| 20. Linguistic Exegesis The verse opens with the prepositional phrase lifnei {לִפְנֵי | lî-p̄ə-nay} ‘before, in the presence of’ directing attention to Yahweh. The main clause verb toakhelennu {תֹאכֲלֶנּוּ | tō-ʾā-ḵă-lən-nû} ‘you shall eat it’ carries a third-person singular object suffix, foregrounding communal participation. The idiomatic repetition shanah veshanah {שָׁנָה בְּשָׁנָה | šā-nāh bə-šā-nāh} ‘year by year’ signals ongoing annual observance. In the relative clause ba-makom asher yivchar Yahweh {בַּמָּקוֹם אֲשֶׁר־יִבְחַר יְהוָה | ba-mā-qōm ə-šer-yiv-ḥar Yəhōwāh}, the location phrase specifies the divinely designated worship site, reflecting Deuteronomic centralization. The coordination attah u-veitekha {אַתָּה וּבֵיתֶךָ | ʾă-ttāh û-ḇê-tê-ḵā} ‘you and your household’ emphasizes the family unit’s role in the covenant ritual. |