| 2. Linguistic Exegesis The narrative begins with the waw-consecutive unevuḵadnetsar {וּנְבוּכַדְנֶצַּר | û-nə-ḇū-ḵaḏ-neṣ-ṣar} ’Nebuchadnezzar’, followed by malka {מַלְכָּא | mal-kāʾ} ’the king’, establishing royal authority. The Peal perfect shelach {שְׁלַח | šə-laḥ} ’sent’ introduces the purpose clause governed by the infinitive lemikhnesh {לְמִכְנַשׁ | lə-miḵ-nāš} ’to gather’. The list of officials—satraps, prefects, governors, counselors, treasurers, judges, magistrates—reflects the Persian imperial hierarchy, capped by vekol shiltonay medinata {וְכֹל שִׁלְטֹנֵי מְדִינָתָא | wə-ḵol šil-to-nē mə-di-nā-ṯā} ’and all the rulers of the provinces’. The purpose infinitive lemete {לְמֵתֵא | lə-me-tē} ’to come’ links to laḥanukkath tsalma {לַחֲנֻכַּת צַלְמָא | la-ḥa-nuk-kaṯ ṣal-mā} ’for the dedication of the image’. The relative clause di haqim {דִּי הֲקֵים | dī ha-qēm} ’which he had set up’ uses the Hafʿel perfect to underscore the king’s decisive action. |