Psalms 119:97 — Word Study
WLCמָֽה־ אָהַ֥בְתִּי תוֹרָתֶ֑ךָ כָּל־ הַ֝יּ֗וֹם הִ֣יא שִׂיחָתִֽי׃
BSAOh, howmâh [what an intense affection] I loveʼâhab■ [with deep devotion] Your lawtôwrâh [instruction, guidance] Allkôl [every moment of] day longyôwm [continually, without ceasing] ithûwʼ is my meditationsîychâh [personal, intimate, reflection, thoughtful consideration]
| Greek | English | Parsing |
|---|---|---|
| מָֽה־ | how! | Pronoun |
| אָהַ֥בְתִּי | I love | Verb, Qal, perfect first person common singular |
| תוֹרָתֶ֑ךָ | law your | Noun common feminine singular construct, suffix |
| כָּל־ | all | Noun common, masculine singular construct |
| הַ֝יּ֗וֹם | the day | Particle, noun common masculine singular absolute |
| הִ֣יא | it | Pronoun |
| שִׂיחָתִֽי׃ | [is] meditation my | Noun common feminine singular construct, suffix |
Every word in the verse. Click a row to open it in the panel on the left.
| BSB | Oh, how I love Your law! All day long it is my meditation. |
| KJV | O how love I thy law! it is my meditation all the day. |
| ASV | Oh how love I thy law! It is my meditation all the day. |
| YLT | [Mem.] O how I have loved Thy law! All the day it [is] my meditation. |
| WEB | How I love your law! It is my meditation all day. |
| BBE | O what love I have for your law! I give thought to it all the day. |
Translations agree on the core meaning of the verse, particularly in expressing love for God's law and the act of meditation.
The verse consists of a main clause followed by an adverbial phrase and a predicate, emphasizing the psalmist's continuous love and meditation.







8 commentators on this verse
Gill, Jamieson, Poole, Trapp & more — read them ›
clause
subjectהִיא
verbאָהֵב
The sentence as the grammar sees it Open the tree ›
Every word here is used elsewhere in the Old Testament.
Bars are logarithmic — אֵת, the commonest word in the Hebrew Bible, stands about 11,000 times, so a linear scale would leave everything else invisible. Click a row to open that word.
Deep Study — Psalms 119:97
Sections marked generated are written from the data on this page rather than by a named author. Everything else — the lexicon entries, the cross references, the manuscript readings, the counts — is quoted from its source unchanged.
Context — Meditation on God's Lawgenerated
Psalm 119:97 expresses the psalmist's heartfelt love for God's law, indicating that it is not just a set of rules but a source of deep personal reflection. This verse is situated within a larger context that highlights the importance of God's commandments and their role in guiding the believer's life, as seen in the surrounding verses, including Psalm 119:96 and Psalm 119:98.
Cross References
| Reference | Text (BSB) | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Psalm 119:48–113 | I lift up my hands to Your commandments, which I love, and I meditate on Your statutes. |
| 2 | Psalm 1:2 | But his delight is in the Law of the LORD, and on His law he meditates day and night. |
| 3 | Deuteronomy 6:6–9 | These words I am commanding you today are to be upon your hearts. |
| 4 | Deuteronomy 17:19 | It is to remain with him, and he is to read from it all the days of his life, so that he may learn to fear the LORD his God by carefully observing all the words of this instruction and these statutes. |
| 5 | Joshua 1:8 | This Book of the Law must not depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. For then you will prosper and succeed in all you do. |
The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge — 7 references, hung on the phrase they belong to
The Key Word — אָהַ֥בְתִּי, 'a.Hav.tigenerated
The verb אָהַב (*'ahab*) is a perfect form in the first person singular, indicating a completed action of love. This word encompasses a range of affections, from familial love to a deep devotion to God. It reflects an intense emotional connection, showing that the psalmist's love for God's law is both personal and profound.
