H4310. mi

מִי‎₄₂₃ pronoun interrogative who? of persons, as מָה‎ (q. v.) of things (Ethiopic but only = What ? and How ? Assyrian mî, me (rare) Jäger^{BAS. ii. 277}, the usual Semitic form for Who? has n, namely Assyrian mannu, manu (Dl^{HWB 419}), Ethiopic man¥, Aramaic Arabic , Vulgar Arabic min, m£n, from a form resembling which, by rejection of n, probably Hebrew מִי‎: W^{SG 123 f.}): — who ? (τίς; quis ?) Genesis 3:11 מִי לְךָ הִגִּיד‎ who told thee ? 24:65 הַלָּזֶה הָאִישׁ מִי‎ who is this man ? 27:18 בני אתה מי‎ who art thou, my son ? Numbers 22:9; Judges 1:1; 6:29; 15:6; 18:3; 20:18; 2 Samuel 1:8 + often; Ruth 3:9 אָ֑תְּ מִי‎ who art thou, (feminine) ? Isaiah 51:12; of more than one, אֵלָּה מִי‎ who are these ? Genesis 33:5; 48:8; Isaiah 60:8; אתם מי‎ 2 Kings 10:13; once, more explicitly, הַהֹלְכִים זָמִי מִי‎ Exodus 10:8; = as who ? (i.e. in what condition, or capacity), Amos 7:2 יקום מי יעקב‎ vAmos 7:5; Isaiah 51:19 אֲנַחֲמֵךְ מִי‎ (but Vrss Che Lag Brd Du יְ ׳מִי‎, as "" יָנוּד מִי‎), Ruth 3:16 (Be Ke Kö^{iii. 388}). Note in particular:

a. מִי‎ is rarely used of things, and usually where persons are understood or implied: Genesis 33:8 הזה כלהֿמחנה לך מי‎ who (or what) to thee is all this camp ? Deuteronomy 4:7; Judges 9:28 מִי שְׁכֶם‎ who is Shechem (i.e. the Shechemites) ? Micah 1:5 שֹׁמְרוֺן הֲלֹא יַעֲקֹב מִיפֶֿשַׁע‎, v^b Song of Solomon 3:6; Judges 13:17 שְׁמֶ֑ךָ מִי‎ ( but מה‎ Genesis 32:28; Exodus 3:13: with מי‎ compare מַן‎ in Aramaic Ezra 5:4; Genesis, Exodus ll. cc. ᵑ7‎; and see Nö^{M. p. 341}). On 1 Samuel 18:18, see II. חַי‎

b. in the Genitive, אַתְּ בַּתמִֿי‎ whose daughter art thou ? Genesis 24:23, 47; 1 Samuel 12:3 (3 t. in verse); 17:55; Jeremiah 44:28; Job 26:4; 33:28; after various prepositions, as מִי אַחֲרֵי‎ 1 Samuel 24:15 (twice in verse); אֶלמִֿי‎ 6:20; 2 Kings 9:5 +; בְּמִי‎ by whom ? 1 Kings 20:14, לְמִי‎₂₀ to whom ? whose ? Genesis 32:18 אַתָּה לְמִי‎, 38:25; Proverbs 20:20 (6 t.) +; מִמִּי‎ Ezekiel 32:19; Psalm 27:1 (twice in verse); עַלמִֿי‎ 2 Kings 18:20; 19:22; Isaiah 57:4 +; אֶתמִֿי‎ (so always in accusative), 1 Samuel 12:3 (twice in verse); 28:11; Isaiah 6:8; = with whom ? Job 12:3.

c. in an indirect question, as Genesis 21:26; 43:22 שׂם מי ידענו לא‎ we do not know who put, etc., Deuteronomy 21:1; Psalm 39:7; Joshua 24:15 תַעֲבֹד֑וּן אֶתמִֿי ֗֗֗ בַּחֲרוּ‎ choose whom ye will serve, after ראה‎ 1 Samuel 14:17, שׁאל‎ 17:56, הגיד‎ 1 Kings 1:20, הודיע‎ 1:27.

d. ב ׳מי‎ who among ... ? 1 Samuel 22:14; Isaiah 36:20; 43:9; 48:14 (בהם‎) 42:23; 50:10; Haggai 2:3 ( all בכם‎); מן מי‎ who of ... ? Judges 21:8; 2 Kings 6:11; Isaiah 50:1.

e. strengthened and emphatic forms of interrogative: (a) זה מי‎ (see זה‎ 4b), הוא מי‎ (see הוא‎ 4b β), מי זה הוא‎ Psalm 24:10; Jeremiah 30:21; Esther 7:5 (see ibid.); (b) מִי אֶחָד‎ what single one ... ? Judges 21:8, compare 2 Samuel 7:23 ( = 1 Chronicles 17:21).

