# דבר יום, chôq



## pksooner

Hello,

I have zero knowledge of Hebrew and I need help transliterating the following Hebrew script into Latin characters:




The reference says it is derived from the "terminology of the servile bureaucratic regime of the times" (referring to Sirach and Exodus). It specifically references Exodus 1:13-14, but I can't find it. Any help would be appreciated.


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## origumi

I guess you're reading The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism, p 204. In this case - it refers to Exodus 5:13, and the words are דבר יום = "dvar yom" = "matter of the day" = daily duties.


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## pksooner

Thanks, origumi. Is that the transliteration of the phrase in the image I posted?


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## origumi

Yes: *dvar yom* (or alternatively *devar yom*, with a short "e").


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## pksooner

Much appreciated. 

And yes, that is what I am reading. Thanks for your help!


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## Drink

pksooner said:


> Is that the transliteration of the phrase in the image I posted?



Just to clarify: In the image you posted, some of the letters are incorrect. In book origumi linked to, they are correct. The transliteration he gave is of the spelling used in the book he linked to.


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## pksooner

Yes, that makes sense now. I thought something was wrong. Thank you.


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## origumi

Delving into the titbits: the Latin transcription above follows the modern pronunciation, which is likely to have remained stable for the last 1500 years (in regard to these specific words). This biblical text was authored yet another 1000-1700 years earlier, when the sounds were different. For example: the modern "v" in "dvar" was probably "b" or "bh" ("b" followed by a certain aspiration).


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## amikama

What is "chôq"?  חוק?


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## hadronic

Just for the clarification, the image has כ instead of ב, and ס instead of ם. 
Yeah, I didn't quite understand the relationship to the thread's title?


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## pksooner

A footnote in the source I was reading (Max Weber's _Protestant Ethic_) referenced chôq (חק ...at least I believe that is the correct transcription) as being derived from the same terminology as dvar yom. Since I had no idea what the transliteration of the phrase was that I was looking for, I used that as the subject line. Sorry for the confusion but thank you for all the help.


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## origumi

In the context of Exodus 5:13-14 the two terms דבר יום ביומו and חוק appear as parallels or at least similar. Both refer to the daily labor duties of the Hebrew slave to his Egyptian master.

דבר יום ביומו is "what you do every day" or "what you are told to do every day", in Targum Yonatan פִּתְגָם יוֹם בְּיוֹמֵיהּ (Aramaic פתגם is like דבר as in דיבור, no as "something").
חקכם is "your assignment" or "your duty (as decreed by the master)", in Targum Yonatan גְזֵירַתְכוֹן.

 
הַנֹּגְשִׂים אָצִים לֵאמֹר כַּלּוּ מַעֲשֵׂיכֶם *דְּבַר יוֹם* בְּיוֹמוֹ כַּאֲשֶׁר בִּהְיוֹת הַתֶּבֶן.
וַיֻּכּוּ שֹׁטְרֵי בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל אֲשֶׁר שָׂמוּ עֲלֵהֶם נֹגְשֵׂי  פַרְעֹה לֵאמֹר מַדּוּעַ לֹא כִלִּיתֶם *חָקְכֶם* לִלְבֹּן כִּתְמוֹל  שִׁלְשֹׁם גַּם תְּמוֹל גַּם הַיּוֹם.


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