| 5. Linguistic Exegesis The verse begins with the vav-consecutive narrative wayyaamed {וַיַּעֲמֵד | wə-yā-ʿă-mēd} ‘and he appointed’, advancing the historical account. The noun shoftim {שֹׁפְטִים | šōp̄tîm} ‘judges’ functions as the direct object, indicating those authorized for legal governance. The prepositional phrase ba’aretz {בָּאָרֶץ | bā-ʾā-reṣ} ‘in the land’ establishes the broad territorial scope, while bekhol-arei Yehudah habetsurot {בְּכָל־עָרֵי יְהוּדָה הַבְּצֻרוֹת | bə-khol-ʿā-rē Yəhûḏāh ha-bəṣurōṯ} ‘in all the fortified cities of Judah’ narrows the focus to specific administrative centers. The distributive sequence leir vair {לְעִיר וָעִיר | lə-ʿîr wā-ʿîr} ‘city by city’ underscores the comprehensive nature of the appointments. The English translations maintain the Hebrew’s distributive and territorial emphases by retaining “city by city” and differentiating between general land coverage and every fortified city. |