1 Samuel 18:3

Paleo Hebrew Niqqud

RBT Hebrew Interlinear:

ויכרת וַיִּכְרֹת

and he is cutting off

STRONGS

Strong's Lexicon

ו

wāw

Definition

sequential 'and'

Root

From H8505; a prefix

Exhaustive

Vav Conversive/Consecutive: The category “vav conversive / vav consecutive” is not an ancient grammatical datum; it is a modern explanatory construct, developed by early Hebraists to force Biblical Hebrew into a Latin/chronological tense model that it simply does not share.

The notion arose in early modern grammar (17th–19th c.) when scholars assumed:
- verbs must encode tense,
- narratives must advance by past → present → future,
- therefore Hebrew forms that “don’t behave” must be converted.

Source: The Aonic Nature of Biblical Hebrew Prepositions

כרת

kârath

Definition

to cut (off, down or asunder); by implication, to destroy or consume; specifically, to covenant (i.e. make an alliance or bargain, originally by cutting flesh and passing between the pieces)

Root

a primitive root;

Exhaustive

a primitive root; to cut (off, down or asunder); by implication, to destroy or consume; specifically, to covenant (i.e. make an alliance or bargain, originally by cutting flesh and passing between the pieces); be chewed, be con-(feder-) ate, covenant, cut (down, off), destroy, fail, feller, be freed, hew (down), make a league (covenant), [idiom] lose, perish, [idiom] utterly, [idiom] want.

Source: Strong's Exhaustive Concordance — H3772

Fürst

Fürst Lexicon

כָּרַת

verb • Root כרת • Strongs / High • Page 742

To cut off, to hew, to fell; to cut up; to destroy or root out. A very common expression is 'כָּרַת בְּרִית' (karath berith) meaning 'to make a covenant', literally to slaughter an animal at the making of a covenant.

conjunctive, Verb Qal sequential imperfect third person masculine singular

LXX: διέθετο ἐξολεθρεύσω ἐξολεθρευθήσεται διαθήσομαι ἀπολῶ

LXX Usage Statistics

H3772:

διέθετο 28× (9.9%)

ἐξολεθρεύσω 18× (6.1%)

ἐξολεθρευθήσεται 16× (5.9%)

διαθήσομαι 11× (3.7%)

ἀπολῶ 8× (2.5%)

ἐξολεθρευθήσονται 7× (2.6%)

'' 7× (2.1%)

ἐξολεθρεῦσαι 7× (2.2%)

ἐξαρῶ 7× (2.2%)

διεθέμην 6× (2.2%)

יהונתן יְהוֹנָתָן

None

STRONGS

Strong's Lexicon

יהונתן

Yᵉhôwnâthân

Definition

Jehonathan, the name of four Israelites

Root

from H3068 (יהוה) and H5414 (נתן); Jehovah-given;

Exhaustive

from יהוה and נתן; Jehovah-given; Jehonathan, the name of four Israelites; Jonathan. Compare יונתן.

Source: Strong's Exhaustive Concordance — H3083

Fürst

Fürst Lexicon

יְהוֹנָתָן

proper noun / masculine • Root נתן • Strongs / High • Page 592

A proper name meaning 'Yehô is giver'. It is interchanged with the more common form יוֹנָתָן (Jonathan).

Gesenius

Gesenius Lexicon

יְהוֹנָתָן

noun masculine • Page 276

and יוֹנָתָן (Jehovah gives) Jonathan, the son of Saul, celebrated for his heroic friendship towards David, 1 Sam. xiii.—xxxi. Also the name of several other persons.

Noun proper name masculine

LXX: ιωναθαν ''

LXX Usage Statistics

H3083:

ιωναθαν 75× (92.1%)

'' 4× (4.4%)

ודוד וְדָוד

and Beloved

STRONGS

Strong's Lexicon

ו

wə

Definition

and

Root

From H8505; a prefix

Exhaustive

The conjunctive ו is not merely a fixed coordinator with a stable semantic value (“and/but/or/then”). Its core function is linkage, not meaning. It binds units into a single discourse field—phrases, clauses, or whole scenes—while leaving the logical relation to be inferred from aspect, word order, genre, and context.

So the variability in translation (“and / but / or / even / then”) is not polyvalence in the particle; it is underspecification by design. The language expects the reader/hearer to perceive the relation rather than have it encoded.

