| 6. Linguistic Exegesis The verse opens with the vav-consecutive construction vayomer {וַיֹּ֤אמֶר | wayyōmer} ‘and he said’, marking narrative progression. The direct speech begins with the imperfect verb yera {יֵ֧רַֽע | yērāʿ} ‘he will do harm’ in a comparative clause introduced by min-Avšālôm {מִן־אַבְשָׁל֑וֹם | min-ʾăvšālôm} ‘than Absalom’. The paired Qal imperatives qaḥ {קַ֞ח | qaḥ} ‘take’ and wə-rədōp̄ {וּרְדֹ֣ף | wə-rədōp̄} ‘pursue’ form a command series, with the warning clause introduced by the negative particle pen-maṣṣāʾ {פֶּן־מָ֥צָא | pen-maṣṣāʾ} ‘lest he find’. The phrase ʾet-ʿavdê ʾădōnêkā {אֶת־עַבְדֵי אֲדֹנֶיךָ | ʾet-ʿaḇdê ʾădōnêkā} ‘the servants of your master’ uses a construct chain to indicate possession. The idiom wə-ḥiṣṣîl ʿēnênû {וְהִצִּ֥יל עֵינֵֽנוּ | wə-ḥiṣṣîl ʿēnênû} conveys ‘escape our notice’. English SVO ordering preserves readability while keeping the sequence of threat, command, and consequence. |