Genesis 3:19

KJV1611 – Modern English

In the sweat of your face you shall eat bread, till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; for dust you are, and to dust you shall return.

📖 Grammatical Analysis

Original Text

בְּזֵעַ֤ת אַפֶּ֙יךָ֙ תֹּ֣אכַל לֶ֔חֶם עַ֤ד שֽׁוּבְךָ֙ אֶל־הָ֣אֲדָמָ֔ה כִּ֥י מִמֶּ֖נָּה לֻקָּ֑חְתָּ כִּֽי־עָפָ֣ר אַ֔תָּה וְאֶל־עָפָ֖ר תָּשֽׁוּב׃

Transliteration

In zēʿat ʾappêkā tōʾkal leḥem until šûbĕkā to the ʾădāmāh, for from it luqqāḥtā; for ʿāp̄ār ʾattāh, and to ʿāp̄ār tāšûb.

Grammar Details

• *zēʿat*: noun, feminine, construct - sweat of
• *ʾappêkā*: noun, masculine, dual + 2nd masculine singular suffix - your face/nostrils
• *tōʾkal*: verb, qal imperfect, 2nd masculine singular - you will eat
• *leḥem*: noun, masculine, singular - bread/food
• *šûbĕkā*: verb, qal infinitive construct + 2nd masculine singular suffix - your return
• *ʾădāmāh*: noun, feminine, singular - ground/earth
• *luqqāḥtā*: verb, pual perfect, 2nd masculine singular - you were taken
• *ʿāp̄ār*: noun, masculine, singular - dust
• *ʾattāh*: pronoun, 2nd masculine singular - you
• *tāšûb*: verb, qal imperfect, 2nd masculine singular - you will return

Word Meanings

• *ʾappayim*: face/nostrils/nose
• *leḥem*: bread/food/sustenance

Other Translations

• Linguistic Bible Translation from Source Texts

  By the sweat of your brow you will eat your bread until you return to the ground, because from it you were taken; for dust you are, and to dust you will return.

• King James Version 1769 (Standard Version)

  In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.

• American Standard Version with Strong's Numbers

  in the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.

• King James Version with Strong's Numbers

  In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.

• Tyndale Bible (1526/1534)

  In the swete of thy face shalt thou eate brede vntill thou returne vnto the erth whece thou wast take: for erth thou art ad vnto erth shalt thou returne.

• Coverdale Bible (1535)

  In the sweate of thy face shalt thou eate thy bred, tyll thou be turned agayne vnto earth, whece thou art take: for earth thou art, and vnto earth shalt thou be turned agayne.

• Geneva Bible (1560)

  In the sweate of thy face shalt thou eate bread, till thou returne to the earth: for out of it wast thou taken, because thou art dust, and to dust shalt thou returne.

• Bishops' Bible (1568)

  In the sweatte of thy face shalt thou eate thy breade, tyll thou be turned agayne into the ground, for out of it wast thou taken: For dust thou art, and into dust shalt thou be turned agayne.

• Authorized King James Version (1611)

  In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou [art], and unto dust shalt thou return.

• Webster's Bible (1833)

  By the sweat of your face will you eat bread until you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken. For you are dust, and to dust you shall return."

• Young's Literal Translation (1862/1898)

  by the sweat of thy face thou dost eat bread till thy return unto the ground, for out of it hast thou been taken, for dust thou `art', and unto dust thou turnest back.'

• American Standard Version (1901)

  in the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.

• American Standard Version (1901)

  in the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.

• Bible in Basic English (1941)

  With the hard work of your hands you will get your bread till you go back to the earth from which you were taken: for dust you are and to the dust you will go back.

• World English Bible (2000)

  By the sweat of your face will you eat bread until you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken. For you are dust, and to dust you shall return."

• NET Bible® (New English Translation)

  By the sweat of your brow you will eat food until you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; for you are dust, and to dust you will return.”

Referenced Verses

• Ps 104:29 : 29 You hide Your face, they are troubled: You take away their breath, they die, and return to their dust.
• Eccl 12:7 : 7 Then the dust will return to the earth as it was, and the spirit will return to God who gave it.
• Gen 2:7 : 7 And the LORD God formed man from the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.
• Job 34:15 : 15 All flesh shall perish together, and man shall return again to dust.
• Ps 90:3 : 3 You turn man to destruction; and say, Return, you children of men.
• Eccl 3:20 : 20 All go to one place; all are of dust, and all turn to dust again.
• 2 Thess 3:10 : 10 For even when we were with you, we commanded you this: If anyone will not work, neither shall he eat.
• Job 21:26 : 26 They lie down alike in the dust, and worms cover them.
• Eccl 5:15 : 15 As he came from his mother's womb, naked shall he return to go as he came, and shall take nothing of his labor which he may carry away in his hand.
• Ps 103:14 : 14 For He knows our frame; He remembers that we are dust.
• Ps 22:15 : 15 My strength is dried up like a potsherd, and my tongue clings to my jaws; You have brought me into the dust of death.
• Ps 22:29 : 29 All the prosperous of the earth shall eat and worship; all who go down to the dust shall bow before Him, even he who cannot keep himself alive.
• Gen 18:27 : 27 And Abraham answered and said, Behold now, I have taken it upon myself to speak to the Lord, who am but dust and ashes.
• Gen 23:4 : 4 I am a stranger and a sojourner among you; give me a possession of a burial place with you, that I may bury my dead out of my sight.
• Job 1:21 : 21 And he said, "Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked shall I return there. The LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD."
• Job 17:13-16 : 13 If I wait, the grave is my house; I have made my bed in the darkness. 14 I have said to corruption, 'You are my father'; to the worm, 'You are my mother, and my sister.' 15 And where now is my hope? As for my hope, who shall see it? 16 They shall go down to the bars of the pit, when our rest together is in the dust.
• Dan 12:2 : 2 And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt.
• Rom 5:12-21 : 12 Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned: 13 For until the law sin was in the world, but sin is not charged when there is no law. 14 Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those who had not sinned according to the likeness of Adam's transgression, who is a type of him who was to come. 15 But the free gift is not like the offense. For if by the offense of one many died, much more the grace of God and the gift by grace of the one Man, Jesus Christ, abounded to many. 16 And the gift is not like that which came through the one who sinned; for the judgment which came from one offense resulted in condemnation, but the free gift which came from many offenses resulted in justification. 17 For if by the one man's offense death reigned through the one, much more those who receive abundance of grace and the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the one, Jesus Christ. 18 Therefore, as through one offense judgment came to all men, resulting in condemnation, even so through one act of righteousness the free gift came to all men, resulting in justification of life. 19 For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one many will be made righteous. 20 Moreover, the law entered that the offense might abound. But where sin abounded, grace abounded much more: 21 So that as sin reigned in death, even so grace might reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
• 1 Cor 15:21-22 : 21 For since by man came death, by Man also came the resurrection of the dead. 22 For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive.
• Eph 4:28 : 28 Let him who stole steal no longer, but rather let him labor, working with his hands what is good, that he may have something to give to him who has need.
• 1 Thess 2:9 : 9 For you remember, brothers, our labor and toil: for working night and day, that we might not be a burden to any of you, we preached to you the gospel of God.
• Prov 21:16 : 16 The man who wanders out of the way of understanding shall remain in the congregation of the dead.
• Eccl 1:3 : 3 What profit does a man have from all his labor which he does under the sun?
• Eccl 1:13 : 13 And I set my heart to seek and search out by wisdom concerning all things that are done under heaven: this difficult task God has given to the children of man to be engaged with.
• Job 19:26 : 26 And though after my skin, worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh I shall see God,