| 3. Linguistic Exegesis The translation process tracks the sequence of Hebrew verbs in vav-consecutive (vayomer {וַיֹּאמֶר | way·yō·mer} ‘and he said’), establishing narrative continuity. David {דָּוִד | dā·wîḏ} initiates dialogue through direct address, marked by the preposition el {אֶל | ʾel} ‘to’. The dual interrogative structure — mah {מָה | māh} ‘what?’ and uvamah {וּבַמָּה | ū·va·māh} ‘and with what?’ — foregrounds the king’s pursuit of restitution. The verb akhaper {אֲכַפֵּר | ă·kap·per} ‘I shall atone’ is intensive (Piel), signaling active reconciliation. The verb uvarkhu {וּבָרְכוּ | ū·var·khu} ‘and they shall bless’ in the Piel imperfect third person masculine plural follows, functioning as a purpose/result clause for “atonement,” with the direct object marker et {אֶת | ʾēṯ} linking to nachalat Yahweh {נַחֲלַת יְהוָה | na·ḥa·lāt Yə·hō·wāh} ‘the inheritance of the LORD’. English structure mirrors Hebrew flow, preserving interrogatives and causal relationships within the dialogue. |