| 17. Linguistic Exegesis The verse begins with keruach {כְּרוּחַ | kə-rûaḥ} ‘like a wind’ followed by kadim {קָדִים | qā-dîm} ‘east’, forming a simile that conveys sudden destructive force. The verb apitzem {אֲפִיצֵ֖ם | ʾă-p̄î-ṣēm} employs the Hiphil imperfect to express the LORD’s causative action of scattering. The prepositional phrase lifnei oyev {לִפְנֵ֣י אוֹיֵב | lif-nê ʾō-yêḇ} ‘before the enemy’ identifies the recipients of divine judgment. The idiom oref velo panim {עֹרֶף וְלֹא־פָנִים | ʿō-rep̄ wə-lōʾ pā-nîm} ‘back and not face’ contrasts acceptance and rejection, underscoring divine dismissal. The temporal marker beyom edam {בְּי֥וֹם אֵידָֽם | bə-yôm ʾê-ḏām} ‘in the day of their calamity’ situates the action at the moment of coming doom. The English syntax reproduces Hebrew idiomatic order while maintaining clarity and forceful imagery. |