| 35. Linguistic Exegesis The verse is a compact poetic triad built on birth imagery to depict the development of wickedness. The opening participle haroh {הָרֹ֣ה | hārōh} ‘conceiving’ functions generically, describing what the wicked characteristically do, and it takes the direct object amal {עָ֭מָל | ʿāmāl} ‘trouble’ as what is “carried” within. The next clause advances the metaphor with veyalod {וְיָלֹד | wə-yālōd} ‘and giving birth’, moving from inner conception to outward result, with aven {אָ֑וֶן | ʾāwen} ‘iniquity’ as the “offspring.” The third clause shifts focus to the interior source: uvitnam {וּ֝בִטְנָ֗ם | ū-viṭnām} ‘and in their womb’ sets up the subject, and the verb tachin {תָּכִ֥ין | tāḵîn} ‘prepares’ is third person feminine singular, agreeing with the grammatically feminine “womb,” even though “their” points back to a plural group; this alignment intensifies the idea that deception is deliberately “formed” from within. The final noun mirmah {מִרְמָֽה | mirmāh} ‘deceit’ completes the escalation from trouble conceived to evil birthed to deception intentionally prepared. The closing samekh {ס | sāmek} marks a paragraph division in the Masoretic tradition. |