| 12. Linguistic Exegesis The verse is a single conditional sentence introduced by im-tamtik {אִם־תַּמְתִּ֣יק | ʾim-tamtîq} ‘if she makes sweet’, which sets up a hypothetical scenario. The verb is grammatically feminine, matching raah {רָעָ֑ה | rāʿâ} ‘evil/wickedness’ as its implicit subject; the imagery portrays evil as something that can “taste sweet.” The phrase befiw {בְּפִ֣יו | bə-pîw} ‘in his mouth’ frames evil as experienced and relished, while the following clause yakhkidenna {יַ֝כְחִידֶ֗נָּה | yaḵḥîḏennāh} ‘he hides it’ shifts from enjoyment to deliberate concealment. The pronominal suffix “it” refers back to the feminine noun “evil,” maintaining cohesion across the two verbs. The prepositional sequence takhat leshono {תַּ֣חַת לְשׁוֹנֽוֹ | taḥat ləšônô} functions idiomatically as “under his tongue,” reinforcing the metaphor of storing something in the mouth as a way of cherishing it while keeping it out of sight. English rendering keeps the conditional structure and preserves the tight parallel between tasting (sweetness) and secret retention (hiding beneath the tongue). |