| 14. Linguistic Exegesis The clause begins with direct address, ve'attah {וְאַתָּ֣ה | wə-ʾat-tāh} ‘and you,’ followed by the vocative ben-'adam {בֶן־אָדָ֔ם | ben-ʾā-ḏām} ‘son of man,’ establishing the prophet as the addressee. Two imperatives, hinnabe {הִנָּבֵ֕א | hin-nā-bēʾ} ‘prophesy’ and vehak {וְהַ֖ךְ | wə-haḵ} ‘and strike,’ form a command sequence; the gesture kaf {כַּ֣ף | kaf} … ʾel-kaf {אֶל־כָּ֑ף | ʾel-kaf} ‘palm to palm’ functions idiomatically as a forceful, attention-getting action that accompanies the spoken oracle. The next verb vetikafel {וְתִכָּפֵ֞ל | wə-tik-kā-pēl} ‘and let it be doubled’ is an imperfect with jussive force; its feminine singular form anticipates cherev {חֶ֣רֶב | ḥe-reḇ} ‘sword’ as subject, creating a tight verbal-then-nominal linkage. Shelishitah {שְׁלִישִׁיתָ֗ה | šə-lî-šî-ṯāh} ‘a third time’ adds an adverbial intensifier to the command, presenting repeated blows. The verse then stacks appositional identifications: cherev chalalim {חֶ֚רֶב חֲלָלִ֔ים | ḥe-reḇ ḥă-lā-lîm} ‘a sword of slain ones’ is reasserted by hi {הִ֖יא | hîʾ} ‘it,’ and further specified as cherev chalal haggadol {חֶ֣רֶב חָלָ֑ל הַגָּד֔וֹל | ḥe-reḇ ḥā-lāl hag-gā-ḏōl} ‘a sword of a slain one, the great one,’ which can denote a prominent victim (leaders) or an intensified exemplar. The closing participial phrase hachoderet lahem {הַחֹדֶ֖רֶת לָהֶֽם | ha-ḥō-ḏe-reṯ lā-hem} ‘the one penetrating to them’ portrays the sword’s inescapable reach; some renderings broaden this to “closing in” or “surrounding,” but the participle from the root meaning ‘enter/penetrate’ supports the image of intrusion and piercing, which is reflected in the English wording. |