| 29. Linguistic Exegesis The verse opens with the vav consecutive verb wayyomer {וַיֹּ֣אמֶר | wayyōʾmer} ‘and he said’, signaling direct speech. The proper name David {דָּוִ֔ד | dāwīd} functions as the subject. The interrogative phrase meh asiti {מֶה עָשִׂיתִי | mēh ʿāśītî} ‘what have I done’ expresses a defensive challenge, followed by the adverb atah {עָ֑תָּה | ʿattāh} ‘now’ indicating immediacy. The negative interrogative halo {הֲלוֹא | hălôʾ} introduces the nominal clause davar hu {דָּבָ֥ר הֽוּא | dāḇār hūʾ} ‘word it’, forming a rhetorical question. The balanced questions heighten David’s emotional retort and preserve the Hebrew idiomatic force in English. |