whether the goal be reached or not. Gen. 2:19 brought them אֶל־הָֽאָדָם unto the man, 3:19 unto the dust, 6:18 into the ark, 19:3, 2 S. 5:8. Then less literally, Gen. 39:7 lifted up her eyes אֶל־יוֹסֵף towards (upon) Jos., Deu. 24:15; Gen. 32:31 פָּנִים אֶל־פָּנִים face to face, Nu. 12:8 mouth to mouth. So after verbs to speak, דִּבֶּר אל (mostly with this verb). After verbs of speaking, in the sense of of, in reference to, Gen. 20:2, 1 S. 1:27; 3:12, 2 S. 7:19, Is. 29:22, Ps. 2:7. Naturally unto may mean in addition to, 1 S. 14:34 eat אֶל־הַדָּם with the blood, Lev. 18:18, 1 K. 10:7, Lam. 3:41, Ez. 7:26 (על is more common in this sense, and the two prepp. are often confounded). The verb may give to unto the complexion of hostility, Gen. 4:8 rose up אֶל־הֶבֶל against Abel, Gen. 22:12, Jud. 1:10, Is. 2:4; 3:8.
Prep. ל to may like אל imply motion to, Gen. 24:54; 27:14, 25, 1 S. 25:35, Is. 53:7, Jer. 12:15 (perhaps oftener in later style, 2 Chr. 1:13), but oftenest expresses direction to, and greatly in an ideal sense. Hence with verb to say אמר; and after verbs of speaking, remembering, &c., in the sense of in reference to, Gen. 20:13 אִמְרִי־לִי say of me, Ps. 3:3; 132:1 Jer. 2:2, Ez. 18:22; 33:16, 1 K. 2:4; 20:7, Gen. 17:20; 19:21; 27:8; 42:9; 45:1, Is. 5:1. So Is. 8:1 לְמַהֵר, though the ל is not to be translated. In particular, ל is used to introduce the indirect obj. (dat.), Jud. 1:13 וַיִּתֶּן־לוֹ gave him, and in the various senses of the dat., Gen. 24:29 וּלְרִבְקָה אָח R. had a brother, 13:5. The so-called dat. commodi (or, incommodi, Jer. 2:21, Mic. 2:4, Ez. 37:11, Ps. 137:7), Is. 6:8 מִי יֵלֶךְ־לָנוּ, Jud. 1:1, Deu. 30:12, 13; particularly in the form of the ethical dat., when the action is reflected back upon the agent and done for him. Mostly with imper.: Gen. 12:1 לֶךְ־לְךָ get thee, 22:5 שְׁבוּ־לָכֶם sit you here, 21:16 וַתֵּשֶׁב לָהּ she sat her down; Deu. 1:7, 40; 2:3; 5:27, Jos. 7:10; 22:19, 1 K. 17:3, Is. 2:22; 36:9; 40:9, Am. 2:13; 7:12, Ps. 120:6; 122:3; 123:4. On use of ל to express second obj. after to make, put, &c., § 78, R. 5; with agent of pass., § 81; to circumscribe the gen., § 28, R. 5. — Prep. ל also expresses the norm, according to (perh. allied to in ref. to), Is. 11:3 לְמַרְאֵה עֵינָיו according to the sight of his eyes, Gen. 33:14; 13:3, 1 S.