The use of the perfect tense suggests that this love is not fleeting; it is a continuous state of being. The psalmist's love for God's law is not just an abstract feeling but an active engagement with it throughout his daily life.
How Translations Differ — measured against the Berean Standard Biblegenerated
This study reads the verse in the Berean Standard Bible, which uses love for אָהַ֥בְתִּי and meditation for שִׂיחָתִֽי, consistent with the KJV and ASV.
Sentence Structuregenerated
The verse is structured around a main clause, with two key phrases: מָֽה־ אָהַ֥בְתִּי, Oh, how I love, as the main expression of affection, followed by the object תוֹרָתֶ֑ךָ, Your law, and the adverbial phrase כָּל־ הַ֝יּ֗וֹם, all day long, indicating the duration of this love.
The structure emphasizes the psalmist's ongoing meditation, with the pronoun הִ֣יא serving as the subject of the final clause, reinforcing the personal nature of this reflection.
Septuagint Backgroundgenerated
The Septuagint translates אָהַ֥בְתִּי as ἠγάπησα, indicating a strong, affectionate love. This choice aligns with the emotional depth expressed in the Hebrew.
For שִׂיחָתִֽי, the LXX uses ἐστιν, which translates to is, suggesting a straightforward declaration of the psalmist's ongoing meditation, though it lacks the nuance of reflection found in the Hebrew.
In plain words — the whole versegenerated
Psalm 119:97 shows the psalmist's deep love for God's law, which he meditates on all day long. This reflects a personal and intimate relationship with God's instructions, indicating that they are a constant source of guidance and reflection in his life.
Frequently Asked Questionsgenerated
Loving God's law means having a deep affection and commitment to His teachings and guidance, seeing them as valuable for one's life.
Meditation on God's law can be practiced through regular reading, reflection, and application of His teachings in daily life.
Meditating on God's law daily helps to internalize its principles, guiding one's actions and decisions throughout the day.
Examples of God's law include the Ten Commandments and the teachings found in the first five books of the Bible, which provide moral and ethical guidance.
Reflection Questionsgenerated
- In what ways can I express my love for God's law in my daily life?
- How can I make meditation on God's word a regular part of my routine?
- What are some specific teachings from God's law that I find particularly meaningful?
- How can I encourage others to appreciate and meditate on God's law?
The early church on this verse — how the Fathers read it
Early Church Father Augustine of Hippo reflects on this verse, discussing the breadth of love in relation to obeying God's commandments.
We have frequently admonished you, that love was to be understood by that praiseworthy breadth, by means of which, while we do the commandments of God, we feel no straitness.Early Church Fathers on Psalms 119 →
Commentators on this verse — 8 expositors, verse by verse
Each of these wrote on Psalms 119:97 itself, not merely on the chapter around it.
John Gill1697–1771Gill's Exposition of the Entire Biblem, MEM.--The Thirteenth Part. Ver. 97. MEM. O how love I thy law!.... The whole word of God, the preceptive part of it; the commands of the moral law, which are holy, just, and good, and to be loved:
Read John Gill on Psalms 119 →
Robert Jamieson1802–1880Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown's CommentaryO how love I thy law! it is my meditation all the day. O how love I thy law!
Read Robert Jamieson on Psalms 119 →
Matthew Poole1624–1679Matthew Poole's Commentary on the Holy BibleMEM O how love I thy law! O Lord, thou knowest it, and to thee I appeal herein against all the censures and calumnies of mine enemies to the contrary.