Crucially, conjunctive ו does not imply temporal sequence. It implies continuity of attention. Think of it as:
- “this belongs with what precedes,”
- “remain within the same frame,”
“do not reset the discourse.”
This is why Hebrew can chain dozens of clauses with ו without subordination or explicit logic markers. The text advances by accumulation, not by branching syntactic trees. Meaning arises from the interaction:
- Aspect (qatal / yiqtol / participle),
- Position (fronted elements, resumptive nouns),
- Genre (law, narrative, oracle),
- Context (who speaks, to whom).
The ו simply keeps the circuit closed so these cues can operate together. Remove tense assumptions, and the system becomes coherent.

Source: The Aonic Nature of Biblical Hebrew Prepositions

דוד

Dâvid

Definition

David, the youngest son of Jesse

Root

rarely (fully); דויד; from the same as H1730 (דוד); loving;

Exhaustive

rarely (fully); דויד; from the same as דוד; loving; David, the youngest son of Jesse; David.

Source: Strong's Exhaustive Concordance — H1732

Fürst

Fürst Lexicon

דָּוִד

proper noun • Root דוד • Strongs / High • Page 358

Proper noun of the famous Israelite king, founder of a dynasty (1055-1015 B.C.) and chief composer of the Psalter. Meaning loving, joiner, or beloved.

Gesenius

Gesenius Lexicon

דָּוִד

noun masculine • Root , דוד • Page 158

David, son of Jesse, king of Israel. 1 Sam. xvi. ff. 2 Sam. 1 Chr. xii.-xxx. Zion, 1 K. 3:1. The posterity of David, the royal family, Is. 7:2, 13.

Conjunction, Noun proper name masculine

LXX: δαυιδ '' --- ὡσ αὐτοῦ

LXX Usage Statistics

H1732:

δαυιδ 966× (90.3%)

'' 45× (3.7%)

--- 28× (2.7%)

ὡσ 9× (0.9%)

αὐτοῦ 2× (0.2%)

ψαλμὸσ 2× (0.2%)

βασιλεὺσ 2× (0.2%)

βασιλεῖ 2× (0.2%)

ברית בְּרית

alliance

STRONGS

Strong's Lexicon

ברית

bᵉrîyth

Definition

a compact (because made by passing between pieces of flesh)

Root

from H1262 (ברה) (in the sense of cutting (like H1254 (ברא)));

Exhaustive

from ברה (in the sense of cutting (like ברא)); a compact (because made by passing between pieces of flesh); confederacy, (con-) feder(-ate), covenant, league.

Source: Strong's Exhaustive Concordance — H1285

Fürst

Fürst Lexicon

בְּרִית

noun feminine • Consonantal / Medium • Page 278

Covenant, league (prop. cutting in pieces of the sacrificial animal).

Matched via consonantal key only

בֹּרִית

noun feminine • Root ברר • Consonantal / Medium • Page 278

Lye, vegetable kali, a material for cleansing; salt of lye from soap plants.

Matched via consonantal key only

Gesenius

Gesenius Lexicon

בְּרִית

f. dec. i. • Root ברה • Page 116

covenant, league, compact. Often denotes the person with whom the covenant is made (Lev. 26:45). In some contexts equivalent to law, such as 'the law chest' or 'ark of the covenant' (Josh. 3:6) and 'book of the law' (Ex. 24:7). Referenced in 1 Chr. 7:23, Deut. 4:31, and Mal. 3:2.

בֹּרִית

noun feminine • Root ברר • Page 116

alkali, lie, lixivium; especially vegetable alkali procured from the ashes of alkaline plants used by ancients for cleansing and washing clothes. As to its form, it is probably a denom. from בָּרַר (purification). Referenced in Jer. 2:22 and Mal. 3:2.

Noun common both singular absolute

LXX: διαθήκην διαθήκησ διαθήκη '' διαθήκῃ

LXX Usage Statistics

H1285:

διαθήκην 155× (53.9%)

διαθήκησ 80× (27.7%)

διαθήκη 18× (6.0%)

'' 10× (3.2%)

διαθήκῃ 9× (2.6%)

--- 7× (2.7%)

באהבתו בְּאַהֲבָתוֹ

in the hand

STRONGS

Strong's Lexicon

ב

bə

Definition

in, by

Root

A primitive particle; a prefix

Exhaustive

(beth) — in / within / by means of

Core value: interiority, enclosure, participation

ב does not primarily mean “in time” (“when”) or even “in space.” It marks being inside a domain, whether that domain is:
- spatial (house, land),
- conceptual (wisdom, covenant),
- modal (strength, fear),
- instrumental (by means of).
Aonically, ב marks immersion.
not “when X happened” but “within the state or field of X.”
This is why ב־יום does not need to mean “on the day (chronological)” but “within the day-realm / condition”.

