מָה, rarely
מָהֿ (e.g.
Genesis 31:43;
Joshua 22:16;
Judges 8:1),
מַה־, •
מַה,
מֶה, •
מַ (†
Exodus 4:2;
Isaiah 3:15;
Malachi 1:13;
1 Chronicles 15:13; [
H4078 2 Chronicles 30:3]),
מָ (only in
מָהֵם †
Ezekiel 8:6 Kt., Qr.
מָה הֵם) — on the distinction in the use of these forms, see Ges
§ 37 —
pronoun interrogative and
indefinite what? how? aught; used of things, as
מִי of persons (Aramaic
,
מָא, Arabic
; probably apocope from a longer form with
n or
nt, Assyrian
minû (Dl
HWB 417 f.), Ethiopic
ment; compare W
CG 123 ff. Kö
ii. 368): —
1. interrogative what ?
a. in a direct question, before either verbs or nouns
Genesis 4:10 מֶה עשׂית what hast thou done ?
Genesis 15:2 מהתֿתןלֿי what wilt thou give me ?
Exodus 3:13 מַהשְּֿׁמוֺ,
Exodus 12:26;
Exodus 13:14 and so very often:
מַההִֿיא Zechariah 5:6;
מה אלה Zechariah 1:9;
מָה אַתָּה רֹאֶה Jeremiah 1:11;
Amos 7:8 +;
Jl 4:14 מה אתם לי;
Judges 18:8 מה אתם see Commentaries,
Judges 18:24 מה לי עוד what have I still ?
Isaiah 21:11 מהמֿלילה what (= how much) of the night (is past) ? =
as what ? (
qualem ?)
Haggai 2:3 (compare
מִי Amos 7:2); to express surprise,
Job 9:12 who shall say to him,
מה תעשׂה what doest thou ?
Job 22:13;
Ecclesiastes 8:4;
Isaiah 45:9,
10; followed by
כִּי,
Genesis 20:10 מה ראית כי עשׂית what hadst thou in view, that thou hast done, etc.?
Genesis 31:36;
Exodus 16:7 וְנַחְנוּ מָה כִּי and
what are we, that...?
Exodus 32:21;
Numbers 22:28;
Habakkuk 2:18, etc. Note in particular —
(a) מָה is followed sometimes by a substantive in apposition (against Arabic usage, which does not permit this: W
AG. ii. § 170), so that it becomes virtually an adjective:
מַהבֶּֿצַע what profit...?
Genesis 37:26;
Psalm 30:10;
Malachi 3:14;
Isaiah 40:8 מַהדְּֿמוּת,
Malachi 1:13;
Psalm 89:48 זְכָראֲֿנִי מֶה חָ֑לֶד (inverted for
חֶלֶד אָ֑נִי מַה) remember (of)
what (short) duration I am,
Ecclesiastes 1:3;
Ecclesiastes 5:10;
Ecclesiastes 5:15;
Ecclesiastes 6:8,
11 (Da
§ 8, R. 2 Kö
iii. 23 f.); as exclamation,
Psalm 89:48b Job 26:14. And with the substantive idiomatically at the end (in Arabic preceded then by
: W
AG. ii. § 49. 7),
1 Samuel 26:18 ומַהבֿידי רעה and what is there in my hand, evil ?
1 Samuel 20:10 (see
3),
2 Samuel 19:29;
2 Samuel 24:13;
1 Kings 12:16;
Jeremiah 2:5 מהמֿצאו אבותיכם בי עָוֶל,
Ecclesiastes 11:2;
Esther 6:3.
(e) in the genitive,
Jeremiah 8:9 וְחָכְמַתמֶֿה לָהֶם, and wisdom of
what (= what kind of wisdom) is theirs ?
