לֵאמֹֽר׃ (lê·mōr) in Jonah 1:1: Preposition-l | Verb - Qal - Infinitive construct
לֵאמֹֽר׃ (lê·mōr) in Jonah 1:1
Source Word
At Jonah 1:1, the Jonah 1:1 source token לֵאמֹֽר׃ is H559, Prep-l | V-Qal-Inf. The H559 Jonah 1:1 BSB+ word table row therefore anchors this guide.
How The Form Affects Interpretation
Saying preserves the compact Hebrew bridge between the arrival of the word and its quoted content. The book begins with a divine word that immediately commissions Jonah to rise, go to Nineveh, and proclaim against its wickedness.
How To Communicate It
Use the infinitive as a bridge from the report that the word came to the actual words of commission in verse 2.
What Not To Say
- Grammatical form should serve context, not override it.
- Do not assign first-person or past-tense features to the infinitive, and do not detach saying from the quotation it introduces.
- The formula can seem redundant in English, but it marks the transition from speech event to speech content.
- Read saying within Jonah 1:1 as the H559 occurrence; broader theology requires the passage.
What Does The Label Mean?
Hebrew-verb
Verb
Preposition-l | Verb - Qal - Infinitive construct
Qal
Inf
Not applicable
Not specified
Not specified
Not applicable
Lamed preposition
None
As a nonfinite form, it does not locate the speech in time; the finite verb came establishes the narrative event.
Lamed joins the infinitive construct to the preceding word-event, allowing saying to open the quotation that specifies its content.
What The Form Does In This Verse
The word of the Lord that came to Jonah and introduces the direct command beginning in the next verse
The prophetic commissioning formula that opens Jonah's narrative
The lamed-prefixed Qal infinitive construct introduces the content of the divine word that came to Jonah.
The infinitive has no person or tense of its own, and the formula does not make an abstract noun independently speak apart from the Lord whose word it is.
How Much The Form Matters Here
Moderate: The book begins with a divine word that immediately commissions Jonah to rise, go to Nineveh, and proclaim against its wickedness.
Lamed joins the infinitive construct to the preceding word-event, allowing saying to open the quotation that specifies its content.. The lamed-prefixed Qal infinitive construct introduces the content of the divine word that came to Jonah.. Attached to the word of the Lord that came to Jonah and introduces the direct command beginning in the next verse. Governed by the prophetic commissioning formula that opens Jonah's narrative. The infinitive has no person or tense of its own, and the formula does not make an abstract noun independently speak apart from the Lord whose word it is.
What function does saying perform at the end of Jonah 1:1? It opens the content of the word that came from the Lord, leading directly into Jonah's commission.
Direct: Saying preserves the compact Hebrew bridge between the arrival of the word and its quoted content.
The formula can seem redundant in English, but it marks the transition from speech event to speech content. The form introduces the Lord's words without independently identifying every feature of prophetic inspiration.
Infinitive is the speaking subject: The Lord's word is the preceding subject matter; the infinitive introduces what was said. saying proves a complete inspiration theory: The formula reports divine speech, while a full doctrine of Scripture requires wider canonical evidence. morphology replaces literary context: The H559 form clarifies the saying relation in Jonah 1:1; the surrounding passage establishes its scope.
How The Interpretation Is Derived
At Jonah 1:1, the Jonah 1:1 source token לֵאמֹֽר׃ is H559, Prep-l | V-Qal-Inf. The H559 Jonah 1:1 BSB+ word table row therefore anchors this guide.
אָמַר is the lemma behind saying here. Within Jonah 1:1, H559 retains this exact lexical identity.
Lamed joins the infinitive construct to the preceding word-event, allowing saying to open the quotation that specifies its content.
The book begins with a divine word that immediately commissions Jonah to rise, go to Nineveh, and proclaim against its wickedness.
Prophetic mission starts with God's initiative and disclosed message, placing the messenger under the authority of the word he receives.
Use the infinitive as a bridge from the report that the word came to the actual words of commission in verse 2.
Do not assign first-person or past-tense features to the infinitive, and do not detach saying from the quotation it introduces.