| 9. Linguistic Exegesis The opening vav-consecutive imperfect wayyaḥmôl {וַיַּחְמֹל֩ | wayyaḥmôl} anchors the past narrative. The compound subject šāʾûl wə-hā-ʿām {שָׁא֨וּל וְהָעָ֜ם | šāʾûl wə-hā-ʿām} (‘Saul and the people’) precedes a series of prepositional phrases introduced by wə-ʿal {וְעַל | wə-ʿal} enumerating spared livestock categories. The clause wə-lō ʾā-vû ha-ḥă-rîmām {וְלֹ֥א אָב֖וּ הַחֲרִימָ֑ם | wə-lō ʾā-vû ha-ḥă-rîmām} uses the negative particle with a perfect verb to express refusal to carry out the cherem. The noun hammelekhah {הַמְּלָאכָ֛ה | ham-me-lā-ḵāh} “property” is then qualified by the participle nĕ-mîv-zāh {נְמִבְזָ֥ה | nĕ-mîv-zāh} “despised” and the perfect wə-nā-mēs {וְנָמֵ֖ס | nā-mēs} “worthless,” culminating in the Hiphil perfect hē-ḥe-rî-mû {הֶחֱרִימוּ | hĕ-ḥe-rî-mû} “they utterly destroyed.” The parallel structure highlights the tension between selective mercy and uncompromising execution of the ban on what was deemed contemptible. |