| 7. Linguistic Exegesis The verse opens with the narrative verb vayomer {וַיֹּאמֶר | way-yō-mer} ‘and he said’, a waw-consecutive form that continues the preceding scene and introduces direct speech. The prepositional phrase elav {אֵלָיו | ʾê-lāw} ‘to him’ specifies Abram as the addressee and keeps the focus on the divine–human dialogue. Within the quotation, the independent pronoun ani {אֲנִי | ʾă-nî} ‘I’ followed immediately by the divine name Yahweh {יְהוָה | Yə-hō-wāh} forms a solemn self-identification, foregrounding the Speaker’s authority. The relative particle asher {אֲשֶׁר | ʾă-šer} ‘who’ introduces a defining relative clause, in which hotseitikha {הוֹצֵאתִיךָ | hō-tsê-ʾtî-kā} ‘I brought you out’ (Hiphil perfect) presents a completed, causative act of deliverance. The prepositional phrase meur Kasdim {מֵאוּר כַּשְׂדִּים | mê-ʾûr kas-dîm} ‘from Ur of the Chaldeans’ anchors this act in concrete geography and history. The infinitive latet {לָתֶת | lā-tet} ‘to give’ introduces a purpose clause that explains the divine intention behind the earlier deliverance, with lekha {לְךָ | lə-kā} ‘to you’ marking Abram as the recipient. The direct object marker et {אֶת־ | ʾet} signals that haarets hazot {הָאָרֶץ הַזֹּאת | hā-ʾā-reṣ haz-zōt} ‘this land’ is the specific gift in view. The final infinitive phrase lerishtah {לְרִשְׁתָּהּ | lə-riš-tāh} ‘to possess it’ adds a further purpose or result, clarifying that the gift of land is for permanent inheritance, not temporary residence. In English, this sequence is preserved by keeping the self-identification (“I am the LORD”) followed by the defining relative clause and the two coordinated infinitival phrases (“to give you this land to possess it / so that you may take possession of it”), thereby reflecting the Hebrew emphasis on God’s past act of deliverance as the basis for the future grant of the land. |