| 24. Linguistic Exegesis The verse opens with ulai {אוּלַי | ʾû-lay} ‘perhaps’, introducing a hypothetical that frames Abraham’s appeal. The existential yesh {יֵשׁ | yēš} asserts the possible presence of chamishim tsaddikim {חֲמִשִּׁים צַדִּיקִים | ḥă-miš-šîm ṣad-dî-qîm} ‘fifty righteous’. Betokh ha-ir {בְּתוֹךְ הָעִיר | bə-tôk hā-ʿîr} ‘within the city’ specifies location, while ha-af {הַאַף | ha-ʾap̄} ‘indeed’ highlights the challenge to divine action. The verbs tispheh and ve-lo-tissa {תִּסְפֶּה | tis-peh; וְלֹא־תִשָּׂא} form a parallel contrast between total removal and merciful restraint. La-makom {לַמָּקוֹם | la-mā-qôm} ‘for the place’ functions metonymically for the city, and lemaan chamishim ha-tsaddikim {לְמַעַן חֲמִשִּׁים הַצַּדִּיקִים | lə-ma-ʿan ḥă-miš-šîm haṣ-ṣad-dî-qîm} ‘for the sake of the fifty righteous’ links preservation to moral worth. The relative clause asher beqirbah {אֲשֶׁר בְּקִרְבָּהּ | ʾă-šer bə-qir-bāh} anchors their presence. The progression from possibility to pointed interrogation underscores Abraham’s appeal to divine justice and mercy. |