| 11. Linguistic Exegesis The verse opens with al-pi {עַל־פִּי | ʿal-pî} ‘according to,’ paired with ha-torah {הַתּוֹרָה | hattôrâ} ‘instruction,’ establishing the legal basis. The relative pronoun ’ăšer {אֲשֶׁר | ’ă-šer} ‘which’ links to yō-rū-ḵā {יוֹרוּךָ | yō-rū-ḵā} ‘they instruct you,’ highlighting teaching authority. The conjunction wə-‘al {וְעַל־ | wə-‘al} ‘and according to’ parallels ham-miš-p̄ā-ṭ {הַמִּשְׁפָּט | ham-miš-p̄ā-ṭ} ‘judgment,’ followed by another ’ăšer {אֲשֶׁר־ | ’ă-šer} ‘which’ and yō-mə-rû {יֹאמְר֥וּ | yō-mə-rû} ‘they say,’ setting up the expectation in ta-‘ă-śeh {תַּעֲשֶׂ֑ה | ta-‘ă-śeh} ‘you shall do.’ The prohibition lō’ tā-śûr {לֹ֣א תָס֗וּר | lō’ tā-śûr} ‘you shall not turn aside’ uses min {מִן־ | min} ‘from’ and ha-dā-bār {הַדָּבָר | ha-dā-bār} ‘the word,’ leading to yag-gî-ḏû {יַגִּ֥ידֽוּ | yag-gî-ḏû} ‘they declare.’ The closing merism yā-min wə-sĕ-môl {יָמִ֥ין וּשְׂמֹֽאל | yā-min wə-sĕ-môl} ‘right and left’ expresses totality. This nested structure of relative clauses and polar terms underscores the comprehensive nature of judicial obedience and is rendered in English through parallel clause patterns and precise lexical choices. |