Illustration Credit: Rivka Tsinman
רֶגַע שֶׁל עִבְרִית A Moment of Hebrew
(ב) וַתַּ֥הַר הָאִשָּׁ֖ה וַתֵּ֣לֶד בֵּ֑ן וַתֵּ֤רֶא אֹתוֹ֙ כִּי־ט֣וֹב ה֔וּא וַֽתִּצְפְּנֵ֖הוּ שְׁלֹשָׁ֥ה יְרָחִֽים׃
The woman became pregnant and gave birth to a son; she saw that he was good, and she hid him for three months.
לְהַצְפִּין lehatzpin (שֹׁרֶשׁ צ.פ.נ)
- To hide
- To write in code
צוֹפֵן (tzofen) = Code
צָפוּן (tzafun) =
The part of the Pesah Seder when we search for the afikoman and eat it (literally: “hidden”)
מַצְפֵּן (matzpein) = Compass
Find the Word!
What name does Pharaoh give Yosef after Yosef explains Pharaoh’s dreams? (Hint: Look for it in Bereishit 41.) Now that you know the שֹׁרֶשׁ (shoresh, root) צ.פ.נ, how do you understand the significance of Yosef’s Egyptian name, and why it might have fit him?
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