לְ/נַפְשֶׁ֑/ךָ
𐤋/𐤍𐤐𐤔/𐤊
nephesh
for your soul
The animate self; a living being with breath; the seat of life or vitality in animals and humans. In the Hebrew Bible, 'nephesh' refers to living creatures, the essential self or person, appetite, desire, and occasionally the seat of emotions or consciousness. It can indicate the life that animates a body, a specific individual, or one's being in a holistic sense. Unlike later concepts of an immortal soul distinct from the body, 'nephesh' primarily expresses the living, breathing person or animal, often rendered as 'life', 'person', or 'being.'
Proverbs 3:22 · Word #3
Lexicon H5315
| Lemma | נֶפֶשׁ |
| Lemma (Paleo) | 𐤍𐤐𐤔 |
| Transliteration | nephesh |
| Strong's | H5315 |
| Definition | The animate self; a living being with breath; the seat of life or vitality in animals and humans. In the Hebrew Bible, 'nephesh' refers to living creatures, the essential self or person, appetite, desire, and occasionally the seat of emotions or consciousness. It can indicate the life that animates a body, a specific individual, or one's being in a holistic sense. Unlike later concepts of an immortal soul distinct from the body, 'nephesh' primarily expresses the living, breathing person or animal, often rendered as 'life', 'person', or 'being.' |
Morphology HR/Ncbsc/Sp2ms
All morphology codes
| Part of Speech | N — Noun — A person, place, thing, or idea |
| Subtype | c — Common — Common noun |
| Gender | b — Both — Both (masculine and feminine) |
| Number | s — Singular — Singular |
| State | c — Construct — The noun is bound to the following word |
Common Translation
| Phrase | for your soul |
SIBI-P1 Translation H5315-20
to your living self
| Morphological Notes | Noun common singular construct with prefixed לְ (preposition "to/for") + 2nd person masculine singular pronominal suffix. |
| Rendering Rationale | נֶפֶשׁ denotes the animate, breathing self—the life-bearing person. The prefixed לְ marks direction or relation ("to/for"), and the 2ms suffix requires "your" addressed to a male, yielding "to your living self." |
View full lexicon entry for H5315 →
SILEX v2
SIBI-P2 (Context-Aware)
to your life
| Same as P1 | No — adjusted for context |
| Rationale | Standardized from "to your soul". Hebrew has לְנַפְשֶׁךָ (nefesh), which the SIBI standard renders consistently as “to your life.” The context does not require the more literal “soul”; “life” accurately conveys the meaning and maintains translational consistency. |