Read Matthew Poole on Psalms 119 →
John Trapp1601–1669Trapp's Complete Commentary on the Old and New TestamentsPsalms 119:97 MEM. O how love I thy law! it [is] my meditation all the day.Ver. 97. O how love I thy law!] Such a pang of love he felt as could not otherwise be vented but by a pathetic exclamation; and this was wrought in him by the thoughts of the largeness and lastingness of God’ s law. Plato prized one book (called Sophron) above all the rest, whereof he had many. Richard de Bury, bishop of Durham (Floruit, A. D. 1333), as he had more books than all the bishops of England besides, so in his book called Philobiblos, he saith of himself, ecstatico quodam librorum amore potenter se esse abreptum, that he was carried out of himself by love to good books, but not so much as David was to God’…
Read John Trapp on Psalms 119 →
AdamClarkeAdam Clarke's Commentary on the BibleLETTER מ MEM. - Thirteenth Division Verse 97. O how love I thy law] This is one of the strongest marks of a gracious and pious heart, cast in the mould of obedience. Such love the precepts of Christ: in his commandments they delight; and this delight is shown by their making them frequent subjects of their meditation.
Read AdamClarke on Psalms 119 →
CambridgeThe Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges97–104. Mçm. The sweetness and profitableness of the study of God’s law. This stanza and that of Shîn (Psalms 119:161 ff.) contain no petition.
Read Cambridge on Psalms 119 →
Albert Barnes1798–1870Barnes' Notes on the BibleO how love I thy law! - This commences a new division of the Psalm, indicated by the Hebrew letter Mem (מ m, “m”).
Read Albert Barnes on Psalms 119 →
Daniel Denison Whedon1808–1885Whedon's Commentary on the Bibleî, Mem.97-104. Thy law… is my meditation—A view is now given of the practical wisdom given by the word. A childlike mind, illuminated by the pure truth, sees of itself an error.
Read Daniel Denison Whedon on Psalms 119 →The verse in English, compared — 16 translations, and where they part company
Every translation on this page is a decision someone had to make and commit to. Read down a column and you see one translator's judgement; read across a row and you see the range the Greek actually allows. The BSB is the wording the rest of this page is measured against, so it is listed first.
Modern formal
Oh, how I love Your law! All day long it is my meditation.
How I love your law! It is my meditation all day.
Oh, how I love Your law! All day long it is my meditation.
O how I love your law! All day long I meditate on it.
Tyndale line
O how love I thy law! it is my meditation all the day.
Oh how love I thy law! It is my meditation all the day.
Oh how love I thy law! it is my meditation all the day.
MEM. O how I love thy law! it is my meditation all the day.
MEM. Oh howe loue I thy Lawe! it is my meditation continually.
Strictly literal
MEM. Oh how I love thy law! it is my meditation all the day.
[Mem.] O how I have loved Thy law! All the day it [is] my meditation.
[MEM] O how I have loved Your law! It [is] my meditation all the day.
MEM. Oh how do I love thy law! all the day is it my meditation.
Oh how I love your law! It is my meditation all day long.
Simplified
I really love your law! I meditate on it all day long.
O what love I have for your law! I give thought to it all the day.
Counted from the translations carried on this site, not from a survey of every English Bible. A rendering shared by many versions is usually inherited rather than independently arrived at — the Tyndale line in particular runs through most of them.
The sentence as the grammar sees it — from the MACULA Hebrew treebank
This is not our own analysis: it is the scholarly syntax tree for the verse, showing how the clause actually holds together.
Boxes are the grammarian's groupings — clause, noun phrase, prepositional phrase.
The four witnesses to this verse — Masoretic, Septuagint, Samaritan, Qumran
The Masoretic Text reads מָֽה־ אָהַ֥בְתִּי תוֹרָתֶ֑ךָ כָּל־ הַ֝יּ֗וֹם הִ֣יא שִׂיחָתִֽי׃, while the Septuagint matches 6 of the 7 words, maintaining the core meaning but with different word order and phrasing.
מָֽה־ אָהַ֥בְתִּי תוֹרָתֶ֑ךָ כָּל־ הַ֝יּ֗וֹם הִ֣יא שִׂיחָתִֽי׃
6 of the 7 words are matched. This is the word-by-word correspondence, not the Septuagint's own sentence — its word order and its articles are its own.
