| 24. Linguistic Exegesis The narrative opens with wayyakh {וַיַּךְ֙ | wayyāḵ} ‘and he struck’, establishing a decisive punitive act. The subject ʿam-ha-ʾā-reṣ {עַם־הָאָ֔רֶץ | ʿam-hā-ʾā-reṣ} ‘people of the land’ functions as corporate authority. The direct object marker et {אֵ֥ת | ʾēṯ} and kol-ha-qō-šerīm {כָּל־הַקֹּשְׁרִ֖ים | kol-hā-qō-šerīm} ‘all the conspirators’ signal total inclusion of plotters, and the phrase al-ha-melekh ʾĀmōn {עַל־הַמֶּ֣לֶךְ אָמ֑וֹן | ʿal-hā-meleḵ ʾĀ-mōn} specifies the target. The following wayyamlikhu {וַיַּמְלִ֧יכוּ | way-yaṃ-lî-kû} ‘and they made king’ returns to the same collective agent for enthronement. Finally, the phrase beno taḥ-tā́v {בְנ֖וֹ תַּחְתָּֽיו | bə-nô ṭaḥ-tā́v} ‘his son in his place’ confirms dynastic succession. The VSO order with vav consecutives and repeated subject underscores communal enactment of both judgment and inauguration. |