| 26. Linguistic Exegesis The verse opens with the vav-consecutive vayaggidu {וַיַּגִּדוּ | wayyaḡḡîḏû} ‘and they told’, a Qal perfect third person masculine plural verb initiating narrative sequence. The subject avadav {עֲבָדָיו | ʿăvāḏāyw} ‘his servants’ bears a third person masculine singular pronominal suffix. The direct object marker et-haddevarim {אֶת־הַדְּבָרִים | ʾet-had-dĕḇārîm} ‘these words’ introduces the content of the report. Vav-consecutive Hiphil vayishar {וַיִּשַׁר | wayyiššār} ‘and it was pleasing’ expresses approval in Hebrew idiom. The infinitive construct le-hitchaten {לְהִתְחַתֵּן | lə-hittattên} ‘to marry’ with ba-melech {בַּמֶּלֶךְ | bāmméleḵ} ‘to the king’ implies the king’s daughter as the intended bride. The negative conjunction ve-lo male’u hayamim {וְלֹא מָלְאוּ הַיָּמִים | wə-lōʾ māleʾû hayyāmîm} ‘and the days were not fulfilled’ indicates the customary waiting period remained incomplete. The formal rendering mirrors Hebrew structure and idiomatic expressions, whereas the dynamic version clarifies cultural context and idiomatic meaning for contemporary readers. |