לֹ֧א

Alphabet Analysis

The word

1. word🔊 לֹ֧א

   LO

   not
2. phraseyour reading level🔊 כִּ֣י לֹ֧א יָכְל֛וּ

   KI LO ya-khe-LU

   for not they were able
3. clause🔊 כִּ֣י לֹ֧א יָכְל֛וּ לַעֲשֹׂת֖וֹ בָּעֵ֣ת הַהִ֑יא

   KI LO ya-khe-LU la-a-SO-to ba-ET ha-HI

   for not they were able to do it at the time that
4. sentence🔊 כִּ֣י לֹ֧א יָכְל֛וּ לַעֲשֹׂת֖וֹ בָּעֵ֣ת הַהִ֑יא כִּ֤י הַכֹּהֲנִים֙ לֹֽא־הִתְקַדְּשׁ֣וּ לְמַדַּ֔י וְהָעָ֖ם לֹא־נֶאֶסְפ֥וּ לִֽירוּשָׁלָֽ͏ִם׃

   KI LO ya-khe-LU la-a-SO-to ba-ET ha-HI KI ha-ko-ha-NIM LO-hit-kad-de-SHU le-mad-DAI ve-ha-AM LO-ne-es-FU li-ru-sha-LIM

   for not they were able to do it at the time that because the priests had not consecrated themselves sufficiently, enough and the people had not been gathered, had not assembled to Jerusalem

Exegesis

The first ki-clause states the main limitation: a negated ability construction, lo {לֹא | lōʾ} + yakhlu {יָכְלוּ | yāḵlû} ‘they were not able’, with la'asoto {לַעֲשֹׂתוֹ | laʿăśōtô} ‘to do it’ as the infinitive complement specifying what could not be carried out.