| 24. Linguistic Exegesis The verse begins with ve-Avraham {וְאַבְרָהָם | wə-ʾaḇ-rā-hām} ‘and Abraham’, a waw-prefixed proper name linking this clause to the preceding narrative. The nominal phrase ben-tishim va-tesha shanah {בֶּן־תִּשְׁעִ֥ים וָתֵ֖שַׁע שָׁנָ֑ה | ben-tiš-ʿîm wā-tē-šaʿ šā-nāh} functions as a complete predicate expressing Abraham’s age, with the construct noun ben governing the compound numerals tišʿîm and wāteša and the absolute noun šānāh completing the idiom. The temporal infinitive clause be-himolo {בְּהִמֹּל֖וֹ | bə-him-mō-lô}, built on a Niphal infinitive construct with a third person masculine singular suffix, indicates the precise moment described. Finally the construct chain be-sar orlato {בְּשַׂ֥ר עָרְלָתֽוֹ | bə-śar ʿar-lā-ṯô} specifies the bodily sphere (‘in the flesh of his foreskin’) where the rite occurs. In English the infinitive clause is rendered as a temporal clause and the construct chain as a prepositional phrase, preserving Hebrew clause order and emphasizing the literal enactment of the covenant sign. |