| 10. Linguistic Exegesis The verse begins with vayhi {וַֽיְהִי֙ | way·hî} ‘and it came to pass’, where the vav-consecutive with a Qal imperfect signals sequential past narration. The compound dvar-Yahweh {דְּבַר־יְהוָ֔ה | də·war–yĕ·hō·wāh} ‘word of the LORD’ functions as a standard prophetic speech formula, with the maqaf linking noun and divine name. The prepositional phrase el-shmuel {אֶל־שְׁמוּאֵ֖ל | ʾel–šə·mû·ʾēl} ‘to Samuel’ marks the addressee, and the infinitive construct leemor {לֵאמֹֽר | lê·ʾā·môr} ‘saying’ introduces the forthcoming message. The English rendering preserves this sequence by maintaining the narrative marker, specifying divine origin, indicating the recipient, and retaining the speech-introducing ‘saying.’ |