| 2. Linguistic Exegesis The verse opens with ki {כִּי | kî} ‘for/because’, introducing a causal clause. The phrase ‘am kadosh attâ {עַם קָדוֹשׁ אַתָּה | ʿam qādoš ’attā} places the noun people in predication with the adjective holy and the pronoun you to form a predicate nominative. The prepositional phrase la-Yahweh ’ĕlōhêkā {לַיהוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ | la-Yahweh ’ĕ-lō-hê-kā} ‘to the LORD your God’ expresses a dative of possession. The conjunction û-bəḵā {וּבְךָ | û-bə-ḵā} ‘and in you’ shifts focus to divine volition in bāḥar {בָּחַר | bāḥar} ‘chose’ (Qal perfect). The infinitive construct lihyōṯ {לִהְיוֹת | lihyōṯ} plus the suffix lō {לוֹ | lō} and the phrase lə-’amm {לְעַם | lə-’amm} forms a purpose clause ‘to be for Him a people’. Segullâh {סְגֻלָּה | sə-gul-lâh} ‘treasured possession’ then defines the status granted, and the comparative mikkōl ha-’ammîm ’ăšer ’al-pə-nê hā-’ăḏāmâh {מִכֹּל הָעַמִּים אֲשֶׁר עַל-פְּנֵי הָאֲדָמָה | mi-kol hā-’ammîm ’ă-šer ’al-pə-nê hā-’ăḏāmâh} ‘from all the peoples that on the face of the earth’ limits the scope of election, underscoring Israel’s distinctiveness by divine prerogative. |