| 17. Linguistic Exegesis The verse employs a sequence of vav-consecutives—vayekatsets {וַיְקַצֵּץ֩ | va-yə-qaṣ-ṣêṣ} ‘and he cut off’, vayasar {וַיָּסַר | va-ya-sar} ‘and he removed’, horid {הוֹרִיד | hō-rîḏ} ‘he brought down’, and vayiten {וַיִּתֵּן | va-yit-tēn} ‘and he set’—to propel the narrative. Direct objects marked by et {אֶת־ | ʾet-} emphasize the objects of removal. Spatial relationships are established by the prepositional phrases mealeihem {מֵעֲלֵיהֶם | mē-ʿă-lê-hēm} ‘from upon them’ and me’al {מֵעַל | mē-ʿal} ‘from upon’. The construct al martsefet avanim {עַל מַרְצֶפֶת֙ אֲבָנִֽים | ʿal mar-ṣe-peṯ ’ă-va-nîm} specifies the new resting place of the Sea. The relative pronoun asher {אֲשֶׁר | ʾă-šer} introduces the subordinate clause describing the bronze oxen beneath it. |