| 32. Linguistic Exegesis The verse opens with vayomer {וַיֹּאמֶר | way-yō-mer} “and he said,” continuing the dialogue between Abraham and the divine interlocutor. The plea al-na {אַל־נָא | ʾal-nāʾ} “please do not” combines a negative particle with a particle of entreaty, framing Abraham’s words as humble petition. The verb yichar {יִחַר | yi-ḥar} “let it burn” has a jussive nuance and, in context, refers to divine anger; the phrase “let not Your anger burn” is an idiomatic way of asking that the superior not become angry. The address la'adonai {לַאדֹנָי | la-ʾă-ḏō-nāy} “to my Lord” signals direct address to God with the respectful title ʾadonai.
The cohortative va'adabrah {וַאֲדַבְּרָה | wa-ʾa-dab-bə-rāh} “and let me speak” presents Abraham’s speech as self-limited and deferential, fitting the negotiation context. The adverbial expression akh-hapa'am {אַךְ־הַפַּעַם | ʾaḵ-hap-paʿam} “only this time” narrows the request, marking this plea as the final in a series of decreasing-number proposals. Ulai {אוּלַי | ʾū-lay} “perhaps” introduces a clause of uncertain possibility, while yimmatsun {יִמָּצְאוּן | yim-māṣ-ʾûn} “they might be found” is a passive Niphal, underscoring that the righteous, if present, are to be discovered rather than supplied by Abraham. The numeral asarah {עֲשָׂרָה | ʿă-śā-rāh} “ten” stands as the climactic minimal number in the negotiation sequence.
The divine response, again introduced by vayomer {וַיֹּאמֶר | way-yō-mer}, answers Abraham’s proposal directly: lo ashkhit {לֹא אַשְׁחִית | lōʾ ʾaš-ḥît} “I will not destroy” uses a Hiphil imperfect with explicit first person, forming a strong promissory statement. The prepositional phrase ba'avur ha'asara {בַּעֲבוּר הָעֲשָׂרָה | ba-ʿă-vūr hā-ʿă-śā-rāh} “for the sake of the ten” functions as a condition specifying the basis for sparing the city. Syntactically, the verse consists of Abraham’s respectful conditional plea followed by God’s concise assurance, highlighting divine willingness to spare many for the sake of a small righteous group. The English renderings mirror the Hebrew politeness markers, cohortative mood, and conditional structure while clarifying idiomatic elements (“let not Your anger burn,” “for the sake of the ten”). |