| 1. Linguistic Exegesis The verse begins with the noun massa {מַשָּׂא | maśśāʾ} ‘oracle’, a technical term for prophetic pronouncement, followed by the proper noun bavel {בָּבֶל | bāḇēl} ‘Babylon’ as the direct object. The relative pronoun asher {אֲשֶׁר | ʾăšer} ‘that’ introduces the subordinate clause detailing the visionary event. The verb chazah {חָזָה | ḥāzāh} ‘he saw’ in the Qal perfect third person masculine singular marks the completion of Isaiah’s visionary act. The proper noun yeshayahu {יְשַׁעְיָהוּ | yəšaʿyāhû} ‘Isaiah’ serves as the subject, further specified by a construct chain with the noun ben {בֶּן | ben} ‘son’ and the proper noun amotz {אָמֹוץ | ʾāmōṣ} ‘Amoz’, indicating patrilineal descent. The fronting of massa and bavel places emphasis on the prophetic declaration and its object before identifying the prophet. |