| 26. Linguistic Exegesis The verse opens with the vav-consecutive perfect form vaʾamartem {וַאֲמַרְתֶּ֗ם | vaʾa-martem} ‘and you shall say’, which introduces direct speech marked by the formula ko ʾamar hamelekh {כֹּה אָמַר הַמֶּלֶךְ | kô ʾāmar hameleḵ} ‘thus says the king’. This framing grants authority to the imperatives that follow. The Qal imperative simu {שִׂימוּ | sîmû} ‘put’ directs placement of zeh {זֶה | zêh} ‘this one’ into beit hakele {בֵּית הַכֶּלֶא | bêṯ ha-ke-lê} ‘prison house’. The Hiphil imperative vehaʾachiluhu {וְהַאֲכִלֻהוּ | wə-hăʾăḵîlûhû} ‘and cause him to eat’ commands provision of lechem laḥaṣ {לֶחֶם לַחַץ | leḥem laḥaṣ} ‘bread of affliction’ and ū-mayim laḥaṣ {וּמַיִם לַחַץ | û-mayim laḥaṣ} ‘and water of affliction’, highlighting subsistence under duress. The temporal clause ʿad šûwî bəšālôm {עַד שׁוּבִי בְשָׁלוֹם | ʿad šûwî bəšālôm} ‘until I return in peace’ sets a clear duration. The repeated term laḥaṣ intensifies the severity, while the vav-consecutive framework and direct address preserve the king’s authoritative tone and emphasize the provisional nature of the sentence. |