| 9. Linguistic Exegesis The verse begins with the imperative emor {אֱמֹר | ʾě-mōr} ‘say’, initiating a prophetic oracle. The formula koh amar Adonai Yahweh {כֹּה אָמַר אֲדֹנָי יְהֹוִה | kō ʾā-mar ʾă-dō-nāy yə-hō-wîh} ‘thus says the Lord God’ asserts divine authority by pairing the title Adonai with the covenant name Yahweh. The verb titzlach {תִּצְלָח | tiṣ-lā-ḥ} ‘it will thrive’ followed by the interrogative halo {הֲלוֹא | ha-lōʾ} ‘is it not?’ forms a rhetorical question pointing to inevitable failure. The direct object markers et introduce its roots (et-sharaseha {אֶת־שָׁרָשֶׁיהָ | ʾěṯ-šā-rā-šê-hā}) and its fruit (ve-et-piryah {וְאֶת־פִּרְיָהּ | wə-ʾěṯ-pir-yāh}), objects of the actions yenatteq {יְנַתֵּק | yə-nat-tēq} ‘will pull up’ and yekoses {יְקוֹסֵס | yə-qō-sēs} ‘will cut off’. The sequence continues with ve-yavesh {וְיָבֵשׁ | wə-yā-vēš} ‘and it will wither’, which parallels tivash {תִּיבָשׁ | ti-vāš} ‘it will wither’, intensifying the destruction. The construct kol-tarpei tzimchah {כָּל־טַרְפֵּי צִמְחָהּ | kāl-tar-pê tzim-ḥāh} ‘all the leaves of its growth’ expresses totality of withering. The negated clause ve-lo-bizroa gedolah u-ve-am rav {וְלֹא־בִזְרֹעַ גְּדוֹלָה וּבְעַם־רָב | wə-lōʾ-bi-zrō-ʿa gə-ḏō-lāh û-ḇə-ʿam-rāḇ} ‘and not by a strong arm or by many people’ highlights that no external effort is needed for the plant’s destruction. Finally, the infinitive construct lemasot otah mi-sharaseha {לְמַשְׂאֵת אוֹתָהּ מִשָּׁרָשֶׁיהָ | lə-maś-ʾōṯ ʾō-ṯāh mi-šā-rā-šê-hā} ‘to lift it up from its roots’ completes the vision of inevitable uprooting. The interplay of questions and verbs underscores the certainty of divine judgment. |