| 5. Linguistic Exegesis The verse opens with the concessive conditional im-omnam {אִם־אָ֭מְנָם | ʾim-ʾom-nām} ‘if indeed,’ setting up a concession. The repeated prepositional phrases alai ... alai {עָלַ֣י ... עָ֝לַ֗י | ʿā-lay ... ʿā-lay} ‘against me ... against me’ bracket the two verb clauses and focus the accusation on Job. The Piel imperfect tagdilu {תַּגְדִּ֑ילוּ | tag-dî-lû} conveys an intensifying reflexive action “make yourselves great,” charging self-exaltation. The Hiphil ve-tokhichu {וְתוֹכִ֥יחוּ | wə-ṯô-khî-ḥû} has a juridical force “present a case,” structuring kherpati {חֶרְפָּתִּֽי | kher-pā-tî} ‘reproach’ as legal evidence marshaled against him. The end-focus on kherpati heightens the sense of shame within a courtroom metaphor. |