| 6. Linguistic Exegesis The opening conjunction ve {וְ | wə} ‘and’ links the subjects Levi {לֵוִי | lē-vî} ‘Levi’ and Benjamin {בִנְיָמִ֔ן | vin-yā-mîn} ‘Benjamin’. The negative particle lo {לֹ֥א | lōʾ} ‘not’ negates the Qal perfect verb paqad {פָקַ֖ד | pā-qaḏ} ‘counted’. The prepositional phrase be-tokham {בְּתוֹכָ֑ם | bə-tō-ḵām} ‘among them’ indicates exclusion. The conjunction ki {כִּֽי־ | kî} ‘because’ introduces a causal clause where the Niphal perfect nit’av {נִתְעַ֥ב | nīṯ-ʿaḇ} ‘was abhorred’ expresses Joab’s aversion. The construct devar-hamelekh {דְּבַר־הַמֶּ֖לֶךְ | də-war-ham-me-leḵ} ‘command of the king’ links ‘command’ as construct with ‘the king,’ highlighting the royal decree. The direct object marker et-yoav {אֶת־יוֹאָֽב | ʾet-yō-ʾāḇ} ‘Joab’ identifies Joab as the experiencer. The translation shifts the Hebrew VSO order into English SVO and uses ‘because’ to render the causal relationship while maintaining emphasis on Joab’s moral response. |