Bible HebrewInfinitives
“To keep”, “saying”, and the doubled verbs that mean “surely”.
Infinitives: the action without a person
An infinitive names an action without saying who does it or when. Hebrew has two kinds.
Infinitive construct (pattern שְׁמֹר), usually with לְ in front: “to …”.
| Form | Meaning | Notice |
|---|---|---|
| לִשְׁמֹר | to keep | לְ + שְׁמֹר |
| לֵאמֹר | saying | Literally “to say”. It introduces quoted words, like opening quotation marks. |
| לַעֲשׂוֹת | to do, to make | III-he verbs end in ־וֹת: עָשָׂה → עֲשׂוֹת |
| לָלֶכֶת | to go | הָלַךְ has its own short form |
With בְּ or כְּ in front, it often means “when …”: בְּיוֹם עֲשׂוֹת יְהוָה אֱלֹהִים אֶרֶץ וְשָׁמָיִם “in the day yəḥawwe God made earth and heaven” (Genesis 2:4).
Infinitive absolute (pattern שָׁמוֹר: ā, then ō). Its main job is emphasis, placed before a verb from the same root:
| Phrase | Meaning |
|---|---|
| מוֹת תָּמוּת | you shall surely die (Genesis 2:17) |
| שָׁמוֹר תִּשְׁמְרוּן | you shall diligently keep (Deuteronomy 6:17) |
It can also stand in for a command: זָכוֹר אֶת־יוֹם הַשַּׁבָּת “Remember the Sabbath day” (Exodus 20:8).
Check yourself
What does לְ + an infinitive construct usually mean?
✓ “to …” · “…ing” (going on) · “he …ed” · “the …”
לְ in front of this verb form means “to”: לִשְׁמֹר “to keep”.
What does לֵאמֹר do in a story?
✓ It introduces the words someone says · It means “and he said” · It asks a question · It marks the object
לֵאמֹר “saying” comes right before the words someone says: וַיְבָרֶךְ אֹתָם אֱלֹהִים לֵאמֹר “God blessed them, saying” (Genesis 1:22).
In מוֹת תָּמוּת (Genesis 2:17), what does מוֹת add?
✓ emphasis: “you shall surely die” · a second action: “die and die” · the past tense · a question
מוֹת comes from the same root as תָּמוּת “you shall die”. Put before its own verb, this form, the infinitive absolute, makes it stronger: “you shall surely die”.
Which is an infinitive absolute?
✓ שָׁמוֹר · לִשְׁמֹר · שֹׁמֵר · שָׁמַר
שָׁמוֹר has ā after the first letter and ō after the second: that is the infinitive absolute. לִשְׁמֹר has לְ in front, שֹׁמֵר is “keeping”, and שָׁמַר is “he kept”.
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