וַיֹּ֣אמֶר

Alphabet Analysis

The word

1. word🔊 וַיֹּ֣אמֶר

   va-YO-mer

   {And} he said
2. phraseyour reading level🔊 וַיֹּ֣אמֶר ל֔וֹ

   va-YO-mer LO

   {And} he said to him
3. clause🔊 וַיֹּ֣אמֶר ל֔וֹ כֹּ֥ה יִהְיֶ֖ה זַרְעֶֽךָ׃

   va-YO-mer LO KO yih-YE zar-E-kha

   {And} he said to him your offspring will be so
4. sentence🔊 וַיּוֹצֵ֨א אֹת֜וֹ הַח֗וּצָה וַיֹּ֙אמֶר֙ הַבֶּט־נָ֣א הַשָּׁמַ֗יְמָה וּסְפֹר֙ הַכּ֣וֹכָבִ֔ים אִם־תּוּכַ֖ל לִסְפֹּ֣ר אֹתָ֑ם וַיֹּ֣אמֶר ל֔וֹ כֹּ֥ה יִהְיֶ֖ה זַרְעֶֽךָ׃

   va-yo-TSE o-TO ha-KHU-tsa va-YO-mer ha-bet-NA ha-sha-MAI-ma us-FOR ha-ko-kha-VIM im-tu-KHAL lis-POR o-TAM va-YO-mer LO KO yih-YE zar-E-kha

   {And} he brought out him outside {And} he said look now toward the heavens {And} count the stars if you can to count them {And} he said to him your offspring will be so

Exegesis

The verse opens with the wayyiqtol chain vayotse {וַיּוֹצֵא | way-yô-ṣēʾ} ‘and he brought out’, followed by vayomer {וַיֹּאמֶר | way-yō-mer} ‘and he said’, marking sequential narrative actions typical of Hebrew storytelling.

A second vayomer {וַיֹּאמֶר | way-yō-mer} introduces the climactic interpretive statement koh yihyeh zarʿekha {כֹּה יִהְיֶה זַרְעֶךָ | kōh yih-yeh zar-ʿe-kā} ‘so will your offspring be’, where the adverb koh links the visible stars to the future multitude of descendants. The imperfect yihyeh projects this comparison into the future, grounding Abram’s faith in a vivid, experiential sign that the translation preserves through clear sequencing, maintained imperatives, and an explicit conditional clause.