Numbers 23:3 (see below
3).
d. מה is often used in questions to which the answer little, or nothing, is expected, and it thus becomes equivalent to a rhetorical negative (compare הֲ b, מִי f c):
e. = whatsoever (compare מִי g):
(a) Judges 9:48 ראיתם עשׂיתי מהרו עשׂו כמוני מה אתם, literally
what do you see (that) I have done ? hasten, and do like me (=
whatever ye see, etc.),
2 Samuel 21:4 אעשׂה לכם מה אתם אמרים,
Job 6:24; with the apodosis introduced by
וְ,
1 Samuel 20:4 מה תאמר נפשׁך ואעשׂה לך;
Esther 5:3 בַּקָּשָׁתֵךְ ֗֗֗ וְיִנָּתֵן לָךְ מַהֿ,
Esther 5:6;
Esther 7:2;
Esther 9:12; hence in the late and strange idiom of Chronicles, it sinks twice almost to the rel.
what,
1 Chronicles 15:13 כי לְמַבָּרִאשׁוֺנָה לא אתם because ye were not (employed) for
what was at first (on the former occasion), J. etc., [
H4078 2 Chronicles 30:3]
לְמַדַּי according to
what was sufficient (= in sufficient numbers), compare
Esther 9:26.
2. Used adverbially:
a. as an interrogative:
(a) how ? especially in expressing what is regarded as an impossibility,
Genesis 44:16 מַהנִּֿצְטַדָּ֑ק how shall we justify ourselves ?
Numbers 23:8 (twice in verse);
1 Samuel 10:27 מַהיּֿשִׁעֵנוּ זֶה,
2 Kings 4:43;
Job 9:2;
Job 25:4 (twice in verse);
Job 31:1 I made a covenant with my eyes,
וּמָה אֶתְבּוֺנֵן עַל ב׳ and
how should I look upon a maid ? (
οὐ,
non),
Proverbs 20:24 דַּרְכּוֺ וְאָדָם מַהיָּֿבִין; in an indirect question,
Exodus 10:26;
Psalm 39:5 אָ֑נִי מֶהחָֿדֵל;
מַהזֶּֿה,
how, now ? (in surprise),
Genesis 27:20 מַהזֶּֿה מִהַרְתָּ לִמְצאֹ בְּנִי,
Judges 18:24;
1 Kings 21:5;
2 Kings 1:5.
b. as an
exclamation, how...! with adjectives and verbs,
Genesis 28:17 מַהנּֿוֺרָא הַמָּקוֺם הַזֶּה how dreadful is this place!
Genesis 38:29;
Numbers 24:5 מַהטֹּֿבוּ אֹהָלֶיךָ,
Isaiah 52:7;
Psalm 3:2 מה רבו,
Psalm 8:2 מה אדיר,
Psalm 21:2;
Psalm 36:8, etc.,
Songs 4:10 (twice in verse);
Songs 7:2; ironically,
2 Samuel 6:20;
Jeremiah 2:33,
36;
Job 26:2,
3.
3. indefinite pronoun
anything, aught,
Numbers 23:3 וּדְבַרמַֿהיַּֿרְאֵנִי וְהִגַּדְתִּי לָ֑ךְ and he will shew me the matter of
aught, and I will tell thee (= if he shew me... I will, etc., Dr
§ 149),
1 Samuel 19:3 וְרָאִיתִי מָה וִהִגַּדְתִּי לָ֑ךְ = and if I see aught, I will, etc.,
1 Samuel 20:10 אוֺ מַהיַּֿעַנִךָ אָבִיךָ קָשָׁה if perchance thy father shall answer thee
aught that is harsh (order,
1 a a),
2 Samuel 18:22 וִיהִימָֿה אָרוּצָהנָּֿא but let there happen
what may (literally
aught), I will run,
2 Samuel 18:23 (compare
Job 13:13 וְיַעֲבֹר עָלַי מָה), Job 13:29
וְלֹא יָדַעְתִּי מָה (compare
Proverbs 9:13),
Proverbs 25:8. Compare Kö
iii. § 65.
