| 33. Linguistic Exegesis The verse begins with vayomer {וַיֹּ֥אמֶר | way·yō·’a·mer} marking direct speech addressed lo {ל֖וֹ | lō·w}, indicating the recipient David {דָּוִד | dā·wîḏ}. The protasis is introduced by im {אִם | ’im} with the Qal perfect avarta {עָבַ֣רְתָּ | ’ā·var·tā}, expressing a completed yet assured action. The first-person accompaniment is marked by itti {אִתִּי | ’it·tî}. The apodosis employs the vav-consecutive perfect vehayita {וְהָיִ֥תָ | wə·hā·yî·tā} to shift the perfect aspect into a future sense, followed by alai {עָלַ֖י | ’ā·lay} plus lemasa {לְמַשָּֽׂא | lə·mas·śā·’}, creating a metaphor of bearing weight. The vav-consecutive structures and tight parataxis reinforce the clear if–then conditional relationship. |