| 11. Linguistic Exegesis The verse opens with the vav-consecutive Qal imperfect wayyāṭel {וַיָּ֤טֶל | way-yā-ṭel} ‘and he hurled’, immediately followed by wayyōmer {וַיֹּ֕אמֶר | way-yō-mer} ‘and he said’, forming a rapid action–speech sequence. The phrase ʾet-hăḥānîṯ {אֶת־הַחֲנִ֔ית | ʾet-ha-ḥā-nî-ṯ} marks the definite direct object. The Hifil imperfect ʾakkēh {אַכֶּ֥ה | ʾak-kēh} conveys Saul’s threat. The coordinated prepositional phrases bə-Dāwîḏ {בְדָוִ֖ד | bə-dā-wî-ḏ} ‘against David’ and ū-ba-qîr {וּבַקִּיר | ū-ba-qîr} ‘against the wall’ specify his target. The narrative then shifts to David’s evasion via wayyissōḇ {וַיִּסֹּ֥ב | way-yis-sōḇ} ‘and he turned aside’, with mippānāw {מִפָּנָ֖יו | min-pā-nāw} ‘from before him’ indicating avoidance of Saul’s presence. Finally, the dual paʿāmāyim {פַּעֲמָֽיִם | pa-ʿa-mā-yim} ‘twice’ underscores repetition. The chaining of vav-consecutive verbs creates urgency, reflected in the concise English. |