Source: The Aonic Nature of Biblical Hebrew Prepositions

אהבה

ʼahăbâh

Definition

{affection (in a good or a bad sense)}

Root

feminine of H158 (אהב) and meaning the same

Exhaustive

feminine of אהב and meaning the same; {affection (in a good or a bad sense)}; love.

Source: Strong's Exhaustive Concordance — H160

הו

Definition

his, personal posessive - noun suffix: 3rd person masculine singular

Root

Exhaustive

Personal posessive pronoun - suffix for nouns, adjectives and passive participles: 3rd person masculine singular

Source: Strong's Exhaustive Concordance — H9023

Fürst

Fürst Lexicon

אַהֲבָה

noun feminine • Root אהב • Strongs_Numbers • Page 71

Properly a fem. form of the infinitive of Kal, hence loving; the signification love, an antithesis to hatred; applied to love, inclination and attachment in general; sometimes concr. beloved.

Gesenius

Gesenius Lexicon

אַהֲבָה

noun feminine • Page 28

1. infinitive of אָהַב. 2. love. 3. object of love, mistress. 4. adv. charmingly, elegantly (Is. 56:6; Deut. 7:8; 1 K. 10:9; Prov. 10:12; 2 Sam. 1:26; Cant. 8:6, 7; Cant. 2:7, 3:10).

Preposition, Noun common feminine singular construct, Suffix pronominal third person masculine singular

LXX:

LXX Usage Statistics

H0160:

No stats available

אתו אֹתוֹ

his eternal self

STRONGS

Strong's Lexicon

את

ʼêth

Definition

properly, self (but generally used to point out more definitely the object of a verb or preposition, even or namely)

Root

apparent contracted from H226 (אות) in the demonstrative sense of entity;

Exhaustive

apparent contracted from אות in the demonstrative sense of entity; properly, self (but generally used to point out more definitely the object of a verb or preposition, even or namely); (as such unrepresented in English).

Source: Strong's Exhaustive Concordance — H853

ו

Definition

him, personal pronoun - verb/prep. 3rd person masculine singular

Root

Exhaustive

Personal object pronoun - suffix for propositions and verbs without an object: 3rd person masculine singular

Source: Strong's Exhaustive Concordance — H9033

Fürst

Fürst Lexicon

אֵת

particle • Strongs_Numbers • Page 87

Particle used as a sign of the accusative, indicating the definite object of a verb; also used reflexively, or in designations of time and place. Occasionally interchangeable with other prepositions.

אֵת

substantive • Root אות • Strongs_Numbers • Page 208

I. Proper substance, being, essence, body, self, essential. It is used as the sign of an accusative, or to give prominence to a noun as subject.

אֵת

preposition • Root אנה • Strongs_Numbers • Page 208

II. With; expressing fellowship or accompaniment. Properly side, support, lean upon.

אֵת

noun masculine • Root אתה • Strongs_Numbers • Page 209

Mattock, coulter of a plough, hoe, prop. anything cutting into.

אֵת

noun masculine • Root אתה • Strongs_Numbers • Page 209

Equivalent to אֵת III., of which it is merely a collateral form.

Gesenius

Gesenius Lexicon

אוֹת or אֶת

sign of accusative case • Page 35

A sign of the accusative case.

אֶת

com. gen. chald. • Page 81

Equivalent to the Hebrew אוֹת (sign, miracle). Synonymous with תְּמַהּ. References: Dan. 3: 32, 33; 6: 28.

אַתְּ

pronoun • Page 81

Thou (masc.). Equivalent to אַתָּה. Note: Judg. 17: 2; 1 K. 14: 2.

אַתְּ

pronoun • Page 81

Thou (fem.). In pause אָתְּ. Found in Judg. 17: 2; 1 K. 14: 2. Also sometimes appears as a masculine form (Num. 11: 15; Ezek. 28: 14).

אֵת

preposition • Page 82

1. with, together with (Gen. 4:1); 2. with, near by (Gen. 39:6); 3. in or on a place (1 Sam. 7:16); 4. besides (1 K. 11:25); 5. towards, erga (Ruth 2:20, 2 Sam. 16:17).

