Proverbs 3:22:2Prov.3.22.W2TAB
חַיִּ֣ים
khayim
“life”
- Transliteration
- kha-YIM
- Extended
- khah-YEEM
- IPA
- /ħaˈjiːm/
Meaning by language
- English
- life
Hebrew · tap a syllable to hear it
Alphabet Analysis
| Chet | ch — deep guttural, as in Scottish loch | |
| Patach | short 'ah' as in father | |
| Yod | y as in yes; marks long ī | |
| Hireq | 'ee' as in machine | |
| Yod | y as in yes; marks long ī | |
| Mem Sofit | final form of Mem — at word end |
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Now you try — trace the word:
The word
Word in context
- word
kha-YIM
- clause
ve-yih-YU kha-YIM le-naf-SHE-kha
- sentence
ve-yih-YU kha-YIM le-naf-SHE-kha ve-KHEN le-gar-ge-RO-te-kha
Exegesis
The parallel structure aligns the noun chayyim {חַיִּים | ḥayyîm} ‘life’ with the prepositional phrase lenafshekha {לְנַפְשֶׁ֑ךָ | lə-naf-šê-kā} ‘for your soul’, and the noun chen {חֵן | ḥên} ‘grace’ with legargerotekha {לְגַרְגְּרֹתֶֽיךָ | lə-gar-gə-rō-tê-kā} ‘for your neck’. This noun + lamed-object construction is rendered in English as noun + prepositional phrase, preserving the balanced poetic parallelism. The construct chain in legargerotekha connects the abstract quality of grace to the concrete image of the throat area, reinforcing the metaphor of favor as an adornment.
Root and etymology
ḥ-y-hchet–yod–heh
“to live, to have life”
In context — Proverbs 3:22
And they will be life for your soul , and grace for your neck.
About this coordinate
Proverbs 3:22:2 is a BCV:P reference — Book · Chapter · Verse · Word Position. It addresses word 2 of Proverbs 3:22, so the Hebrew word חַיִּ֣ים (khayim) 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.3.22.W2, which extends further down to each syllable (Prov.3.22.W2.S1) and character.