Four traditions, not one. “On the leather” means the letters physically survive on the scroll, as against letters an editor has supplied to fill a hole in it — a restoration is a scholar’s reading, not a reading of the manuscript. Words in [square brackets] are supplied; the notes count them apart from what survives.
The map of this verse — what each word keeps company with
This is a map of two things, both counted rather than judged. Company kept: which words stand within three words of each of these, anywhere in the Hebrew Bible — the thicker the line, the more often the pair meet compared with chance. Built from: the words a word is made out of, taken from its own Strong’s entry. It is not a map of meaning: nothing here claims two words mean the same thing. Click any circle to see the numbers behind it.
Lexicons — every word in Psalms 119:97
One dossier per word, with every reference work grouped by kind — Hebrew lexicons, morphology, Bible dictionaries, topical chains and the English of the translators themselves. The verse sits at the head of each block with the word under study lit, so you never lose your place. The panel above gives the short answer; this is the long one, and it is the part of the page worth indexing.
Every entry below is the lexicographer's own text. On the Hebrew: Brown-Driver-Briggs entire and its gloss set, Strong's Hebrew Dictionary, and Tyndale House's Translators Brief lexicon. Where a cell says a work has no entry, that work genuinely has none for this word.
מָה (mah) is a Hebrew word primarily used as an interrogative particle meaning 'what?' or 'how?'. It can also function as an indefinite pronoun, encompassing meanings like 'anything' or 'whatever'. The word is versatile, appearing in various adverbial forms and often used with prefixes to express different nuances, such as reason or manner.
מָה, rarely מָה־, מַה־, מַהּ, מֶה, מַּ, מָ—pron.interrog. and indef. what? how? aught
interrog. what?
Used adverbially
Indef. pron.
With preps.
base
H4100 מָה, rarely מָה־, מַה־, מַהּ, מֶה, מַּ, מָ—pron. interrog. and indef. what? how? aught . interrog. what?
. Used adverbially
. Indef. pron.
. With preps.
4100 mah maw
or mah {mah}; or ma {maw}; or ma {mah}; also meh {meh}; a
primitive particle; properly, interrogative what? (including
how? why? when?); but also exclamation, what! (including
how!), or indefinitely what (including whatever, and even
relatively, that which); often used with prefixes in various
adverbial or conjunctive senses:--how (long, oft, (-
soever)), (no-)thing, what (end, good, purpose, thing),
whereby(-fore, -in, -to, -with), (for) why.
מָה (mah) — what?.
interr pron
1) what, how, of what kind
1a) (interrogative)
1a1) what?
1a2) of what kind
1a3) what? (rhetorical)
1a4) whatsoever, whatever, what
1b) (adverb)
1b1) how, how now
1b2) why
1b3) how! (exclamation)
1c) (with prep)
1c1) wherein?, whereby?, wherewith?, by what means?
1c2) because of what?
1c3) the like of what?
1c3a) how much?, how many?, how often?
1c3b) for how long?
1c4) for what reason?, why?, to what purpose?
1c5) until when?, how long?, upon what?, wherefore?
indef pron
2) anything, aught, what may
Part — PronounHPi
Represents various Hebrew and Greek words, interrogative, interjectional and relative. Its different uses refer to
(1) the manner or way, e.g. Ge 44:34, "How shall I go up to my father?" ('ekh); Mt 6:28, "how they grow" (pos); 1Co 15:35, "How are the dead raised?";
(2) degree, extent, frequently, "how great" (Da 4:3, mah; Mr 5:19, hosos, "how much"); "how many" (Mt 27:13, posos); "how much" (Ac 9:13, hosos); "how much more" (Mt 7:11, posos;
The Hebrew word אָהֵב (*'ahab*) means 'to love' and encompasses various forms of affection, including human love for others, love for God, and even appetites for things like food and wisdom. It can also refer to friendship and divine love towards humanity, particularly Israel. The entries indicate that it can function in different grammatical forms, such as participles for 'lovely' or 'loveable'.
