| 2. Linguistic Exegesis The verse begins with shim'u {שִׁמְעוּ | šimʿû} ‘listen’ in the plural imperative, followed by the infinitive absolute shamoa' {שָׁמוֹעַ | šāmoaʿ} ‘hearing’ to intensify the command. The construct milati {מִלָּתִי | millātî} denotes ‘my word,’ marking the direct object as Job’s personal speech. The conjunction waw and Qal imperfect jussive utehi {וּתְהִי | wə-təhî} ‘and let it be’ introduce a wished-for clause where the demonstrative zot {זֹאת | zôt} ‘this’ serves as subject and tankhumoteichem {תַּנְחוּמֹתֵיכֶם | tannəḥūmōṯêḵem} ‘your consolations’ as predicate. The adverbial rendering of the infinitive absolute and the smoothing of the jussive clause preserve the Hebrew’s emphasis and urgency. |