| 14. Linguistic Exegesis The verse opens with the verb vayyiqberuhu {וַיִּקְבְּרֻהוּ | way-yiq-be-rû-hu} ‘and they buried him’, a vav consecutive Qal imperfect form that advances the narrative. The locative phrase bekivrotav {בְקִבְרֹתָיו | bə-qivrō-ṯāv} ‘in his tombs’ is modified by a relative clause with asher {אֲשֶׁר | ă-šer} ‘which’ and the perfect verb qaralo {כָּרָה־לוֹ | qā-rā-lō} ‘he had dug for himself’, specifying his personal provision. Beir David {בְּעִיר דָּוִיד | bə-ʿîr dā-wîḏ} serves as an epexegetical locative. A second vav consecutive clause begins with vayashkivuhu {וַיַּשְׁכִּיבֻהוּ | way-yaš-kî-bū-hu} ‘and they laid him’ in Hiphil imperfect, referring to ceremonial placement on bamishkav {בַּמִּשְׁכָּב | ba-miškāḇ} ‘bed’. The following asher clause with mille {מִלֵּא | mil-lē-ʾ} ‘he filled’ enumerates besamim {בְּשָׂמִים | bə-sā-mîm} ‘spices’ and uznim {וּזְנִים | uz-nîm} ‘various kinds’, modified by the Pual participle merukkahim {מְרֻקָּחִים | mer-uk-ka-ḥîm} ‘blended’. The adverbial bemirkachat maase {בְּמִרְקַחַת מַעֲשֶׂה | bə-mir-qa-ḥat ma-ʿă-seh} ‘by a perfumer’s craft’ highlights the artisan’s role. Finally, the vav consecutive in vayisrefulo {וַיִּשְׂרְפוּ־לוֹ | way-yis-rā-pû-lō} ‘and they burned for him’ leads to the intensified noun phrase serefah gedolah admeod {שְׂרֵפָה גְּדוֹלָה עַד־לִמְאוֹד | śerê-p̄āh ge-dō-lāh ʿad-lim-mō-ʾōḏ} ‘burning of great extent’, preserving the ceremonial magnitude. |