| 13. Linguistic Exegesis The narrative begins with the vav-consecutive verb wayya’al {וַיַּעַל | wayyaʿal} ‘and he went up,’ which shifts the action into past tense and introduces Jonathan’s ascent. The compound prepositional phrase al-yadav ve-al-raglav {עַל־יָדָיו וְעַל־רַגְלָיו | ʿal-yādāyw wə-ʿal-raglāyw} ‘upon his hands and feet’ functions adverbially to describe manner. Repetition of the participial clause wə-nōsēʼ kelāyw aḥărāyw {וְנֹשֵׂא כֵלָיו אַחֲרָיו | wə-nōsēʼ kelāyw aḥărāyw} ‘and his armor-bearer after him’ emphasizes close support. The result clause wayyip̣p̄ālū lip̄nē Yōnāṯān {וַיִּפְּלוּ לִפְנֵי יוֹנָתָן | wayyip̣p̄ālū lip̄nē Yōnāṯān} ‘and they fell before Jonathan’ uses the preposition lip̄nē to mark the outcome. The participle memōteṯ {מְמוֹתֵת | mē-mōtēṯ} ‘putting to death’ indicates ongoing action by the armor-bearer, creating continuous aspect and vivid immediacy. |