אָהֵב 216 vb. love
Qal
human love to human object
less oft. of appetite
love to God
esp. Pt.
of divine love
Niph. Pt. pl. lovely, loveable
Pi.
friends
lovers
base
H157 אָהֵב love
157 'ahab aw-hab'
or raheb {aw-habe'}; a primitive root; to have affection for
(sexually or otherwise):--(be-)love(-d, -ly, -r), like,
friend.
אָהֵב (a.hav) — to love: lover.
: lover
1) to love
1a) (Qal)
1a1) human love for another, includes family, and sexual
1a2) human appetite for objects such as food, drink, sleep, wisdom
1a3) human love for or to God
1a4) act of being a friend
1a4a) lover (participle)
1a4b) friend (participle)
1a5) God's love toward man
1a5a) to individual men
1a5b) to people Israel
1a5c) to righteousness
1b) (Niphal)
1b1) lovely (participle)
1b2) loveable (participle)
1c) (Piel)
1c1) friends
1c2) lovers (fig. of adulterers)
2) to like
Also means: a.hav (אָהֵב ": friend" H0157H)
אָהֵב (a.hav) — to love: friend.
: friend
1) to love
1a) (Qal)
1a1) human love for another, includes family, and sexual
1a2) human appetite for objects such as food, drink, sleep, wisdom
1a3) human love for or to God
1a4) act of being a friend
1a4a) lover (participle)
1a4b) friend (participle)
1a5) God's love toward man
1a5a) to individual men
V-Qal-Perf-1cs — Verb · Qal · perfect first person common singularHVqp1cs
luv ('ahebh, 'ahabhah, noun; phileo, agapao, verb; agape, noun): Love to both God and man is fundamental to true religion, whether as expressed in the Old Testament or the New Testament. Jesus Himself declared that all the law and the prophets hang upon love (Mt 22:40; Mr 12:28-34). Paul, in his matchless ode on love (1Co 13), makes it the greatest of the graces of the Christian life--greater than speaking with tongues, or the gift of prophecy, or the possession of a faith of superior excellence; for without love all these gifts and graces, desirable and useful as they are in themselves, are as nothing, certainly of no permanent value in the sight of God. Not that either Jesus or Paul underestimates the faith from which all the graces proceed, for this grace is recognized as…
Love
This word seems to require explanation only in the case of its use by our Lord in his interview with “Simon, the son of Jonas,” after his resurrection (John 21:16, 17). When our Lord says, “Lovest thou me?” he uses the Greek word agapas; and when Simon answers, he uses the Greek word philo, i.e., “I love.” This is the usage in the first and second questions put by our Lord; but in the third our Lord uses Simon’s word. The distinction between these two Greek words is thus fitly described by Trench:, ”Agapan has more of judgment and deliberate choice; philein has more of attachment and peculiar personal affection. Thus the ‘Lovest thou’ (Gr. agapas) on the lips of the Lord seems to Peter at this moment too cold a word, as though his Lord were keeping him at a distance, or at least not inviting him to draw near, as in the…
GOD IS LOVE; AND HE THAT DWELLETH IN LOVE DWELLETH IN GOD, AND GOD IN HIM, 1Jo 4:16. Love is a chief attribute of Jehovah, the length and breadth and height and depth of which are beyond comprehension, for they are infinite, Eph 3:18,19. Between the three Persons of the Godhead, love is unutterable full, perfect, and blissful; towards holy angels and Christians, God’s love is an infinite fatherly complacency and affection; towards sinners, it is immeasurable compassion. It is shown in all his works and ways, and dictated his holy law, but is most signally displayed in the gospel, Joh 3:16. "Herein is love."
