וְ/נִשְׁמַרְתֶּ֥ם

𐤅/𐤍𐤔𐤌𐤓𐤕𐤌

shâmar

and-you-shall-guard

To keep, guard, watch over, or observe; to exercise attentive care or protective oversight; to be heedful or conscientious concerning something. In different contexts, שָׁמַר can refer to guarding property or people, observing commandments or rules, paying careful attention, or maintaining a condition or state. The term implies vigilance and responsibility, encompassing both practical guardianship and conscientious observance.

H8104

Malachi 2:16 · Word #15

Lexicon H8104

Lemmaשָׁמַר
Lemma (Paleo)𐤔𐤌𐤓
Transliterationshâmar
Strong'sH8104
DefinitionTo keep, guard, watch over, or observe; to exercise attentive care or protective oversight; to be heedful or conscientious concerning something. In different contexts, שָׁמַר can refer to guarding property or people, observing commandments or rules, paying careful attention, or maintaining a condition or state. The term implies vigilance and responsibility, encompassing both practical guardianship and conscientious observance.

Morphology HC/VNq2mp All morphology codes

Part of Speech V — Verb — An action or state
Binyan N — Niphal — Simple passive or reflexive
Conjugation q — Sequential Perfect — Perfect with waw-consecutive, continuing a narrative
Person 2 — 2nd person — Second person ("you")
Gender m — Masculine — Masculine
Number p — Plural — Plural

Common Translation

Phraseand-you-shall-guard

SIBI-P1 Translation H8104-81

and you were guarded

Morphological NotesVerb, Niphal stem (passive/reflexive), sequential perfect (vav-consecutive), 2nd person masculine plural.
Rendering RationaleThe root שמר conveys guarding or keeping. In the Niphal stem it is passive or reflexive; with 2nd person masculine plural sequential perfect, it yields "and you were guarded," preserving both the passive force and plural masculine form.

View full lexicon entry for H8104 →

SILEX v2

SIBI-P2 (Context-Aware)

and you must guard

Same as P1No — adjusted for context
RationaleChanged from 'and you were guarded' (P1) to 'and you must guard.' The Hebrew form is 2mp imperfect (command or exhortation), so 'must guard' properly conveys the imperative sense directed at the audience.