| 11. Linguistic Exegesis The verse opens with a fronted subject, atsmotav {עַ֭צְמוֹתָיו | ʿaṣmōṯāyw} ‘his bones’, followed by the perfect maleu {מָלְא֣וּ | māləʾû} ‘they were filled’, describing a present condition rooted in past completeness. The paired terms alumo {עלומו | ʿălûmô} ‘his youthful vigor’ and alumav {עֲלוּמָ֑יו | ʿălûmāyw} ‘his youth’ form a poetic doublet, intensifying the idea that youthful vitality has thoroughly permeated him. The second clause begins with veimmo {וְ֝עִמּ֗וֹ | wəʿimmô} ‘and with him’, then places the locative phrase al-afar {עַל־עָפָ֥ר | ʿal-ʿāp̄ār} ‘upon dust’ before the verb tishkav {תִּשְׁכָּֽב | tiškab} ‘it will lie down’, creating a grim focus on the destination. The feminine singular verb form can refer to an inanimate plural antecedent (such as “bones”) or to an implied, concept-like subject (his vitality/youth), so the English “it” preserves the Hebrew’s deliberate ambiguity while still conveying the certainty of burial. |