Holy love in man would make the whole heart and soul supremely delight in and obey God, and cordially and practically love all beings according to their character-the good…
→ OF CHILDREN FOR PARENTS
See CHILDREN
→ OF GOD, LOVE OF
תּוֹרָה (towrah) encompasses concepts of direction, instruction, and law, particularly relating to divine or human guidance. It refers to legal directives, customs, and teachings, including the Decalogue and the Pentateuch. The entries highlight its use in various contexts, such as prophetic and priestly instruction, but do not present significant disagreement among lexicons.
תּוֹרָה n.f. direction, instruction, law
instruction
law (prop. direction)
custom, manner
base
H8451 תּוֹרָה direction, instruction, law . instruction
. law (prop. direction)
. custom, manner
8451 towrah to-raw'
or torah {to-raw'}; from 3384; a precept or statute,
especially the Decalogue or Pentateuch:--law.
see HEBREW for 03384
תּוֹרָה (to.rah) — instruction.
1) law, direction, instruction
1a) instruction, direction (human or divine)
1a1) body of prophetic teaching
1a2) instruction in Messianic age
1a3) body of priestly direction or instruction
1a4) body of legal directives
1b) law
1b1) law of the burnt offering
1b2) of special law, codes of law
1c) custom, manner
1d) the Deuteronomic or Mosaic Law
N-fs | Suff — Noun common feminine singular construct · suffixHNcfsc/Sp2ms
כֹּל (kol) means 'all' or 'the whole.' It can refer to totality, including every person or thing, and is often used with a following genitive to specify what is included. The term can also denote a broader sense of everything in existence or all circumstances of life. The lexicons do not show significant disagreement on its meanings.
כֹּל once כּוֹל n.m. the whole, all
with foll. gen. (as usually) the whole of, to be rendered, however, often in our idiom, to avoid stiffness, any or every
Absolutely:
without the art., all things, all
with the art. הַכֹּל
where the sense is limited by the context to things (or persons) just mentioned
in a wider sense, all, whether of all mankind or of all living things, the universe, or of all the circumstances of life (chiefly late)
base
H3605 כֹּל once כּוֹל the whole, all . with foll. gen. (as usually) the whole of, to be rendered, however, often in our idiom, to avoid stiffness, any or every
. Absolutely: . without the art., all things, all
. with the art. הַכֹּל . where the sense is limited by the context to things (or persons) just mentioned
. in a wider sense, all, whether of all mankind or of all living things, the universe, or of all the circumstances of life (chiefly late)
3605 kol kole
or (Jer. 33:8) kowl {kole}; from 3634; properly, the whole;
hence, all, any or every (in the singular only, but often in a
plural sense):--(in) all (manner, (ye)), altogether, any
(manner), enough, every (one, place, thing), howsoever, as
many as, (no-)thing, ought, whatsoever, (the) whole,
whoso(-ever).
see HEBREW for 03634
כֹּל (kol) — all.
1) all, the whole
1a) all, the whole of
1b) any, each, every, anything
1c) totality, everything
Aramaic equivalent: kol (כֹּל "all" H3606)
N-ms — Noun common · masculine singular constructHNcmsc
ol: Used in various combinations, and with different meanings.
(1) All along, "Weeping all along as he went" (Jer 41:6), i.e. throughout the whole way he went, feigning equal concern with the men from Shiloh, etc., for the destruction of the Temple, so as to put them off their guard.
(2) All in all, "That God may be all in all" (1Co 15:28, Greek: panta en pasin, "all things in all (persons and) things"). "The universe, with all it comprises, will wholly answer to God's will and reflect His mind" (Dummelow).
יוֹם (yowm) means 'day' and refers to a division of time, contrasting with night. It can denote a literal 24-hour period, a general time span, or even a year. The term is used in various contexts, including the 'day of Yahweh,' which signifies a time of divine judgment. It also appears in phrases indicating temporal references like today, yesterday, and tomorrow.
