בַּתָּֽוֶךְ׃

Alphabet Analysis

The word

1. word🔊 בַּתָּֽוֶךְ׃

   ba-ta-VEKH

   in the midst
2. clause🔊 וַיִּקַּ֣ח לַפִּדִ֗ים וַיֶּ֤פֶן זָנָב֙ אֶל־זָנָ֔ב וַיָּ֨שֶׂם לַפִּ֥יד אֶחָ֛ד בֵּין־שְׁנֵ֥י הַזְּנָב֖וֹת בַּתָּֽוֶךְ׃

   va-yik-KAKH la-pi-DIM va-ye-FEN za-NAV el-za-NAV va-ya-SEM la-PID e-KHAD BEN-she-NE ha-ze-na-VOT ba-ta-VEKH

   and he took torches and he turned a tail to a tail and he put a torch one between two the tails in the midst
3. sentence🔊 וַיֵּ֣לֶךְ שִׁמְשׁ֔וֹן וַיִּלְכֹּ֖ד שְׁלֹשׁ־מֵא֣וֹת שׁוּעָלִ֑ים וַיִּקַּ֣ח לַפִּדִ֗ים וַיֶּ֤פֶן זָנָב֙ אֶל־זָנָ֔ב וַיָּ֨שֶׂם לַפִּ֥יד אֶחָ֛ד בֵּין־שְׁנֵ֥י הַזְּנָב֖וֹת בַּתָּֽוֶךְ׃

   va-ye-LEKH shim-sHON va-yil-KOD she-LOSH-me-OT shu-a-LIM va-yik-KAKH la-pi-DIM va-ye-FEN za-NAV el-za-NAV va-ya-SEM la-PID e-KHAD BEN-she-NE ha-ze-na-VOT ba-ta-VEKH

   and he went Samson and he caught three-hundreds foxes and he took torches and he turned a tail to a tail and he put a torch one between two the tails in the midst

Exegesis

The pairing is signaled by zānāv {זָנָב֙ | zānāv} ‘tail’ and ʾel-zānāv {אֶל־זָנָ֔ב | ʾel-zānāv} ‘to tail’, while battāvēḵ {בַּתָּֽוֶךְ | battāvēḵ} ‘in the middle’ marks the precise placement of lappîḏ {לַפִּ֥יד | lappîḏ} ‘torch’. The English rendering preserves the rapid action and spatial detail through coordinated clauses and prepositional phrases.