| 6. Linguistic Exegesis The clause opens with the fronted address ve-atah {וְאַתָּ֥ה | wə-ʾattāh} ‘and you’, using waw plus an explicit pronoun to spotlight Ezekiel as the commanded participant. The vocative ben-adam {בֶן־אָדָ֖ם | ben-ʾādām} ‘son of man’ frames the sign-act as performed by a human representative. The imperative hēʾānaḥ {הֵֽאָנַ֑ח | hēʾānaḥ} ‘sigh/groan’ initiates the action, while the following manner phrase bə-šivrôn māṯnayim {בְּשִׁבְר֤וֹן מָתְנַ֙יִם֙ | bə-šivrôn māṯnayim} ‘with breaking of loins’ uses a construct chain to compress the image of bodily collapse into a single unit. The coordinate phrase ū-ḇimrîrût {וּבִמְרִיר֔וּת | ū-ḇimrîrût} ‘and with bitterness’ adds the emotional tone to the physical posture. The repetition of the same root in hēʾānaḥ … tēʾānaḥ {הֵֽאָנַ֑ח … תֵּֽאָנַ֖ח | hēʾānaḥ … tēʾānaḥ} heightens intensity and suggests sustained, observable grief; the imperfect here functions as an instruction for continued performance rather than a mere prediction. The closing lə-ʿênêhem {לְעֵינֵיהֶֽם | lə-ʿênêhem} ‘before their eyes’ makes the act deliberately public, marking it as a visible portent for the onlookers. |