יוֹם 2285 n.m. day
day, opp. night
Day as division of time
יוֹם י׳ day of Yahweh, chiefly as time of his coming in judgment, involving often blessedness for righteous
Pl. days of anyone
Days
יוֹם = time
Phrases
base
H3117 יוֹם day . day, opp. night
. Day as division of time
. יוֹם י׳ day of Yahweh, chiefly as time of his coming in judgment, involving often blessedness for righteous
. Pl. days of anyone
. Days
. יוֹם = time
. Phrases
3117 yowm yome
from an unused root meaning to be hot; a day (as the warm
hours), whether literal (from sunrise to sunset, or from one
sunset to the next), or figurative (a space of time defined by
an associated term), (often used adverb):--age, + always, +
chronicals, continually(-ance), daily, ((birth-), each, to)
day, (now a, two) days (agone), + elder, X end, + evening, +
(for) ever(-lasting, -more), X full, life, as (so) long as
(... live), (even) now, + old, + outlived, + perpetually,
presently, + remaineth, X required, season, X since, space,
then, (process of) time, + as at other times, + in trouble,
weather, (as) when, (a, the, within a) while (that), X whole
(+ age), (full) year(-ly), + younger.
יוֹם (yom) — day.
: day/when/time/period
1) day, time, year
1a) day (as opposed to night)
1b) day (24 hour period)
1b1) as defined by evening and morning in Genesis 1
1b2) as a division of time
1b2a) a working day, a day's journey
1c) days, lifetime (pl.)
1d) time, period (general)
1e) year
1f) temporal references
1f1) today
1f2) yesterday
1f3) tomorrow
יוֹם (yom) — day: old.
: old/(full/many)[days]
1) day, time, year
1a) day (as opposed to night)
1b) day (24 hour period)
1b1) as defined by evening and morning in Genesis 1
1b2) as a division of time
1b2a) a working day, a day's journey
1c) days, lifetime (pl.)
1d) time, period (general)
1e) year
1f) temporal references
1f1) today
1f2) yesterday
1f3) tomorrow
יוֹם (yom) — day: year.
: year[of_days]
1) day, time, year
1a) day (as opposed to night)
1b) day (24 hour period)
1b1) as defined by evening and morning in Genesis 1
1b2) as a division of time
Art | N-ms — Particle · noun common masculine singular absoluteHTd/Ncmsa
da (yom; hemera): This common word has caused some trouble to plain readers, because they have not noticed that the word is used in several different senses in the English Bible. When the different uses of the word are understood the difficulty of interpretation vanishes. We note several different uses of the word:
(1) It sometimes means the time from daylight till dark. This popular meaning is easily discovered by the context, e. g. Ge 1:5; 8:22, etc. The marked periods of this daytime were morning, noon and night, as with us. See Ps 55:17. The early hours were sometimes called "the cool of the day" (Ge 3:8). After the exile the day. or daytime was divided into twelve hours and the night into twelve (see
Day
The Jews reckoned the day from sunset to sunset (Lev. 23:32). It was originally divided into three parts (Ps. 55:17). “The heat of the day” (1 Sam. 11:11; Neh. 7:3) was at our nine o’clock, and “the cool of the day” just before sunset (Gen. 3:8). Before the Captivity the Jews divided the night into three watches, (1) from sunset to midnight (Lam. 2:19); (2) from midnight till the cock-crowing (Judg. 7:19); and (3) from the cock-crowing till sunrise (Ex.…
The variable length of the natural day at different seasons led in the very earliest times to the adoption of the civil day (or one revolution of the sun) as a standard of time. The Hebrews reckoned the day from evening to evening, (Leviticus 23:32) deriving it from (Genesis 1:5) "the evening and the morning were the first day." The Jews are supposed, like the modern Arabs, to have adopted from an early period minute specifications of the parts of the natural day. Roughly, indeed, they were content to divide it into "morning, evening and noonday," (Psalms 55:17) but when they wished for greater accuracy they pointed to six unequal parts, each of which was again subdivided. These are held to have been -- "the dawn." "Sunrise."…
The day is distinguished into natural, civil, and artificial. The natural day is one revolution of the earth on its axis. The civil day is that, the beginning and the end of which are determined by the custom of any nation. The Hebrews began their day in the evening, Le 23:32; the Babylonians at sunrise; and we begin at midnight. The artificial day is the time of the sun’s continuance above the horizon, which is unequal according to different seasons, on account of the obliquity of the equator. The sacred writers generally divide the day into twelve hours. The sixth hour always ends at noon throughout the year; and the twelfth hour is the last hour before sunset. But in summer, all the hours of the day were longer than in winter, while those of night were shorter. See HOURS, and THREE.