4. With prepositions:
†c. כַּמָּה,
כַּמֶּה, properly
the like of what ? (Arabic
, Syriac
); hence
d. לָ֫מָּה,
לָמָ֫ה (
לָמָ֫ה mostly before the gutturals
א,
ה,
ע and
י׳ [i.e.
אֲדֹנָי], but twice besides,
Psalm 42:10;
Psalm 43:2;
לָ֫מָּה also occurs before guttural, in five places noted by Masoretes on
Psalm 43:2, namely
1 Samuel 28:15;
2 Samuel 2:22;
2 Samuel 14:31;
Psalm 49:6;
Jeremiah 15:18, and before
ח †
Genesis 4:6;
2 Samuel 14:13;
2 Samuel 24:3;
Ecclesiastes 2:15),
לָ֫מָה †
Job 7:20,
לָ֫מֶה †
1 Samuel 1:8 (
3 times in verse),
for what reason ? why? Genesis 4:6 למה חרה לך why art thou angry ?
Genesis 24:31, etc.; often strengthened by
זֶה (
זֶה 4 e),
Genesis 18:13;
Genesis 32:30 (=
Judges 13:18)
למה זה תשׁאל לשׁמי,
Genesis 33:15;
Exodus 2:20;
Exodus 5:22;
Exodus 17:3, etc.,
Jeremiah 6:20;
Jeremiah 20:18 +;
Genesis 25:22 זה אנכי אם כן למהֿ if so,
why, then, am I ? (why do I continue to live ?); =
to what purpose (followed by
לִ person),
Genesis 27:46 למה לי חיים,
Isaiah 1:11;
Jeremiah 6:20;
Amos 5:18 למה זה לכם יום י׳,
Job 30:2; in an indirect question,
1 Samuel 6:3;
Daniel 10:20. Note especially
(b) with an imperfect, often deprecating, or introducing rhetorically, the reason why something should, or should not, be done,
why should...? 1 Samuel 19:5,
17;
1 Samuel 20:8 but to thy father (emphatic)
למה זה תביאני,
why shouldst thou bring me ?
1 Samuel 20:32 מה עשׂה למה יומת why should he be put to death ?
2 Samuel 13:26;
2 Samuel 16:9;
2 Samuel 20:19;
2 Kings 14:10, etc.: in such cases, it approximates in meaning to
lest (compare Phoenician CIS
i. 2, 21 יסגרינם אלנם לָםָ ne tradant eos dii), and is in
often rendered by
μήποτε, as
Genesis 27:45 למה אשׁכל why should I be bereaved, etc. ?
Exodus 32:12 יאמרו מצרים למה Nehemiah 6:3;
Psalm 79:10;
Psalm 115:2;
Ecclesiastes 7:16,
μή,
Jeremiah 40:15,
ἵνα μή,
Genesis 47:19;
2 Samuel 2:22;
2 Chronicles 25:16;
Ecclesiastes 5:5;
Ecclesiastes 7:17, or
ὅπως μή,
Joel 2:17 (in
1 Samuel 19:17;
2 Samuel 13:26, paraph. by
εἰ μή); and, connected with the foregoing sentence by
אשׁר, or
שֶׁ, in late, or dialect., Hebrew it actually has that meaning,
Daniel 1:10 אֲשֶׁר לָמָּה יִרְאֶה lest he see,
Songs 1:7 שַׁלָּמָ֫ה אֶהְיֶה lest I become (so in Aramaic
לְמָה דִּי Ezra 7:23,
דִּילְמָא 
, Syriac
, both regularly =
lest).
See related Aramaic BDB entry
H4101.
Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew and English Lexicon, Unabridged, Electronic Database.
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Verse-Reference
Square — [Jhn 1:1 KJV]
Abbreviate Books
Use SBL Abbrev.
being there used constantly in the sense of not (compare WalkerHebraica. xii. 244 ff.; Köiii, 478).
