| 10. Linguistic Exegesis The sentence begins with the Hiphil verb wayyāʿămed {וַיַּעֲמֵ֨ד | wayyāʿămed} ‘and he stationed’, which establishes an organized deployment. The direct-object marker ʾeṯ {אֶת־ | ʾeṯ} precedes kol-hā-ʿām {כָּל־הָעָ֜ם | kol-hā-ʿām} ‘all the people’, indicating total inclusion. The distributive construction wə-ʾîš šilḥō bə-yāḏō {וְאִ֣ישׁ שִׁלְח֣וֹ בְיָד֗וֹ | wə-ʾîš šilḥō bə-yāḏō} ‘and each man his weapon in his hand’ highlights individual readiness. The spatial range is marked by mikkéṯep ʿad ke-ṯef {מִכֶּ֨תֶף עַד־כֶּ֤תֶף | mi-kéṯep ʿad ke-ṯef} ‘from the right shoulder of the house to the left shoulder of the house’, combined with la-mizbēaḥ wə-la-bbayit {לַמִּזְבֵּ֖חַ וְלַבָּ֑יִת | la-miz-bē-aḥ wə-la-bayit} ‘to the altar and to the house’ before the framing phrase ʿal-ha-melekh sāviv {עַל־הַמֶּ֖לֶךְ סָבִֽיב | ʿal-ha-me-lekh sā-viv} ‘around the king’. The Hebrew vav-consecutive plus distributive syntax creates a vivid depiction of a protective encirclement around the monarch. |