Numbers 22:4:16Num.22.4.W16TAB
מֶ֥לֶךְ
melekh
“king”
- Transliteration
- ME-lekh
- Extended
- MEH-lekh
- IPA
- /ˈmɛlɛx/
Meaning by language
- English
- king
Hebrew · tap a syllable to hear it
Alphabet Analysis
| Mem | m as in mother | |
| Seghol | short 'eh' as in met | |
| Lamed | l as in law | |
| Seghol | short 'eh' as in met | |
| Kaf Sofit | final form of Kaf — at word end | |
| Sheva | silent sheva — no sound; closes the syllable |
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Now you try — trace the word:
The word
Word in context
- word
ME-lekh
- phraseyour reading level
ME-lekh le-mo-AV
- clause
u-va-LAK ben-TsI-POR ME-lekh le-mo-AV ba-ET ha-hi-U
- sentence
va-YO-mer mo-AV el-zik-NEI mid-YAN a-TAH ye-la-kha-KHU ha-ka-HAL et-KOL-se-vi-vo-TEI-nu kil-KHOKH ha-SHOR ET YE-rek ha-sa-DEH u-va-LAK ben-TsI-POR ME-lekh le-mo-AV ba-ET ha-hi-U
Exegesis
The final clause u-valak ben-tzippor melek lemoav {וּבָלָק בֶּן־צִפּוֹר מֶלֶךְ לְמוֹאָב | ū-wālaq ben-ṣip̄pōr meleḵ lə-Mōʾāḇ} shifts to a historical note, framed by the temporal phrase baet hahi {בָּעֵת הַהִוא | bā-ʿêṯ hahîʾ} ‘at that time.’ English syntax preserves the Hebrew sequence of warning, illustrative simile, and political context.
Root and etymology
m-l-kmem-lamed-kaf
“king, to reign”
In context — Numbers 22:4
Now Moab said to the elders of Midian, “This assembly will lick up all our surroundings as the ox licks up the green of the field.” At that time, Balak son of Zippor was king over Moab.
About this coordinate
Numbers 22:4:16 is a BCV:P reference — Book · Chapter · Verse · Word Position. It addresses word 16 of Numbers 22:4, so the Hebrew word מֶ֥לֶךְ (melekh) 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.22.4.W16, which extends further down to each syllable (Num.22.4.W16.S1) and character.