| 17. Linguistic Exegesis The verse opens with achavkha {אֲחַוְךָ֥ | ʾăḥawwəkā} ‘I will tell you,’ a forward-looking Hiphil form that presents the speaker as taking responsibility to make his point known to the listener. The following imperative shma-li {שְֽׁמַֽע־לִ֑י | šəmaʿ-lî} ‘hear to me’ functions as a direct appeal for attentive reception, placing the command immediately after the commitment to speak. The clause vezeh-chaziti {וְזֶֽה־חָ֝זִ֗יתִי | wə-zeh-ḥāzîtî} ‘and this I have seen’ uses a demonstrative (“this”) to foreground the content as specific, while the perfect “I have seen” frames the claim as grounded in completed personal observation. The closing vaasapperah {וַאֲסַפֵּֽרָה׃ | waʾăsapperāh} ‘and I will recount’ is a volitional cohortative advanced by vav, conveying resolve to narrate what has been perceived. In English, the initial commitment and the imperative are separated with a semicolon to preserve the tight Hebrew sequencing while keeping the exhortation force clear. |