Genesis 49:17

Bishops' Bible (1568)

Dan shalbe a serpent in the way, an adder in the path, bytyng ye horse heeles, and his ryder fell backewarde.

📖 Grammatical Analysis

Original Text

יְהִי־דָן֙ נָחָ֣שׁ עֲלֵי־דֶ֔רֶךְ שְׁפִיפֹ֖ן עֲלֵי־אֹ֑רַח הַנֹּשֵׁךְ֙ עִקְּבֵי־ס֔וּס וַיִּפֹּ֥ל רֹכְב֖וֹ אָחֽוֹר

Transliteration

yəhî-dān nāḥāš upon-derek šəpîpōn upon-ʾōraḥ the-nōšēk ʿiqqəbê-sûs wa-yippōl rōkbô ʾāḥôr

Grammar Details

• *yəhî*: Qal imperfect jussive 3rd masculine singular - may he be
• *dān*: proper noun, masculine singular - Dan
• *nāḥāš*: noun masculine singular - serpent
• *derek*: noun masculine singular - way/road
• *šəpîpōn*: noun masculine singular - horned snake/adder
• *ʾōraḥ*: noun masculine singular - path
• *nōšēk*: Qal participle masculine singular with definite article - the one biting
• *ʿiqqəbê*: noun masculine plural construct - heels of
• *sûs*: noun masculine singular - horse
• *wa-yippōl*: waw consecutive + Qal imperfect 3rd masculine singular - and he falls
• *rōkbô*: Qal participle masculine singular construct with 3rd masculine singular suffix - its rider
• *ʾāḥôr*: adverb - backward

Word Meanings

• *nāḥāš*: serpent/snake
• *šəpîpōn*: horned snake/adder/viper
• *nōšēk*: biting/striking
• *ʿiqqəbê*: heels/hooves

Referenced Verses

• 1 Chr 12:35 : 35 And of Dan expert in battayle, twentie & eyght thousand and sixe hundred.
• Judg 14:1-9 : 1 Samson went downe to Thamnath, and sawe a woma in Thamnath of the daughters of the Philistines: 2 And he came vp, and told his father and his mother, & said: I haue sene a woman in Thamnath of the daughters of the Philistines: & nowe geue me her to wyfe. 3 Then his father and mother sayd vnto him: Is there neuer a woman among the daughters of thy brethren, & among al my people, but that thou must go, and take a wyfe of the vncircumcised Philistines? And Samson sayd vnto his father: Geue me this woman, for she pleaseth me well. 4 But his father and mother wist not that it was the Lordes doyng, and that he sought an occasion against the Philistines: for at that time the Philistines raigned ouer Israel. 5 Then went Samson and his father & his mother downe to Thamnath, and came to the vineyardes of Thamnath: and beholde, a young Lion roared vpon him. 6 And the spirite of the Lord came vpo him, and he tare him as he would haue rent a kydde, and yet had nothing in his hande: neither tolde his father and mother what he had done. 7 And he went downe, & talked with the woman, whiche seemed well fauoured in the sight of Samson. 8 And within a short space after, as he wet thyther againe to take her to wife, he turned out of the way to see the carkasse of the Lion: And beholde, there was a swarme of bees and hony in the carkasse of the Lion. 9 And he toke therof in his handes, and went eating, and came to his father and mother, and gaue them also, and they did eate: But he tolde not them that he had taken the hony out of the carkasse of the Lion. 10 And so his father went downe vnto the woman, and Samson made there a feast: for so vsed the younge men to do. 11 And whe they sawe him, they brought thirtie companions to be with him. 12 And Samson sayd vnto them, I will nowe put foorth a riddle vnto you: & yf you can declare it me within seuen dayes of the feast, and finde it out, I will geue you thirtie sheetes, & thirtie chaunge of garmentes: 13 But and if you can not declare it me, then shal ye geue me thirtie sheetes and thirtie chaunge of garmentes. And they aunswered him: Put foorth thy riddle, that we may heare it. 14 And he sayd vnto them: Out of the eater came meate, and out of the strong came sweetnesse. And they coulde not in three dayes expounde the riddle. 15 And whe the seuenth day was come, they sayd vnto Samsons wyfe: Flatter thyne husband that he may declare vs the riddle, lest we burne thee and thy fathers house with fire: Haue ye called vs hyther, to make vs beggers? is it not so?
• Judg 16:22-30 : 22 Howbeit the heere of his head began to growe agayne after that he was shauen. 23 Then the lordes of the Philistines gathered them together, for to offer a solempne offring vnto Dagon their God, and to reioyce: For they sayd, Our God hath deliuered Samson our enemie into our handes. 24 And when the people sawe him, they praysed their God: for they sayde, Our God hath delyuered into our handes our enemie, and destroyer of our countrey, whiche slue manye of vs. 25 And when their heartes were mery, they sayde: Send for Samson, that he may make vs laugh. And they set Samson out of the prison house, and he played before them: and they set hym betweene the pyllers. 26 And Samson sayde vnto the lad that led hym by the hande: Set me that I may touche the pyllers that the house standeth vpon, and that I may leane to them. 27 And the house was full of men and women, and there were all the lordes of the Philistines: And there were vpon the roofe a three thousande men and women, that behelde whyle Samson played. 28 And Samson called vnto the Lorde, and sayde: O Lorde God I pray thee thyncke vpon me, and strengthen me I beseche thee at this tyme onelye O God, that I may be at once auenged of the Philistines for my two eyes. 29 And Samson caught the two middle pyllers on which the house stoode and on which it was borne vp, the one in his ryght hande, and the other in his left. 30 And Samson sayde: My soule shall dye with the Philistines, and bowed them with all his myght, and the house fell vpon the lordes and vpon all the people that were therin: And so ye dead which he slue at his death, were mo then they which he slue in his lyfe.
• Judg 18:22-31 : 22 And whe they were a good way from the house of Micah, the men that were in the houses neare to Micahs house, gathered together, & folowed after the children of Dan: 23 And called vnto them, and they turned their faces, & said vnto Micah: What ayleth thee, that thou makest an outcrye? 24 And he sayd: Ye haue taken away my goddes which I made, and also ye priest, and go your wayes: and what haue I more? How then saye ye vnto me, What ayleth thee? 25 And the children of Dan said vnto him: Let not thy voyce be hearde among vs, lest angrye felowes runne vpon thee, & thou lose thy lyfe, with the lyues of all thyne housholde. 26 And so the children of Dan went their wayes: And when Micah sawe that they were to strong for hym, he turned and went backe vnto his house. 27 And they toke the thinges which Micah had made, and the priest which he had, and came vnto Lais, euen vnto a people that were at rest and without mystrust, and smote them with the edge of the sword, & burnt the citie with fire. 28 And there was no man to helpe, because Lais was farre from Sidon, & they had medlyng with any other man: And it was in the valley that lyeth by Bethrehob. 29 And they buylt them there a citie, and dwelt therin, & called it Dan after the name of Dan their father, which was borne vnto Israel: Howbeit, the name of the citie was Lais at ye begynnyng. 30 And the chyldren of Dan set them vp the grauen image: And Ionathan the sonne of Gersom, the sonne of Manasses, and his sonnes, were the priestes in the tribe of Dan, vntyl the day of the captiuitie of the lande. 31 And they set them vp the carued image which Micah made, all the while that the house of God was in Silo.