| 2. Linguistic Exegesis The verse features a paratactic sequence of three vav-consecutive imperfect verbs—vayyasovu {וַיָּסֹ֙בּוּ֙ | va-yyā-sô-bû} ‘and they went around’ indicating movement, vayikbetzu {וַיִּקְבְּצ֤וּ | va-yik-bə-ṣû} ‘and they gathered’ marking assembly, and vayyavo’u {וַיָּבֹ֖אוּ | va-yyā-ḇō-’û} ‘and they came’ expressing arrival. The prepositional phrase biYehudah {בִּֽיהוּדָ֔ה | bi-yᵉ-hū-dāh} sets the geographical scope. The construct chain mikkol arei Yehudah {מִכָּל־עָרֵ֣י יְהוּדָ֔ה | mik-kol ʻā-rê yᵉ-hū-dāh} emphasizes inclusivity, and verashei haAvot lYisrael {וְרָאשֵׁ֥י הָאָב֖וֹת לְיִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל | wᵉ-rā-šê hā-’ā-ḇōṯ lᵉ-yis-ra-’êl} ‘the heads of the ancestral houses of Israel’ links leadership with lineage. The direct object marker et {אֶת־ | ’et} identifies haLeviim {הַלְוִיִּם֙ | hal-wî-yîm} as the object, and el Yerushalayim {אֶל־יְרוּשָׁלָֽ͏ִם | ’el yᵉ-rû-šā-lā-yim} anchors the action in Jerusalem. |