רַבִּ֕ים

Alphabet Analysis

The word

1. word🔊 רַבִּ֕ים

   ra-BIM

   many
2. clause🔊 וַיִּהְי֤וּ הַמֵּתִים֙ אֲשֶׁ֣ר הֵמִ֣ית בְּמוֹת֔וֹ רַבִּ֕ים מֵאֲשֶׁ֥ר הֵמִ֖ית בְּחַיָּֽיו׃

   va-yih-YU ha-me-TIM a-SHER he-MIT be-mo-TO ra-BIM me-a-SHER he-MIT be-kha-YAV

   and were the dead whom or which he killed in his death many more than he killed in his life
3. sentence🔊 וַיֹּ֣אמֶר שִׁמְשׁ֗וֹן תָּמ֣וֹת נַפְשִׁי֮ עִם־פְּלִשְׁתִּים֒ וַיֵּ֣ט בְּכֹ֔חַ וַיִּפֹּ֤ל הַבַּ֙יִת֙ עַל־הַסְּרָנִ֔ים וְעַל־כָּל־הָעָ֖ם אֲשֶׁר־בּ֑וֹ וַיִּהְי֤וּ הַמֵּתִים֙ אֲשֶׁ֣ר הֵמִ֣ית בְּמוֹת֔וֹ רַבִּ֕ים מֵאֲשֶׁ֥ר הֵמִ֖ית בְּחַיָּֽיו׃

   va-yo-MER shim-sHON ta-MOT naf-SHI im-pe-lish-TIM va-YET be-KHO-akh va-yi-POL ha-BA-yit al-ha-se-ra-NIM ve-al-kol-ha-AM a-SHER-BO va-yih-YU ha-me-TIM a-SHER he-MIT be-mo-TO ra-BIM me-a-SHER he-MIT be-kha-YAV

   and he said Samson let die my life or my soul with Philistines and he bent or stretched with strength or with power and fell the house upon the lords and upon all the people who were in it and were the dead whom or which he killed in his death many more than he killed in his life

Exegesis

In the result clause wayyipōl {וַיִּפֹּ֤ל | wayyipōl} ‘and it fell’ takes ham-mēṯîm {הַמֵּתִים֙ | ham-mēṯîm} ‘the dead’ as a comparative endpoint: ham-mēṯîm whom hēmîṯ {הֵמִ֣ית | hēmîṯ} ‘he killed’ in bᵊ-mōtō {בְּמוֹת֔וֹ | bᵊ-mōtō} ‘in his death’ were rabbîm mē-ʾašer {רַבִּים מֵאֲשֶׁ֥ר | rabbîm mē-ʾašer} ‘many more than’ those hēmîṯ {הֵמִ֖ית | hēmîṯ} ‘he killed’ bᵊ-ḥay-yāw {בְּחַיָּֽיו׃ | bᵊ-ḥay-yāw} ‘in his life’. The sequence of vav-consecutives, shift from jussive to narrative imperfect to comparative clause, builds the climactic end of Samson’s final act.