Bible Lexicons

1. Of the words mentioned in § 101, מִן־‎ from, out of, frequently occurs as a prefix (§99c), with its Nûn assimilated to the following consonant (by means of Dageš forte), e.g. מִיַּ֫עַר‎ out of a forest.

Rem. The separate מִן־‎ (always with a following Maqqeph) is usual (but not necessary, cf. Judges 20:14 with verse 15, Ezekiel 43:6, &c.) only before the article, e.g. מִן־הָאָ֫רֶץ‎, and sometimes occurs before the softer consonants, e.g. מִן־אָז‎ Jeremiah 44:18, מִן־בְּנֵי‎ Joel 1:12, 1 Chronicles 5:18; cf. Exodus 18:14, Leviticus 1:14, Leviticus 14:30, Judges 7:23, Judges 10:11, Judges 19:16, Psalms 104:7 (2 Kings 23:36 before ר‎; also before ק‎ in Psalms 18:49), and elsewhere in the later books (as in Aramaic)^[1]; there is besides a poetic by-form מִנִּי‎ (cf. §90m) and מִנֵּי‎ Isaiah 30:11. Its form is most commonly מִ‍·‎ with a following Dageš, which may, however, be omitted in letters which have Š^ewâ (cf. §20m). With a following י‎ the מִ‍‎ is, as a rule, contracted to מִי‎, e.g. מִידֵי‎=מִיְּדֵי‎ or מִֽיְדֵי‎ (but cf. מִיְּשֵׁנֵי‎ Daniel 12:2; מִיְּרֻשָּֽׁתְךָ‎ 2 Chronicles 20:11); before gutturals it becomes מֵ‍‎ (according to §22c), e.g. מֵֽאָדָם‎, מֵעָם‎; before ח‎ the מִ‍‎ occurs with the guttural virtually sharpened in מִחוּץ‎ on the outside, and in מִחוּט‎ Genesis 14:23; before ה‎ in מִֽהְיוֹת‎ (cf. §28b and §63q. The closed syllable here is inconsistent with the required virtual sharpening of the ה‎; probably מִֽהְיוֹת‎ is merely due to the analogy of לִֽהְיוֹת‎); similarly Isaiah 14:3 before ר‎; but in 1 Samuel 23:28, 2 Samuel 18:16 מִרְּדֹף‎ is to be read, according to §22s.

2. There are also three other particles, the most commonly used prepositions and the particle of comparison, which have been reduced by abbreviation (§99c) to a single prefixed consonant with Š^ewâ (but see below, and §103e), viz.:

בְּ‎ [poet. בְּמוֹ‎] in, at, with.

לְ‎ [poet. לְמוֹ‎] towards, (belonging) to, for, Lat. ad.

כְּ‍‎ [poet. כְּמוֹ‎] like, as, according to (no doubt the remnant of a substantive with the meaning of matter, kind, instar).

With regard to the pointing it is to be observed that—

(a) The Š^ewâ mobile, with which the above prefixes are usually pronounced, has resulted from the weakening of a short vowel (an original ă, according to f)^[2]; the short vowel is regularly retained before Š^ewâ: before Š^ewâ simplex in the form of an ĭ, attenuated from ă: before a Ḥaṭeph the prefix takes the vowel of the Ḥaṭeph, e.g. לִפְרִי‎ for fruit, כַּֽאֲרִי‎ as a lion, בָּֽעֳנִי‎ bŏʿ^onî, in affliction (sometimes with the syllable subsequently closed, cf. §28b, and the infinitives with לַ‎ §63i): before weak consonants it follows the rule given in §24c, e.g. לִֽיהוּדָה‎ for לִיְ׳‎. When the prefixes בְ‎, וְ‎, כְ‍‎, לְ‎, precede אֱלֹהִים‎ God, the Š^ewâ and Ḥaṭeph S^eghôl regularly coalesce in Ṣērê, e.g. בֵּֽאלֹהִים‎, &c., for בֶּֽאֱל׳‎; so with suffixes וֵאֽלֹהָיו‎, &c. (once also in the sing. לֵֽאלֹהוֹ‎ Habakkuk 1:11); also regularly לֵאמֹר‎ to say, for לֶֽאֱמֹר‎, see §23d.

(b) When the prefixes precede the article, the ה‎ is almost always dropped, and they take its vowel. See further in §35n.

(c) Immediately before the tone-syllable, i.e. before monosyllables and dissyllables with the tone on the penultima (in the fore-tone), they take Qameṣ (undoubtedly a lengthening of an original ă, cf. §26e, §28a), but only in the following cases:

(aa) לָ‎ before infinitives of the above-mentioned forms, as לָתֵת‎ to give, לָדִין‎ to judge, לָבֹז‎ to plunder, לָגֹז‎ to shear, לָחֹג‎ to keep a festival, לָלֶ֫דֶת‎ to bring forth, לָלֶ֫כֶת‎ to go, לָקַ֫חַת‎ to take, except when the infinitive (as a nomen regens) is closely connected with another word (especially its subject, §115e), and consequently, as being in a sort of constr. state, loses the principal tone, e.g. לְצֵאת‎ Exodus 19:1, לְשֶׁ֫בֶת‎ Genesis 16:3, and so always לְבֹא חֲמָת‎ Numbers 13:21, &c. (in such cases as לָֽתֶת־חֶ֫רֶב‎ Exodus 5:21 the ā is protected by the secondary tone; before infinitives of verbs ע״וּ‎, the לָ‎ is retained even in close connexion; cf. Ezekiel 21:2025, Ezekiel 22:3);

