| 8. Linguistic Exegesis The verse opens with the vav consecutive introducing wayyaʿaś {וַיַּ֙עַשׂ֙ | wayyāʿaś} ‘he made’, signaling historical narrative. The direct object marker ʾet {אֶת־ | ʾět} governs the construct phrase bêṯ-qōḏeš hā-qōḏāšîm {בֵּֽית־קֹ֣דֶשׁ הַקֳּדָשִׁים | bêt-qôḏêš hā-qōḏāšîm} ‘Most Holy Place’, a superlative denoting the inner sanctuary. The nominal element ʼôrēqô {אָרְכּ֞וֹ | ’ôrᵊqô} is linked by the comparative preposition ʿal-pənê {עַל־פְּנֵ֤י | ʿal-pənê} ‘upon the surface of’ to rō-ḥaḇ-hā-bā-yīt {רֹֽחַב־הַבַּ֙יִת֙ | rō-ḥaḇ-hā-bā-yīt} ‘width of the house’, establishing proportional dimensions. The repeated measure ʾammôṯ ʿeśrîm {אַמּוֹת עֶשׂרִים | ʾammôṯ ʿeśrîm} ‘twenty cubits’ confirms both length and breadth. The sequence continues with wayyəḥappehû {וַיְחַפֵּ֙הוּ֙ | wayyəḥappehû} ‘he overlaid it’ (Piel imperfect), specifying zāhāv ṭôḇ {זָהָ֣ב ט֔וֹב | zāhāv ṭôḇ} ‘fine gold’. Finally, the scale phrase lə-kikkārîm šêš mē’ôṯ {לְכִכָּרִים שֵׁשׁ מֵאוֹת | lə-kikkārîm šêš mē’ôṯ} ‘for six hundred talents’ follows the Hebrew numeral+unit convention. The translation preserves the original’s word order and comparative syntax to maintain its precise technical and theological emphasis. |