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Word for Word: Episode 51

לָכֶ֥ם יִֽהְיֶ֖ה לְאָכְלָֽה To you it shall be for food As the description of the sixth day concludes, God's providence is in the forefront. The word אָכְלָה ( ok·lä') is the general word for food. It from the word אָכַל ( ä·kal) which means "to eat, devour, burn up, feed". The work is the third day is shown to be essential for the survival of the animate creatures of the fifth and sixth days. There were three classes of plants: the sprouts, the seed bearers and the fruit trees. The latter two are designated for humanity, while the first is for the the animals. In common terms, this can be understood as seeds (grain, nuts and berries) and fruits (including vegetables) were for people, while grass and greens were for animals.

Word for Word: Episode 30

תַּֽדְשֵׁ֤א הָאָ֨רֶץ֙ דֶּ֔שֶׁא Let the land sprout sprouts In commanding the soil, God calls out first to a barren land. The ground had no seed of its own, so God must have created the plants in the dirt and in full bloom. The grass filled the land, glistening under God's light as it entered the leading edge of the globe. The word for the class of plant that came up is דֶּ֔שֶׁא (deshe) is from the verb דָּשָׁא (dasha) which means " to sprout, shoot, grow green". In the original text, the letters had no vowel points. This means the reader would use context and syntax to give the narrative life. The sense of the phrase is that God told the land to become green with grass, and it did.