f. various rhetorical uses ( often repeated in "" clause, as Psalm 15:1; 18:32; Isaiah 28:9; 29:15): — (a) followed by imperfect it expresses a wish ( the question implying a desire that the person asked for were present ), 2 Samuel 15:4 שֹׁפֵט יְשִׂמֵנִי מִי‎ who will set me judge ? i.e. would that some one would make me judge ! 23:15 מַיִם יַשְׁקֵנִי מִי‎ = O that one would give me to drink, etc. ! compare Numbers 11:4, 18; Malachi 1:10; Psalm 4:7; 60:11; 94:16; Isaiah 42:23, and very often in the phrase יִתֵּן מִי‎ who will give? i.e. would that there were. . . ! as Numbers 11:29 י עם כל יתן ׳ומי נביאים‎ = and would that all ׳י‎s people were prophets! Deuteronomy 28:67 ערב יתן מי‎ = would it were even! Judges 9:29 + (see נָתַן‎). (b) it expresses contempt (who ? implying the answer no one at all), Exodus 5:2 י מי בקולו אשׁמע ׳אשׁר‎ who is ׳י‎ that I should listen to his voice ? Judges 9:28 נַעַבְדֶנּוּ כִּי שְׁכֶם וּמִי אֲבִימֶלֶךְ מִי‎, 9:38; 1 Samuel 17:26 who is this Philistine that he should have reproached, etc.? 25:10 ישׁי בן ומי דוד מי‎ Isaiah 28:9; Job 26:4; Proverbs 30:9 י ׳מי‎; or modesty (real or assumed), Exodus 3:11 אֶלמַּֿרְעֹה אֵלֵךְ כִּי אָנֹכִי מִי‎ 1 Samuel 18:18 אנכי מי חיי ומי‎ who am I, and who is my clan (חַיִּי‎), that I should be the king's son-in-law ? 2 Samuel 7:18; 1 Chronicles 29:14; 2 Chronicles 2:5; or surprise, Isaiah 44:10; 49:21. (c) in impassioned prose, and especially in poetry, implying the answer few or none, it is equivalent to a rhetorical negative, Deuteronomy 9:2 עֲנָק בְנֵי לִפְנֵי יִתְיַצֵּב מִי‎ who can stand, etc.? 30:12 הַשָּׁמַיְמָה יַעֲלֶהלָּֿנוּ מִי‎ 30:13; 1 Samuel 4:8 וג יַצִּילֵנוּ ׳מִי‎, 6:20; 22:14; 26:9, 15; 2 Samuel 16:10; יאמר מי‎ who shall (or can) say ? Job 9:12; Proverbs 20:9; Ecclesiastes 8:4; with the perfect (of experience), who has ever . . . ? Numbers 23:10; Deuteronomy 5:23; Isaiah 36:20; 66:8 (twice in verse); Jeremiah 18:13 כָּאֵלֶּה שָׁמַע מִי‎, 23:18 (ᵑ0‎), 30:21; Job 4:7; 9:4 וַיִּשְׁלָ֑ם אֵלָיו הִקְשָׁה מִי‎, 41:3; Proverbs 30:4; Lamentations 3:37; in poetry, very often, as Genesis 49:9 וּכְלָבִיא יְקִימֶנּוּ מִי‎ who can rouse him up ? (i.e. no one), Exodus 15:11 (twice in verse) כָמוֺךָ מִי‎ (so Psalm 35:10 and elsewhere), Numbers 24:9, 23; 1 Samuel 2:25 לו יתפלל מי‎ who shall intercede for him ? (i.e. no one), Isaiah 1:12; 10:3; 40:13-14, 18; 41:26; 42:19; 43:9; 48:14; 50:1; 53:1 לִשְׁמֻעָתֵנוּ הֶאֱמִין מִי‎ (i.e. few or none), etc.; Psalm 18:32 י מִבַּלְעֲדֵי אֱלוֺהַּ ׳מִי‎, 76:8; 89:7; 130:3; Job 21:31; 34:29; Jeremiah 17:9; Joel 2:11; Malachi 3:2; ֗֗֗ לֹא מִי‎ Amos 3:8; Jeremiah 10:7; Job 12:9 (compare 25:3; Nahum 3:19); (יְשִׁיבֶנָּה‎) יְשִׁיבֶנּוּ מִי‎ who shall (can) turn it back ? Job 9:12; 11:10; 23:13; Isaiah 14:27; 43:13; Jeremiah 2:24; implying the answer, no one but God, Isaiah 40:12; 41:2; Job 38:5; 35:6; Job 35:25, etc.; defiantly, Isaiah 50:9 יַרְשִׁיעֵנִי הוּא מִי‎, Jeremiah 21:13; 49:4 אֵלַי יָבוֺא מִי‎, 49:19; Obadiah 3; Psalm 12:5 לָנוּ אָדוֺן מִי‎, 59:8; 64:6; Job 9:19 לְמִשְׁמָּט וְאִם יוֺעִידֵנִי מִי‎, 13:19 עִמָּדִי יָרִיב הוּא מִי‎ who is he that will contend with me ? 17:3; 41:2. Notice in examples of this kind the frequent order of words: Proverbs 20:6 ימצא מי אמוּנים ואישׁ‎, 24:22 מי שׁניהם ופיד יודע‎, 31:10; Nahum 1:6 יעמד מי זעמו לפני‎, Psalm 147:17 לפני יעמד מי קֹרָתוֺ‎, Job 4:2 יוּכ֑ל מִי בְּמִלִּין וַעְצֹר‎, 26:14; 38:37; 39:5; 41:5; 41:6; Psalm 6:6 יוֺדֶהלָּֿ֑ךְ מִי בִּשְׁאוֺל‎, 19:13; and with the nom. pendens, Jeremiah 2:24 יְשִׁיבֶנָּה מִי תַּאֲנָתָהּ‎, Proverbs 18:14; Job 17:15 יְשׁוּרֶנָּה מִי וְתִקְוָתִי‎, 38:29 יְלָדוֺ מִי שָׁמַיִם וּכְפֹר‎. (d) יוֺדֵעַ מִי‎ who knoweth ? (Psalm 90:11; Proverbs 24:22), followed by a verbal clause, becomes (compare nescio an) = it may be, perchance, 2 Samuel 12:22 י יְחָנֵּנִי יוֺדֵעַ ׳מִי‎ (Qr וְחַנַּנִי‎), Joel 2:14 ( = Jonah 3:9) ונחם ישׁוב יודע מי‎, Esther 4:14 מי אם יודע‎. (e) especially in poetry, a question with מי‎, to which the answer follows, is an effective mode of affirming a fact, or introducing a description: Psalm 15:1 (twice in verse) (see 15:2); 24:3; 24:8; 24:10; Isaiah 23:8 וג ׳זאת יעץ מי‎ (23:9 the answ., ׳י ׳צ יְעָצָהּ‎), 33:14 (see 33:15f.), 37:23; 41:2, 4; 60:8; 63:1; Jeremiah 46:7; Song of Solomon 3:6, compare 6:10; 8:3; answered by הֲלֹא‎ Exodus 4:11; Isaiah 42:24; 45:21; Micah 1:5 (twice in verse).

