| 15. Linguistic Exegesis The Hebrew text opens with the temporal adverb hayom {הַיּוֹם | ha-yôm} ‘today’, followed by the Hiphil perfect hachillôtî {הַחִלֹּתִי | ha-ḥillôtî} ‘have I begun’, which introduces a rhetorical question. The Qal infinitive lišʾôl-lô {לִשְׁאוֹל־ל֥וֹ | lišʾôl-lô} ‘to inquire for him’ clarifies the action directed toward the beneficiary. The prepositional phrase bᵉʾĕlôhîm {בֵאלֹהִים | bᵉʾĕlôhîm} ‘of God’ designates the divine tribunal. The interjection ḥālîlāh {חָלִילָה | ḥālîlāh} conveys vehement denial. The imperfect jussive ʾal-yāśêm {אַל־יָשֵׂם | ʾal-yāśêm} ‘let not place’ functions as a formal plea. The construct chain bᵉḵāl-bêṯ ʾāḇî {בְּכָל־בֵּ֣ית אָבִי | bᵉḵāl-bêṯ ʾāḇî} ‘in all the house of my father’ broadens the appeal. The conjunction kî {כִּ֠י | kî} introduces the explanatory clause, and the Qal perfect lō-yāḏaʿ {לֹֽא־יָדַ֤ע | lō-yāḏaʿ} ‘did not know’ asserts utter ignorance. The meristic phrase dāḇār qāṭōn ʾō gādôl {דָּבָ֥ר קָטֹ֖ן א֥וֹ גָדֽוֹל | dāḇār qāṭōn ʾō gādôl} ‘matter small or great’ encompasses all possibilities. The translation preserves the emphatic question structure, the prohibitive jussive, and the inclusive merism to mirror the source text’s force. |