| 16. Linguistic Exegesis The verse opens with the vav-conjunction attached to ollelehem {וְעֹלְלֵיהֶם | wə-ʿol-lê-hêm} ‘their infants’, identifying the innocent victims. The Hoph‘al imperfect yeruttsu {יְרֻטְּשׁוּ | yə-ru-ṭə-šû} conveys crushing violence, while the prepositional phrase le-einehem {לְעֵינֵיהֶם | lə-ʿê-nei-hêm} ‘before their eyes’ heightens the horror of direct witness. The Pi‘el imperfect yishassu {יִשַּׁסּוּ | yiš-šas-sû} intensifies forceful plundering of bateihem {בָּתֵּיהֶם | bā-tei-hêm} ‘their houses’. Finally, the Niphal imperfect tishgalnah {תִּשָּׁגַלְנָה | tiš-šā-gal-nā} depicts their wives as passive recipients of ravishment. The series of parallel verb clauses and English passive renderings preserves the Hebrew’s focus on the victims’ helplessness under divine judgment. |