וּמֵחֵ֨יק הָאָ֜רֶץ עַד־הָעֲזָרָ֤ה הַתַּחְתֹּונָה֙ שְׁתַּ֣יִם אַמֹּ֔ות וְרֹ֖חַב אַמָּ֣ה אֶחָ֑ת וּמֵהֳעֲזָרָ֨ה הַקְּטַנָּ֜ה עַד־הָעֲזָרָ֤ה הַגְּדֹולָה֙ אַרְבַּ֣ע אַמֹּ֔ות וְרֹ֖חַב הָאַמָּֽה׃
And from the base of the ground to the lower court two cubits, and the breadth one cubit; and from the lesser court to the greater court four cubits, and the breadth one cubit.
Morphology
- וּמֵחֵיק (u-me-ḥeiq) – Root: חיק (ḥeiq); Form: Conjunction וּ + preposition מִן + noun masculine singular; Translation: “and from the base”; Notes: Refers to the lower foundation section of the altar, marking its beginning point from the earth.
- הָאָרֶץ (ha-aretz) – Root: ארץ (ʾaretz); Form: Definite noun feminine singular; Translation: “the ground” or “the earth”; Notes: Denotes the surface level from which the altar measurements begin.
- עַד־הָעֲזָרָה (ʿad-ha-ʿazara) – Root: עזר (ʿazar); Form: Preposition עַד + definite noun feminine singular; Translation: “up to the court”; Notes: Marks the vertical extent from the foundation to the lower court of the altar structure.
- הַתַּחְתֹּונָה (ha-taḥtonah) – Root: תחת (taḥat); Form: Definite adjective feminine singular; Translation: “the lower”; Notes: Specifies the first level or lower section of the altar platform.
- שְׁתַּיִם (shetayim) – Root: —; Form: Numeral feminine dual; Translation: “two”; Notes: Measurement value — height between the base and lower court equals two cubits.
- אַמֹּות (ammot) – Root: אמה (ammah); Form: Noun feminine plural; Translation: “cubits”; Notes: Measurement unit used for the altar structure, roughly 45–52 cm per cubit.
- וְרֹחַב (ve-roḥav) – Root: רחב (raḥav); Form: Conjunction וְ + noun masculine singular; Translation: “and the breadth”; Notes: Indicates the lateral width of the altar tier.
- אַמָּה (ammah) – Root: אמה (ammah); Form: Noun feminine singular; Translation: “a cubit”; Notes: Specifies the width of this section — one cubit wide.
- אֶחָת (eḥat) – Root: אחד (eḥad); Form: Numeral feminine singular; Translation: “one”; Notes: Matches with the feminine noun אַמָּה for grammatical agreement.
- וּמֵהֳעֲזָרָה (u-me-haʿazara) – Root: עזר (ʿazar); Form: Conjunction וּ + preposition מִן + definite noun feminine singular; Translation: “and from the court”; Notes: Marks a new measurement stage from the lower to the higher court.
- הַקְּטַנָּה (ha-qetannah) – Root: קטן (qatan); Form: Definite adjective feminine singular; Translation: “the smaller”; Notes: Describes the lower or lesser court level in contrast to the larger upper one.
- עַד־הָעֲזָרָה (ʿad-haʿazara) – Root: עזר (ʿazar); Form: Preposition עַד + definite noun feminine singular; Translation: “up to the court”; Notes: Marks the endpoint of the second measurement segment.
- הַגְּדֹולָה (ha-gedolah) – Root: גדל (gadal); Form: Definite adjective feminine singular; Translation: “the great” or “the larger”; Notes: Refers to the upper court or higher level of the altar.
- אַרְבַּע (arbaʿ) – Root: —; Form: Numeral feminine singular; Translation: “four”; Notes: The vertical measurement between the smaller and larger court levels.
- אַמֹּות (ammot) – Root: אמה (ammah); Form: Noun feminine plural; Translation: “cubits”; Notes: Specifies that the height between the two courts equals four cubits.
- וְרֹחַב (ve-roḥav) – Root: רחב (raḥav); Form: Conjunction וְ + noun masculine singular; Translation: “and the breadth”; Notes: Indicates again the lateral dimension of this section of the altar.
- הָאַמָּה (ha-ammah) – Root: אמה (ammah); Form: Definite noun feminine singular; Translation: “the cubit”; Notes: Repeats the constant breadth dimension — one cubit for uniformity in altar design.