| 16. Linguistic Exegesis The verse opens with veattah {וְעַתָּה | wə-ʿattāh} ‘and now,’ establishing urgency. The paired imperatives shilchu {שִׁלְחוּ | šilḥû} ‘send’ and vehaggidu {וְהַגִּידוּ | wəhaggîḏû} ‘tell’ follow in parallel to reinforce immediate action. The infinitive construct le-mor {לֵאמֹר | lē-ʾmôr} introduces direct speech, which contrasts the negative al-talen {אַל־תָּלֶן | ʾal tā-len} ‘do not lodge’ with the positive avor ta-avor {עָבֹר תַּעֲבֹר | ʿā-ḇôr taʿă-ḇôr} ‘cross over; you will cross over,’ intensifying the exhortation. Pen {פֶּן | pen} ‘lest’ governs a result clause with the passive yevulla {יְבֻלַּע | yǝvullāʿ} ‘be swallowed up,’ heightening the sense of danger. The locative be-arvot hammidbar {בְּעַרְבוֹת הַמִּדְבָּר | bə-ʿarvōṯ ham-midhbār} specifies the desert’s crossing areas. The relative clause ulekolhaam asher itto {וּלְכָל־הָעָם אֲשֶׁר אִתּוֹ | ū-lə-khol-hā-ʿām ʾăšer ittō} extends the warning to all accompanying the king. English syntax mirrors Hebrew parallelism to preserve the pressing tone. |