| 6. Linguistic Exegesis The clause opens with way-ḥalləqû {וַֽיְחַלְּק֥וּ | way-ḥalləqû} ‘and they divided’, a waw-consecutive form that advances the storyline with a coordinated action taken by the two men. The dative lāhēm {לָהֶ֛ם | lāhēm} ‘to them’ functions idiomatically to express distribution “among themselves,” followed by ʾet-hāʾāreṣ {אֶת־הָאָ֖רֶץ | ʾet-hāʾāreṣ} marking the definite object “the land.” Purpose is expressed through the lamed-infinitive construction laʿăḇōr-bāh {לַֽעֲבָר־בָּ֑הּ | laʿăḇōr-bāh} ‘to pass through it,’ indicating that the division serves an intentional search/traversal. The verse then presents two tightly parallel main clauses: ʾAḥʾāḇ {אַחְאָ֞ב | ʾAḥʾāḇ} and wə-ʿŌḇaḏyāhû {וְעֹֽבַדְיָ֛הוּ | wə-ʿŌḇaḏyāhû} each “went,” each “in one way,” and each “by himself.” The repetition of ləḇaddô {לְבַדּוֹ | ləḇaddô} ‘by himself’ emphasizes separation in execution even while the overall plan remains coordinated; English commonly renders the second “one way” as “another way” to reflect the implied complement created by the initial division. |