| 19. Linguistic Exegesis The narrative opens with the waw-consecutive prefixed verb wayyišlaḥ {וַיִּשְׁלַ֥ח | wayyišlaḥ} ‘and he sent’, linking this action to prior context. The prepositional phrase ʾel-yīšay {אֶל־יִשָׁ֑י | ʾel-yīšay} ‘to Jesse’ marks the indirect object. A second waw-consecutive clause uses wayyōʾmer {וַיֹּ֕אמֶר | wayyōʾmer} ‘and he said’ to introduce direct speech. Within that speech, the imperative šilḥāh {שִׁלְחָה | šilḥāh} ‘send’ appears with the beneficiary phrase ʾēlāy {אֵלַי | ʾēlāy} ‘to me’. The compound ʾet-dāwîd {אֶת־דָּוִד | ʾet-dāwîd} retains the accusative marker attached to David, which is further specified by the construct binkā {בִּנְךָ | binkā} ‘your son’. The relative clause introduced by ʾăšer {אֲשֶׁר | ʾăšer} ‘who’ modifies David and links to the locative batson {בַּצֹּאן | baṣṣōʾn} ‘in the flock’. In English, this becomes a postpositive clause—“your son David, who is with the sheep”—to conform to natural word order. |