Original Word: שְׂמָאִלי
Part of Speech: Adjective
Transliteration: sma'liy
Pronunciation: seh-mah-LEE
Phonetic Spelling: (sem-aw-lee')
KJV: left
NASB: left
Word Origin: [from H8040 (שְׂמוֹאל שְׂמאוֹל - left)]

1. situated on the left side

left

From smo'wl; situated on the left side -- left.

see HEBREW smo'wl

Word Origin
from the same as semovl
Definition
left, on the left
NASB Translation
left (9).

שְׂמָאלִי adjective left, on the left; — ׳שׂ 1 Kings 7:21 +; feminine שְׂמָאלִית Leviticus 14:15 +; — left (usually opposed to יְמָנִי), pillar 1 Kings 7:21 2Chronicles 3:17, side of temple 2 Kings 11:11 2Chronicles 23:10, side of body Ezekiel 4:4, palm Leviticus 14:15,16,26,17 (P).

Word Family and Usage

שְׂמָאִלי (Strong’s 8042) belongs to the שְׂמֹאל (“left”) family of words. In every one of its nine appearances the term is adjectival, marking a person, object, or direction as being “at/on the left side.” The occurrences cluster around four settings: priestly ritual, temple architecture, royal security, and prophetic symbolism.

Ceremonial Cleansing and the Ministry of the Priest (Leviticus 14:15-16, 26-27)

During the cleansing of a healed leper the priest first brought a guilt offering, then handled a “log of oil.” A unique detail is repeated four times:

• “The priest shall take some of the log of oil, pour it into the palm of his left hand” (Leviticus 14:15).
• With the right finger he sprinkles that oil seven times before the LORD (Leviticus 14:16, 27).

The left hand serves as the reservoir of the consecrating oil while the right hand performs the ministering act. The text thus preserves a deliberate choreography: reception in the left, service by the right. The arrangement underscores that cleansing originates with God (symbolized by oil resting in the un-working hand) and is then applied in obedience (the active right hand). Repetition within a single ritual underlines its importance in Israel’s priestly theology of atonement and restoration.

Temple Architecture and the Testimony of Jachin and Boaz (1 Kings 7:21; 2 Chronicles 3:17)

Solomon erected two bronze pillars at the temple entrance. Scripture places Jachin on the right and Boaz “on the left” (שְׂמָאִלי). Architectural orientation mattered: when a worshipper faced west toward the sanctuary the left pillar reminded him that the whole house, including its “weaker” side, stood by divine appointment. Jachin (“He establishes”) and Boaz (“In Him is strength”) together proclaimed the stability and power of the covenant; the explicit mention of the left side keeps the testimony symmetrical and complete.

Royal Guard Formation and Covenant Protection (2 Kings 11:11; 2 Chronicles 23:10)

During the enthronement of young Joash, priests stationed the Cherethites and Pelethites “from the right side of the temple to the left side, by the altar and by the temple” (2 Kings 11:11; cf. 2 Chronicles 23:10). The word 8042 marks the extreme boundary of the cordon. In a moment of national vulnerability every approach—right and left—had to be secured. The reference shows that the chronicler cared about the exact disposition of guardians within the sacred precincts, reinforcing the theme that the Davidic line is preserved under the watchful symmetry of divine guardianship.

Prophetic Sign-Act: Bearing Iniquity on the Left Side (Ezekiel 4:4)

The LORD commands Ezekiel, “Lie on your left side and put the iniquity of the house of Israel upon yourself”. For 390 days the prophet’s bodily orientation became a living parable of the nation’s guilt. The left-hand posture—opposite the dominant right—heightens the discomfort of the act and dramatizes the burden Israel had placed on the covenant relationship. The use of שְׂמָאִלי here shows that even the prophet’s physical stance is theologically loaded: every detail of obedience, down to which side hits the ground, serves God’s revelatory purpose.

Theological Themes and Practical Lessons

1. Divine order and symmetry. Whether in ritual, construction, or protection, Scripture’s left/right distinctions affirm that God is a God of order (1 Corinthians 14:33).
2. Reception before service. The priest’s left palm receives oil before the right hand sprinkles it, picturing the principle that ministry flows out of what the servant first receives from the LORD (John 13:14-15).
3. Comprehensive security. Guards surrounding the king from right to left portray the believer’s complete preservation in Christ (John 10:28-29).
4. Prophetic embodiment. Ezekiel’s left-side posture reminds modern readers that faithful witness may demand physical inconvenience for the sake of divine message.

Christological Reflections

The Levitical ritual anticipates Jesus Christ, the true Priest, who received the Spirit without measure (John 3:34) and then applied cleansing to the leper (Mark 1:41-42). The temple pillars, one on the left, frame the entry through which Messiah would later teach (John 7:14). The protecting guard foreshadows the angelic hosts encamping around the rightful King (Matthew 26:53). Ezekiel’s left-side suffering points to the greater Substitute who bore Israel’s and the world’s iniquity in His own body on the cross (1 Peter 2:24).

Summary

שְׂמָאִלי, though a simple directional adjective, participates in rich biblical patterns: holy ceremony, sacred architecture, covenant security, and prophetic sign-acts. Every mention on the inspired page—left hand, left pillar, left flank, left side—contributes to the unified witness that God attends to details, orders worship, guards His promises, and reveals His redemptive purposes through precise, even “left-handed,” means.

הַשְּׂמָאלִ֑ית הַשְּׂמָאלִ֔י הַשְּׂמָאלִ֔ית הַשְּׂמָאלִֽית׃ השמאלי השמאלית השמאלית׃ מֵֽהַשְּׂמֹ֑אול מהשמאול haś·śə·mā·lî haś·śə·mā·lîṯ hassemaLi haśśəmālî hassemaLit haśśəmālîṯ mê·haś·śə·mō·wl mehasseMol mêhaśśəmōwlInterlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel Texts