Joshua 20:3:5Josh.20.3.W5TAB
בִּשְׁגָגָ֖ה
bishgagah
“by accident”
- Transliteration
- bish-ga-GAH
- Extended
- bish-ga-ga-HAA
- IPA
- /biʃɡaˈɡaː/
Meaning by language
- English
- by accident
Hebrew · tap a syllable to hear it
Alphabet Analysis
| Bet | b with dagesh; v without dagesh | |
| Hireq | 'ee' as in machine | |
| Shin | shin with right dot; sin with left dot | |
| Sheva | silent sheva — no sound; closes the syllable | |
| Gimel | g as in good | |
| Qamets | long 'ah' | |
| Gimel | g as in good | |
| Qamets | long 'ah' | |
| He | h as in house; silent at word end |
Tap any letter to hear its name and sound
Now you try — trace the word:
The word
Word in context
- word
bish-ga-GAH
- phraseyour reading level
ma-KEH-NE-fesh bish-ga-GAH
- clause
la-NUS SHA-mah ro-TSE-akh ma-KEH-NE-fesh bish-ga-GAH biv-LI-DA-at
- sentence
la-NUS SHA-mah ro-TSE-akh ma-KEH-NE-fesh bish-ga-GAH biv-LI-DA-at ve-ha-YU la-KHEM le-mik-LAT mig-go-EL ha-DAM
Exegesis
Two substantival participles, rotseach {רוֹצֵ֔חַ | rōṣēaḥ} and makkeh-nefesh {מַכֵּה־נֶ֥פֶשׁ | makkēh-nép̄eš}, identify the offender in legal terms as the one who caused a death, while the prepositional qualifiers bishgagah {בִּשְׁגָגָ֖ה | bišgāgâ} ‘in error’ and bivli-daat {בִּבְלִי־דָ֑עַת | bivlî-daʿat} ‘without knowledge’ restrict the case to non-premeditated killing.
Root and etymology
Rootš-g-g
“to err, do by mistake”
In context — Joshua 20:3
The manslayer who strikes a person unintentionally without knowledge may flee there, and they shall be for you a refuge from the avenger of blood.
About this coordinate
Joshua 20:3:5 is a BCV:P reference — Book · Chapter · Verse · Word Position. It addresses word 5 of Joshua 20:3, so the Hebrew word בִּשְׁגָגָ֖ה (bishgagah) 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 Josh.20.3.W5, which extends further down to each syllable (Josh.20.3.W5.S1) and character.