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The Wicked, Letter Lifted (II) — Job 38:15

מֵרְשָׁעִים

meresha'im — “from the wicked”

The Wicked, Letter Lifted (II) — Job 38:15 in the Leningrad Codex
Job 38:15 in the Leningrad Codex — the anomaly is marked.

What to look for

Two verses after 38:13, the same anomaly repeats: 'from the wicked their light is withheld,' with the ayin raised.

What it is

The fourth and final suspended letter in the Bible — completing the pair in Job's whirlwind speech.

Why it matters

Twice in three verses the same word carries the same floating letter — the tradition is deliberate, not accidental.

How it has been understood

Here the wicked lose 'their light,' and the letter of the eye (ayin) is lifted away from them: sight and light withdrawn together. Only four letters hang in the air in all of Scripture, and two of them hover over these lines about the end of arrogance.

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