Numbers 14:3:1Num.14.3.W1TAB
וְלָמָ֣ה
velamah
“and why”
- Transliteration
- ve-la-MAH
- Extended
- veh-lah-MAH
- IPA
- /vəlaˈmaː/
Meaning by language
- English
- and why
Hebrew · tap a syllable to hear it
Alphabet Analysis
| Vav | v as in vine; marks long ō / ū | |
| Sheva | vocal sheva — a short 'e' (ə), begins a syllable | |
| Lamed | l as in law | |
| Qamets | long 'ah' | |
| Mem | m as in mother | |
| Qamets | long 'ah' | |
| He | h as in house; silent at word end |
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The word
Word in context
- word
ve-la-MAH
- phraseyour reading level
ve-la-MAH Ye-ho-VAH
- clause
ve-la-MAH Ye-ho-VAH me-vi o-ta-NU el-ha-A-retz ha-ZOT lin-POL ba-KHE-rev na-SHE-nu ve-ta-PE-nu yih-YU la-VAZ
- sentence
ve-la-MAH Ye-ho-VAH me-vi o-ta-NU el-ha-A-retz ha-ZOT lin-POL ba-KHE-rev na-SHE-nu ve-ta-PE-nu yih-YU la-VAZ ha-LO TOV la-NU SHUV mits-ra-Y-ma
Exegesis
The verse begins with the interrogative ve-lamah {וְלָמָה | wə-lā-mā} “and why,” introducing a complaint.
In context — Numbers 14:3
And why is the LORD bringing us to this land to fall by the sword and to have our wives and our little ones become plunder? Would it not be good for us to return to Egypt?
About this coordinate
Numbers 14:3:1 is a BCV:P reference — Book · Chapter · Verse · Word Position. It addresses word 1 of Numbers 14:3, so the Hebrew word וְלָמָ֣ה (velamah) 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 Num.14.3.W1, which extends further down to each syllable (Num.14.3.W1.S1) and character.