| 11. Linguistic Exegesis The verse begins with the vav consecutive in vayuggad {וַיֻּגַּ֖ד | wa-yû-ḡaḏ} ‘and it was told,’ which signals sequential narrative and identifies David as recipient. The passive Pual stem conveys emphasis on the report. The particle et {אֵ֧ת | ʾēt} marks the direct object introduced by the relative pronoun asher {אֲשֶׁר־ | ʾă-šer-} ‘what.’ The Qal perfect aseta {עָשְׂתָ֛ה | ʿā-śə-tā} indicates completed action, appropriately rendered in past perfect. The construct chain ritṣp̣ah bat-Ayah {רִצְפָּ֥ה בַת־אַיָּ֖ה | riṣ-pāh bat-ʾāy-yāh} links person to lineage, while the appositional phrase pilegesh sha'ul {פִּלֶ֥גֶשׁ שָׁאֽוּל | pi-le-gesh šā-ʾûl} clarifies her social status. Hebrew VSO order is reordered to subject–verb–object in English to ensure clarity. |