Proverbs 21:12:5Prov.21.12.W5TAB
מְסַלֵּ֖ף
mesalef
“overthrows”
- Transliteration
- me-sa-LEF
- Extended
- meh-sah-LEEF
- IPA
- /məsal.ˈleːf/
Meaning by language
- English
- overthrows
Hebrew · tap a syllable to hear it
Alphabet Analysis
| Mem | m as in mother | |
| Sheva | vocal sheva — a short 'e' (ə), begins a syllable | |
| Samekh | s as in sit | |
| Patach | short 'ah' as in father | |
| Lamed | l as in law | |
| Tsere | long 'ey' as in they | |
| Pe Sofit | final form of Pe — at word end |
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The word
Word in context
- word
me-sa-LEF
- clause
me-sa-LEF re-sha-IM la-RA
- sentence
ma-se-KIL tsa-DIK le-VEIT ra-SHA me-sa-LEF re-sha-IM la-RA
Exegesis
In the second clause, the Piel participle mesallef {מְסַלֵּ֖ף | mə-sal-lêf} ‘he overturns’ takes the plural absolute reshaim {רְשָׁעִ֣ים | rĕ-šaʿ-îm} ‘wicked ones’ as its object and lara {לָרָֽע | lā-rāʿ} marks the result ‘to ruin.’ The parallelism between deliberate consideration in the first clause and decisive action in the second underscores the outcome of moral discernment: divine justice enacted upon the wicked.
Root and etymology
ס־ל־ףs-l-p
“to overturn, distort”
In context — Proverbs 21:12
The Righteous One wisely considers the house of the wicked; He overturns the wicked to ruin.
About this coordinate
Proverbs 21:12:5 is a BCV:P reference — Book · Chapter · Verse · Word Position. It addresses word 5 of Proverbs 21:12, so the Hebrew word מְסַלֵּ֖ף (mesalef) 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 Prov.21.12.W5, which extends further down to each syllable (Prov.21.12.W5.S1) and character.