Bible HebrewThe Shema Deuteronomy 6:4–5
Two verses known by their first word, שְׁמַע, “Hear”.
Deuteronomy 6:4
שְׁמַע יִשְׂרָאֵל יְהוָה אֱלֹהֵינוּ יְהוָה אֶחָד
Shəmaʿ yiśrāʾēl yəḥawwe ʾĕlōhēnū yəḥawwe ʾeḥādh
“Hear, Israel: yəḥawwe our God, yəḥawwe is one.”
Word by word
| Hebrew | Sounds | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| שְׁמַע | shəmaʿ | hear |
| יִשְׂרָאֵל | yiśrāʾēl | Israel |
| יְהוָה | yəḥawwe | yəḥawwe |
| אֱלֹהֵינוּ | ʾĕlōhēnū | our God |
| יְהוָה | yəḥawwe | yəḥawwe |
| אֶחָד | ʾeḥādh | one |
- שְׁמַע: Qal imperative, masculine singular: “Hear!”. The whole people is addressed as one person. In Torah scrolls the last letter, ע, is written large.
- Whole verse: There is no verb “is” in the verse, so the four words after “Israel” can be grouped more than one way: “yəḥawwe our God, yəḥawwe is one”, “yəḥawwe is our God, yəḥawwe alone”, or “yəḥawwe our God is one yəḥawwe”. All are grammatically possible, and translations differ.
- אֱלֹהֵינוּ: אֱלֹהִים in its construct form + נוּ “our”: “our God”.
- אֶחָד: אֶחָד is the ordinary number “one”. Its last letter, ד, is also written large in scrolls.
Deuteronomy 6:5
וְאָהַבְתָּ אֵת יְהוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ בְּכָל־לְבָבְךָ וּבְכָל־נַפְשְׁךָ וּבְכָל־מְאֹדֶךָ
Wəʾāhavtā ʾēth yəḥawwe ʾĕlōhekhā bəkhol-ləvāvəkhā ūvəkhol-nafshəkhā ūvəkhol-məʾōdhekhā
“And you shall love yəḥawwe your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.”
Word by word
| Hebrew | Sounds | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| וְאָהַבְתָּ | wəʾāhavtā | and you shall love |
| אֵת | ʾēth | (object marker) |
| יְהוָה | yəḥawwe | yəḥawwe |
| אֱלֹהֶיךָ | ʾĕlōhekhā | your God |
| בְּכָל | bəkhol | with all |
| לְבָבְךָ | ləvāvəkhā | your heart |
| וּבְכָל | ūvəkhol | and with all |
| נַפְשְׁךָ | nafshəkhā | your soul / life |
| וּבְכָל | ūvəkhol | and with all |
| מְאֹדֶךָ | məʾōdhekhā | your might |
- וְאָהַבְתָּ: וְ + a perfect form (weqatal). After a command, it carries the command forward into the future: “and you shall love”.
- בְּכָל: Three matching phrases, each בְּכָל + noun + ךָ: “with all your ___”.
- לְבָבְךָ: In Hebrew the לֵבָב (“heart”) is where a person thinks and decides, not only where they feel.
- מְאֹדֶךָ: מְאֹד usually means “very” (as in Genesis 1:31, טוֹב מְאֹד). Here it is used as a noun with “your”: “your very-much”, meaning your strength or everything you have.
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