| 10. Linguistic Exegesis The verse opens with the conjunction ki {כִּי | kî} ‘when’, marking a protasis that frames a conditional context. The verb tetse {תֵצֵא | tê-ṣêʾ} ‘you go out’ in the Qal imperfect second person masculine singular expresses anticipated action. The prepositional phrase la-milchamah {לַמִּלְחָמָה | la-mil-ḥā-māh} ‘to war’ defines the arena of conflict, modified by al-oyvekha {עַל־אֹיְבֶיךָ | ʿal-ʾō-ye-vekā} ‘against your enemies’, where the preposition al {עַל | ʿal} denotes opposition and a pronominal suffix marks possession. The narrative then shifts via the vav consecutive in unetano {וּנְתָנוֹ | wə-nə-ṯā-nô} ‘and he gives him’, linking the protasis to its apodosis and underscoring divine agency. The compound subject Yahweh Elohekha {יְהוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ | Yə-hō-wāh ʾĕ-lō-hey-kā} highlights covenant identity in deliverance. The idiom be-yadekha {בְּיָדֶךָ | bə-yā-ḏe-kā} ‘into your hand’ conveys transfer of power. The second vav consecutive in veshevita {וְשָׁבִיתָ | wə-šā-ḇī-ṯā} ‘and you take captive’ continues the result sequence, and shivyo {שִׁבְיוֹ | šib-yô} ‘his captivity’ functions as the object in construct form. The parallel vav-consecutive clauses frame a theology of divine initiative followed by human response. |