| 16. Linguistic Exegesis The verse opens with vehayah {וְהָיָה֙ | wə-hā-yāh} ‘and let be’, a Qal imperfect jussive expressing a curse. The subject ha-ish hahu {הָאִישׁ הַהוּא | hā-ʾîš ha-hūʾ} ‘that man’ is set apart by the demonstrative. The simile ke'arim {כֶּעָרִים | ke-ʿārîm} ‘like cities’ introduces a metaphor of destruction, completed by the relative clause asher-hafakh Yahweh {אֲשֶׁר־הָפַךְ יְהוָה | ʾă-šer-hā-p̄aḵ Yə-hō-wāh}, where verb-subject order emphasizes divine agency. The negated compound velo nikham {וְלֹא נִחָם | wə-lōʾ ni-ḥām} ‘and did not relent’ deepens the curse by denying compassion. The phrase veshama {וְשָׁמַע | wə-šā-maʿ} ‘and hear’ shifts to auditory imagery with zeakah {זְעָקָה | zə-ʿā-qāh} ‘cry’ and uteruah {וּתְרוּעָ֖ה | û-tə-rū-ʿāh} ‘alarm’ distinguishing forms of distress. Temporal markers baboker {בַּבֹּ֔קֶר | ba-bō-qer} ‘in the morning’ and be'et tsohorayim {בְּעֵ֥ת צָהֳרָיִם | bə-ʿēt ṣā-hō-ra-yim} ‘at midday’ frame a relentless daylong calamity in the Hebrew poetic structure. |