אֵת

i. m. subst. • Page 81

Ploughshare. Inflected in two ways as אֵתִים and אֵתִין. References: 1 Sam. 13: 20, 21; Is. 2: 4; Joel 4: 10 [3:10]. Its etymology is suggested to be related to the word מַחֲרֶשֶׁת.

Direct object eternal self, Suffix pronominal third person masculine singular

LXX:

LXX Usage Statistics

H0853:

No stats available

כנפשו כְּנַפְשׁוֹ׃

None

STRONGS

Strong's Lexicon

כ

kə

Definition

like, as

Root

A primitive particle; a prefix Derived terms כאשר‎ (ka'ashér) כמו‎ (k'mó) כמות‎ (k'mót) כש־‎ (k'she-)

Exhaustive

(kaph) — as / like / according to

Core value: correspondence, patterning, resonance
כ never asserts identity. It asserts alignment.
- likeness,
- proportionality,
- conformity to a form.
Aonically, כ signals phase-alignment, not comparison.
not “like X in appearance” but “operating according to the same pattern as X.”
This is why prophetic and poetic language leans heavily on כ: it encodes structural analogy across layers, not metaphor.

Source: The Aonic Nature of Biblical Hebrew Prepositions

נפש

nephesh

Definition

properly, a breathing creature, i.e. animal of (abstractly) vitality; used very widely in a literal, accommodated or figurative sense (bodily or mental)

Root

from H5314 (נפש);

Exhaustive

from נפש; properly, a breathing creature, i.e. animal of (abstractly) vitality; used very widely in a literal, accommodated or figurative sense (bodily or mental); any, appetite, beast, body, breath, creature, [idiom] dead(-ly), desire, [idiom] (dis-) contented, [idiom] fish, ghost, [phrase] greedy, he, heart(-y), (hath, [idiom] jeopardy of) life ([idiom] in jeopardy), lust, man, me, mind, mortally, one, own, person, pleasure, (her-, him-, my-, thy-) self, them (your) -selves, [phrase] slay, soul, [phrase] tablet, they, thing, ([idiom] she) will, [idiom] would have it.

Source: Strong's Exhaustive Concordance — H5315

הו

Definition

his, personal posessive - noun suffix: 3rd person masculine singular

Root

Exhaustive

Personal posessive pronoun - suffix for nouns, adjectives and passive participles: 3rd person masculine singular

Source: Strong's Exhaustive Concordance — H9023

Fürst

Fürst Lexicon

נֶפֶשׁ

noun / feminine • Root נפש • Strongs / High • Page 982

A breath, respiration. 1. Breath of life, vital power, life, the animal life. 2. The soul or spirit, which gives life and has needs and feelings. 3. A living being, a creature, an individual, a person, a slave, a corpse. 4. Self, used reflexively. Also used to denote the seat of affections like love, joy, fear, piety, courage, and as the seat of various states like lamentation, hunger, thirst, etc.

Gesenius

Gesenius Lexicon

נֶפֶשׁ

com. gen. but more frequently fem. • Root נפש • Page 451

1. breath (Job 41:13); 2. life, the vital principle in animal bodies, anima (Gen. 35:18, 1 K. 17:21); 3. a living being, particularly spoken of men and sometimes slaves (Josh. 10:28, Gen. 1:20, 12:5); 4. the soul, spirit, as the seat of the volitions and affections (Deut. 26:16, Cant. 1:7); 5. desire, including the desire of eating or hunger (Gen. 23:8, Prov. 6:30, 13:4); 6. scent, fragrancy, odour (Is. 3:20).

Preposition, Noun common both singular construct, Suffix pronominal third person masculine singular

LXX: ψυχή ψυχήν ψυχὴν ψυχὴ ψυχῆσ

LXX Usage Statistics

H5315:

ψυχή 126× (15.5%)

ψυχήν 119× (14.6%)

ψυχὴν 89× (11.4%)

ψυχὴ 88× (10.9%)

ψυχῆσ 82× (10.3%)

ψυχῇ 55× (6.9%)

ψυχὰσ 38× (4.8%)

ψυχαὶ 21× (2.8%)

ψυχαῖσ 17× (2.1%)

'' 15× (1.9%)

RBT Translation:

No verse found

RBT Paraphrase:
No verse found

Julia Smith Literal 1876 Translation:
And Jonathan and David will cut out a covenant in his loving him as his soul.

LITV Translation:
And Jonathan and David cut a covenant, because he loved him as his own soul.