he-MAT ha-A-rets le-e-KHOL u-le-hash-KHIT

   and the bird of the heavens and the beast of the earth to eat and to destroy
4. sentence🔊 וּפָקַדְתִּ֨י עֲלֵיהֶ֜ם אַרְבַּ֤ע מִשְׁפָּחוֹת֙ נְאֻם־יְהוָ֔ה אֶת־הַחֶ֣רֶב לַֽהֲרֹ֔ג וְאֶת־הַכְּלָבִ֖ים לִסְחֹ֑ב וְאֶת־ע֧וֹף הַשָּׁמַ֛יִם וְאֶת־בֶּהֱמַ֥ת הָאָ֖רֶץ לֶאֱכֹ֥ל וּלְהַשְׁחִֽית׃

   u-fa-KAD-ti a-le-HEM ar-BA mish-pe-KHO-t ne-UM-ye-ho-VAH et-ha-KHE-rev la-ha-ROG ve-et-ha-kla-VIM lis-KHOV ve-et-OF ha-sha-MA-yim ve-et-be-he-MAT ha-A-rets le-e-KHOL u-le-hash-KHIT

   and I will appoint over them four families or kinds declaration of the LORD the sword to kill and the dogs to drag away and the bird of the heavens and the beast of the earth to eat and to destroy

Exegesis

A series of direct-object markers et {אֶת־ | ʾet} precedes each instrument, followed by infinitive constructs laharog {לַֽהֲרֹ֔ג | la-ha-rōg} ‘to kill,’ lischov {לִסְחֹב | li-sḥōv} ‘to drag away,’ le-ekhol {לֶאֱכֹ֥ל | le-ʾe-ḵōl} ‘to eat,’ and ule-hashchit {וּלְהַשְׁחִֽית | u-le-haš-ḥîṯ} ‘to destroy.’ Construct chains bird-of-the-heavens and beast-of-the-earth broaden the scope of the agents. The Hebrew word order places instruments before actions for rhetorical emphasis, preserved in the English enumeration.