| 28. Linguistic Exegesis The narrative employs three sequential vav-prefixed verbs: vayavo {וַיָּבֹא | vá-ya-vô} ‘and he came’, vayeshev {וַיֵּשֶׁב | vá-ye-šêḇ} ‘and he settled’, and vayehi {וַיְהִי | vá-ye-hî} ‘and he became’, marking procession of events. The partitive construction echad {אֶחָד | ʾe-ḥâḏ} with me-hakohanim {מֵהַכֹּהֲנִים | mê-ha-kô-hã-nîm} yields “one of the priests.” A relative clause introduced by asher {אֲשֶׁר | ʾa-šer} and the perfect higlu {הִגְלוּ | hig-lû} describes completed exile from mi-shomron {מִשֹּׁמְרוֹן | miš-šom-rôn}. In the predicate vayehi moreh otam {וַיְהִי מוֹרֶה אֹתָם | vá-ye-hî mô-reh ô-tam}, the infinitive moreh functions as a nominal complement, “became their teacher.” The interrogative adverb eykh {אֵיךְ | ê-ykh} introduces the instruction governed by the cohortative yir’u {יִירְאוּ | yi-rᵊʾû}, “should fear.” The object marker et {אֶת־ | ʾeṯ} precedes Yahweh {יְהוָה | Yᵊ-hô-wāh}, in keeping with the marking of definite direct objects. English renderings employ connectors (“Then,” “and,” “So”) and relative clauses to reflect this Hebrew narrative structure. |