| 13. Linguistic Exegesis The verse begins with the conjunction ki {כִּֽי־ | kî} introducing the causal explanation for the judgment. The Piel participle mashchitim {מַשְׁחִתִ֣ים | maš-ḥi-ṭîm} with the independent pronoun anachnu {אֲנַ֔חְנוּ | ʾă-naḥ-nû} creates an emphatic present-tense clause “we are destroying,” emphasizing the certainty of the action. The direct object marker et {אֶת־ | ʾeṯ} marks hamakom hazzeh {הַמָּק֖וֹם הַזֶּ֑ה | ham-mā-qôm haz-zêh} “this place” as the target of destruction. A second ki {כִּֽי־ | kî} clause states the reason: gadlah {גָּדְלָ֤ה | gā-ḏā-lāh} “has become great” describes the intensified state of tsaakatam {צַעֲקָתָם֙ | ṣa-ʿă-qā-ṯām} “their outcry,” which stands in construct with et-penei Yahweh {אֶת־פְּנֵ֣י יְהוָ֔ה | ʾeṯ pə-nê Yə-hō-wāh}, an idiomatic expression for “before the presence of the LORD.” The Piel wayyiqtol vayishalchenu {וַיְשַׁלְּחֵ֥נוּ | wa-ye-šal-lə-ḥênû} advances the narrative: “and He sent us,” with Yahweh {יְהוָ֖ה | Yə-hō-wāh} as the explicit subject to stress divine initiative. The infinitive leshachatah {לְשַׁחֲתָֽהּ | lə-ša-ḥă-ṯāh} functions as a purpose clause “to destroy it.” The syntactic flow moves from the declaration of action to the divine rationale for judgment. |