הוּא (hu) is a third-person singular pronoun meaning he, she, or it, used for emphasis or when no verb is present. It can also refer to oneself or serve as a demonstrative pronoun. The word has various nuances, including resuming the subject with emphasis or expressing it unobtrusively. It can indicate 'that' or 'those' when used with the definite article.
הוּא m. הִיא f., pron. of the 3rd ps. sing. he, she, used also (in both genders) for the neuter it
an emph. he (she, it, they), sometimes equivalent to himself (herself, itself, themselves), or (esp. with the art.) that (those)
It resumes the subj. with emph.
Where, however, the pron. follows the pred., its position gives it the minimum of emphasis, and it expresses (or resumes) the subject as unobtrusively as possible
It anticipates (as it seems) the subject
As an emph. predicate, of God
In a neuter sense, that, it (of an action, occurrence, matte, etc.)
With the art.: so regularly when joined to a subst. defined itself by the art.
base
H1931 הוּא, הִיא he, she, used also (in both genders) for the neuter it . an emph. he (she, it, they), sometimes equivalent to himself (herself, itself, themselves), or (esp. with the art.) that (those)
. It resumes the subj. with emph.
. Where, however, the pron. follows the pred., its position gives it the minimum of emphasis, and it expresses (or resumes) the subject as unobtrusively as possible
. It anticipates (as it seems) the subject
. As an emph. predicate, of God
. In a neuter sense, that, it (of an action, occurrence, matte, etc.)
. With the art.: so regularly when joined to a subst. defined itself by the art.
1931 huw' hoo
of which the feminine (beyond the Pentateuch) is hiyw {he}; a
primitive word, the third person pronoun singular, he (she or
it); only expressed when emphatic or without a verb; also
(intensively) self, or (especially with the article) the same;
sometimes (as demonstrative) this or that; occasionally
(instead of copula) as or are:--he, as for her, him(-self),
it, the same, she (herself), such, that (...it), these, they,
this, those, which (is), who.
הוּא (hu) — he/she/it.
pron 3p s
1) he, she, it
1a) himself (with emphasis)
1b) resuming subj with emphasis
1c) (with minimum emphasis following predicate)
1d) (anticipating subj)
1e) (emphasising predicate)
1f) that, it (neuter) demons pron
2) that (with article)
Pron — PronounHPp3fs
שִׂיחָה (siychah) is a feminine noun derived from שִׂיחַ (H7879), encompassing meanings related to meditation, prayer, and reflection. It can also refer to complaint or musing. The entries highlight its use in contexts of devotion and study.
שִׂיחָה n.f. id. [u.bb.ab]
complaint
(obj. of) musing, study
base
H7881 שִׂיחָה
7881 siychah see-khaw'
feminine of 7879; reflection; be extension,
devotion:--meditation, prayer.
see HEBREW for 07879
שִׂיחָה (si.chah) — meditation.
1) meditation, reflection, prayer, devotion, complaint, musing
1a) complaint
1b) musing, study (of object)
N-fs | Suff — Noun common feminine singular construct · suffixHNcfsc/Sp1bs
