| 9. Linguistic Exegesis The verse begins with uvata {וּבָאתָ֗ | û·vāṯā} ‘and you shall come’, employing the vav-consecutive Qal perfect to sequence commands. The construct el hakohanim haleviyim {אֶל־הַכֹּהֲנִים֙ הַלְוִיִּ֔ם | ʾel-ha-kō·hă·nîm hal·lə·wî·yim} ‘to the priests of the Levites’ identifies the set of religious officials, and ve elha shofet {וְאֶל־הַשֹּׁפֵ֔ט | wə·ʾel-ha-šō·p̄ēt} ‘and to the judge’ extends the court’s authority. The relative clause asher yihyeh bayamim hahem {אֲשֶׁ֥ר יִהְיֶ֖ה בַּיָּמִ֣ים הָהֵ֑ם | ʾă·šer yih·yêh bay·yă·yim hā·hêm} confines jurisdiction to the contemporary officeholder. The verbs vedarashta {וְדָרַשְׁתָּ֙ | wə·ḏā·raš·tā} and vehigidu {וְהִגִּידוּ | wə·hîg·gī·dû} structure the inquiry–response dynamic, and the phrase et devar hamishpat {אֵ֖ת דְּבַ֥ר הַמִּשְׁפָּֽט | ʾet də·ḇar ham·miš·pāṭ} focuses on the judicial matter. The English rendering preserves the Hebrew’s sequential logic and formal legal framework. |