| 17. Linguistic Exegesis The Hebrew text begins with the vav-consecutive vayomer {וַיֹּ֥אמֶר | va-yō-mer} ‘and he said’, which introduces the direct divine speech. The verb places the subject Yahweh {יְהוָ֖ה | Yə-hō-wāh} ‘LORD’ before the indirect object elai {אֵלָ֑י | ʾê-lāy} ‘to me’, emphasizing Moses’s reception. The Hiphil perfect heitivu {הֵיטִ֖יבוּ | hê-tî-vû} ‘they have done well’ conveys divine approval, and the relative particle asher {אֲשֶׁ֥ר | ʼă-šer} ‘that’ introduces the Piel perfect clause with diberu {דִּבֵּֽרוּ | dî-bē-rû} ‘they have spoken’, focusing on the people’s deliberate communication. This structure unites divine endorsement and the content of their words into a single concise declaration. |