| 17. Linguistic Exegesis The adverb omnam {אָמְנָם | ʾom-nām} ‘truly’ opens the affirmation. The vocative Yahweh {יְהוָה | Yə-hō-wāh} directly addresses the LORD. The verb hech’rīvu {הֶחֱרִיבוּ | heḥᵉ-rî-vû} in the Hiphil perfect conveys causative destruction. The construct malchei Ashur {מַלְכֵי אַשּׁוּר | mal-ḵê ʾaš-šûr} groups “kings of Assyria.” The particles et {אֶת־ | ʾet} and vav-et {וְאֶת־ | wə-ʾet} introduce dual direct objects: hagoyim {הַגּוֹיִם | ha-gô-yim} and artzam {אַרְצָם | ʾar-ṣām}. The original VSO order is rendered as SVO to preserve clarity while maintaining the emphasis on the scope of devastation. |