(bb) before many pronominal forms, e.g. בָּזֶה‎ (so also in 1 Samuel 21:10; not בַּזֶּה‎), לָזֶה‎, כָּזֶה‎, לָזֹאת‎ (in close connexion, however, לְזֹאת‎ Genesis 2:23; כְּזֹאת‎ Genesis 45:23); כָּאֵ֫לֶּה‎ as these; an especially בָּכֶם‎, לָכֶם‎, כָּכֶם‎ (כָּכֵם‎) and בָּהֶם‎, לָהֶם‎, כָּהֵם‎ (כָּהֶם‎), see §103e;

(cc) לָ‎ before monosyllables or fore-toned nouns in such combinations as פֶּה לָפֶה‎ mouth to month, 2 Kings 10:21, בֵּין מַ֫יִם לָמָ֫יִם‎ between waters and waters, Genesis 1:6; לָטֹ֫רַח‎ for a trouble, Isaiah 1:14, but always before the principal pause. The instructive example in Deuteronomy 17:8 also shows that the punctuation לָ‎ is only possible with at least the lesser pause after it; in Isaiah 28:1013 the לָ‎ is twice repeated, even before the small and smallest disjunctives;

(dd) in certain standing expressions, which have become stereotyped almost as adverbs, e.g. לָעַד‎ to eternity, לָרֹב‎ in multitude, לָבֶ֫טַח‎ in security, לָנֶ֫צַח‎ to eternity, but לְנֵ֫צַח נְצָחִים‎ to all eternity, Isaiah 34:10. Cf. also לָנֶ֫פֶשׁ‎ for the dead, Leviticus 19:28, Numbers 5:2, Numbers 9:10.

(d) With the interrogative מָה‎ they are pointed as in בַּמֶּה‎; in pause and before א‎ as in בַּמָּה‎ by what? (before a following relative clause, as in Ecclesiastes 3:22, בְּמֶה‎; cf. Delitzsch, Jesaia, 4th ed., on Isaiah 2:22); כַּמָּה‎ how much? but also כַּמֶּה‎ 1 Kings 22:16, in close connexion, and at a greater distance from the pause. The S^eghôl in these forms arises from a modification of the original ă, while the מ‍‎ is sharpened in order to maintain the original ǎ of the prefixes.

When לְ‎ (prop. la) is united to מָה‎, it takes, according to §49f, g, the form לָ֫מָּה‎ (Job 7:20 לָ֫מָה‎, 1 Samuel 1:8 לָ֫מֶה‎, all Milʿêl, and hence the ă in the tone is lengthened to ā) for what? why? Before the gutturals א‎, ה‎, ע‎, לָמָ֫ה‎ is used for euphonic reasons (exceptions 1 Samuel 28:15, 2 Samuel 14:31, Jeremiah 15:18, before ה‎; 2 Samuel 2:22, Psalms 49:6, before א‎); לָ֫מָּה‎, however, remains before ח‎. Before letters which are not gutturals, לָמָ֫ה‎ is found in Psalms 42:10, Psalms 43:2 (immediately after a tone-syllable).

Rem. The divine name יְהֹוָה‎, which has not its original vowels (יַהְוֶה‎) but those of אֲדֹנָי‎ (see §17c), except that the י‎ has simple not compound Š^ewâ, takes the prefixes also, after the manner of אֲדֹנָי‎, thus וַֽיהוָֹה‎, לַֽיהוָֹה‎, בַּֽיהוָֹה‎, מֵֽיְהֹוָה‎ (since they are to be read וַֽאדֹנָי‎, לַֽאדֹנָי‎, בַּֽאדֹנָי‎, מֵֽאֲדֹנָי‎); for the א‎ of אֲדֹנָי‎, as of אֲדֹנִי‎, אֲדֹנִים‎, &c. (see below), quiesces after the prefixes בַּ‎, כַּ‍‎, לַ‎, וַ‎, but is audible after מֵ‍‎ (for מִן‎), שֶׁ‎ (no instance in the O.T.), and הָ‎ (in הָֽאֲדֹנִים‎ Deuteronomy 10:17, Psalms 136:3, the article, not הַ‎ interrog., is intended; the only example with ה‎ intertog., Jeremiah 8:19, is to be pointed הַֽיהוָֹה‎, i.e. הַֽאדֹנָי‎, not הַיְהֹוָה‎). Hence the rule, משֶׁה מוֹצִיא‎ Moses brought out (i.e. מ‍‎, שׁ‎, ה‎ make the א‎ audible), וְכָלֵב מַכְנִיס‎ and Caleb brought in, (i.e. ו‎, כ‍‎, ל‎, ב‎ allow it to quiesce).^[3]—As regards the other plural forms of אָדוֹן‎, elision of the א‎ always takes place after בַּ‎, וַ‎, כַּ‍‎, לַ‎, except in the form אֲדֹנֵי‎, thus לַֽאדֹנָיו‎, לַֽאדֹנֶ֫יךָ‎, &c.; but לַֽאֲדֹנֵי‎, &c., לַֽאֲדֹנֵ֫ינוּ‎, &c., לַֽאֲדֹֽנֵיהֶם‎.