| 9. Linguistic Exegesis The verse begins with the particle et {אֵת | ʾēt} marking the group of named kings as the definite objects of the action introduced in the preceding verse. Each ruler appears in an appositional pattern with personal name + melech {מֶלֶךְ | me-lekh} ‘king’ + territorial designation (for example, Kedorlaomer melech Elam {כְּדָרְלָעֹמֶר מֶלֶךְ עֵילָם | kə-dor-la-ʿō-mer me-lekh ʿê-lām} ‘king of Elam’). The conjunction-prefixed forms vetidal {וְתִדְעָל | wə-tid-ʿāl}, veamraphel {וְאַמְרָפֶל | wə-ʾam-rā-pel}, and vearyokh {וְאַרְיוֹךְ | wə-ʾar-yōḵ} coordinate the list into a single eastern coalition. Following the list, the summarizing phrase arbaah melakhim {אַרְבָּעָה מְלָכִים | ʾar-bā-ʿā mə-lā-kîm} ‘four kings’ precedes et-hachamishah {אֶת־הַחֲמִשָּׁה | ʾeṯ-ha-ḥă-miš-šāh} ‘the five’, functioning as the opposing group. Here et introduces the second coalition, and the absence of an explicit preposition relies on context to convey an adversative sense (“against”). The clause is asyndetic, serving as an appositional elaboration. In translation, the sequence of names is preserved, arbaah melakhim is rendered “four kings,” and the accusative et-hachamishah is expressed with “against the five” to highlight the contrast. |