| 14. Linguistic Exegesis The verse opens with the coordinating phrase ve’attah {וְעַתָּה | wə-ʿă’tāh} ‘and now’, which frames the imminent judgment. The noun-expression mamlakhtekha {מַמְלַכְתְּךָ | mam-lakh-tekha} ‘your kingdom’ combines with the negated Qal imperfect lo taqum {לֹא־תָקוּם | loʾ tā-qûm} to convey permanent cessation. The Piel perfect bikkesh {בִּקֵּשׁ | bik-kēsh} ‘has sought’ followed by Yahweh and lo ish {לוֹ אִישׁ | loʾ īsh} marks completed divine initiative. The prepositional phrase kilvavo {כִּלְבָב֗וֹ | ki-lă-bā-bō} ‘according to his heart’ defines the selection criterion. In the next clause, the Vav consecutive in vayetsavvehhu {וַיְצַוֵּ֨הוּ | wa-yə-ṣav-vē-hū} introduces divine commissioning, with lenagid {לְנָגִיד֙ | lə-nā-gîḏ} as an infinitive of purpose. Finally, the causal conjunction ki {כִּי | kî} connects the loss of kingship to covenant unfaithfulness, expressed by the Qal perfect shamarta {שָׁמַ֔רְתָּ | shā-mar-tā} ‘you kept’ governing the relative clause et asher-tsivkha {אֵת אֲשֶׁר־צִוְּךָ | ʾēt ʾă-šer-ṣiv-khā}, preserving Hebrew clause structure. |