כִּ֣י לִי֮ כָּל־בְּכֹור֒ בְּיֹום֩ הַכֹּתִ֨י כָל־בְּכֹ֜ור בְּאֶ֣רֶץ מִצְרַ֗יִם הִקְדַּ֨שְׁתִּי לִ֤י כָל־בְּכֹור֙ בְּיִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל מֵאָדָ֖ם עַד־בְּהֵמָ֑ה לִ֥י יִהְי֖וּ אֲנִ֥י יְהוָֽה׃ ס
For every firstborn is mine. On the day I struck every firstborn in the land of Mitsrayim, I consecrated every firstborn in Yisra’el to myself, from man to animal. They shall be mine. I am YHWH.”
Morphology
- כִּ֣י (ki) – Root: כי (k-y); Form: Conjunction; Translation: “For”; Notes: Introduces a reason or explanation.
- לִי֮ (li) – Root: ל (l); Form: Preposition with 1st person singular suffix; Translation: “Mine”; Notes: Indicates possession by YHWH.
- כָּל־ (kol) – Root: כל (k-l); Form: Noun in construct; Translation: “Every”; Notes: Refers to totality.
- בְּכֹור֒ (bekhor) – Root: בכר (b-k-r); Form: Masculine singular noun; Translation: “Firstborn”; Notes: Refers to the first male offspring.
- בְּיֹום֩ (be-yom) – Root: יום (y-w-m); Form: Masculine singular noun with preposition; Translation: “On the day”; Notes: Indicates the specific time of the event.
- הַכֹּתִ֨י (hakoti) – Root: נכה (n-k-h); Form: Hifil infinitive construct with 1st person singular suffix; Translation: “I struck”; Notes: Refers to the action of striking down the firstborn.
- כָל־ (kol) – Root: כל (k-l); Form: Noun in construct; Translation: “Every”; Notes: Indicates totality.
- בְּכֹ֜ור (bekhor) – Root: בכר (b-k-r); Form: Masculine singular noun; Translation: “Firstborn”; Notes: Refers to the firstborn males in Mitsrayim.
- בְּאֶ֣רֶץ (be-eretz) – Root: ארץ (ʾ-r-ṣ); Form: Feminine singular noun with preposition; Translation: “In the land of”; Notes: Refers to Mitsrayim.
- מִצְרַ֗יִם (Mitsrayim) – Root: מצרים (m-ṣ-r-y-m); Form: Proper noun; Translation: “Mitsrayim”; Notes: Refers to Egypt.
- הִקְדַּ֨שְׁתִּי (hikdashti) – Root: קדש (q-d-sh); Form: Hifil perfect 1st person singular; Translation: “I consecrated”; Notes: Refers to setting apart the firstborn as holy to YHWH.
- לִ֤י (li) – Root: ל (l); Form: Preposition with 1st person singular suffix; Translation: “To myself”; Notes: Indicates consecration to YHWH.
- כָל־ (kol) – Root: כל (k-l); Form: Noun in construct; Translation: “Every”; Notes: Refers to all firstborn.
- בְּכֹור֙ (bekhor) – Root: בכר (b-k-r); Form: Masculine singular noun; Translation: “Firstborn”; Notes: Refers to the firstborn among Israel.
- בְּיִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל (be-Yisrael) – Root: ישראל (y-s-r-ʾ-l); Form: Proper noun with preposition; Translation: “In Israel”; Notes: Refers to the nation of Israel.
- מֵאָדָ֖ם (me-adam) – Root: אדם (ʾ-d-m); Form: Masculine singular noun with preposition; Translation: “From man”; Notes: Indicates both humans and animals are consecrated.
- עַד־ (ad) – Root: עד (ʿ-d); Form: Preposition; Translation: “To”; Notes: Marks the extent of consecration.
- בְּהֵמָ֑ה (behemah) – Root: בהמ (b-h-m); Form: Feminine singular noun; Translation: “Animal”; Notes: Includes livestock consecrated to YHWH.
- לִ֥י (li) – Root: ל (l); Form: Preposition with 1st person singular suffix; Translation: “To Me”; Notes: Refers to YHWH’s ownership.
- יִהְי֖וּ (yihyu) – Root: היה (h-y-h); Form: Qal imperfect 3rd person masculine plural; Translation: “They shall be”; Notes: Indicates ongoing possession by YHWH.
- אֲנִ֥י (ani) – Root: אני (ʾ-n-y); Form: Independent pronoun; Translation: “I”; Notes: Emphasizes YHWH as the speaker.
- יְהוָֽה׃ (YHWH) – Root: יהוה (y-h-w-h); Form: Proper noun; Translation: “YHWH”; Notes: The covenantal name of God.