g. מִי‎ may sometimes be rendered whosoever, though, as the examples will shew, it does not really mean it: Exodus 24:14 אליהם יִגַּשׁ דברים בעל מי‎, literally Who hath a cause ? let him draw nigh unto them, i.e. whoso hath a cause, let him, etc., Isaiah 50:8b אֵלַי יִגַּשׁ מִשְׁמָּטִי בַעַל מִי‎, 54:15; Judges 7:3 ׳וג יָשֹׁב וְחָרֵד יָרֵא מִי‎ who is fearful and trembling ? let him return, Proverbs 9:4, 16 הֵגָּה יָסֻר מִיפֶֿ֖תִי‎, Ezra 1:3 (compare with וְ‎ in apodosis Jeremiah 9:11; Hosea 14:10; Psalm 107:43; Zechariah 4:10 is dubious, on account of anomalous tense and construction); so with ֗֗֗ אשׁר האישׁ מי‎ Deuteronomy 20:5-6, 7; Judges 10:18, compare Psalm 25:12. With 1person in apodosis, Exodus 32:33 אֲשֶׁר מִי מִסִּפְרִי אֶמְחֶגּוּ לִי חָטָא‎, Jeremiah 49:19 ( = 50:44) בָחוּר וּמִי אֶפְקֹד אֵלָיהָ‎ and who is chosen? I will appoint him over her! Isaiah 50:8a; with an imperative in the apodosis Exodus 32:24 (against accents; see Ra) זהב למי התפרקו‎ who hath gold ? break it off you! Genesis 19:12; 1 Samuel 11:12, compare Psalm 34:13f.; without a verb, Exodus 32:26 לי ׳מי אלי‎ who is on J.'s side ? (let him come) to me! so 2 Samuel 20:11 (אשׁר מי‎); Ecclesiastes 5:9; 9:4 (אשׁר מי‎).

h. once, following a verb (compare מָה‎

3), any one, 2 Samuel 18:12 באבשׁלום בַּנַּעַר שִׁמְרוּמִֿי‎ Have a care, whosoever ye be, of, etc. (but ᵑ9 ᵑ6 ᵐ5‎ Bu לִי‎; compare 18:5).