| 13. Linguistic Exegesis The verse begins with ulekhalev {וּלְכָלֵב | ū-lə-ḵā-ḇ} ‘and-to-Caleb’, an indirect object phrase combining a conjunction and preposition with a proper name. The construct ben-yefunne {בֶּן־יְפֻנֶּה | ben-yə-fun-ne} ‘son of Jephunneh’ specifies lineage. The verb natan {נָתַן | nā-ṭān} is a Qal perfect indicating completion of the grant. Betokh bnei-yehudah {בְּתוֹךְ בְּנֵי־יְהוּדָה | bə-toḵ bə-nê-ye-hû-wāh} situates the allotment within Judah’s territory. El-pi Yahweh {אֶל־פִּי יְהוָה | el-pî Yə-hō-wāh} expresses divine authority for the distribution. The beneficiary appears in liyhoshua {לִיהוֹשֻׁעַ | lî-yō-šû-āʿ}, and et {אֶת | et} marks the direct object. The clause kiryat arba avi ha-anak hi chebron {קִרְיַת אַרְבַּע אֲבִי הָעֲנָק הִיא חֶבְרוֹן | qi-ryāt ar-bāʿ ă-vî hā-ă-nāq hî ḥé-vrôn} is a nominal identification in which hi ‘it is’ confirms that Kiriath-Arba, the father of Anak, is Hebron. The nested construct forms highlight Hebrew’s capacity for dense noun modification and underscore divine-human partnership in land inheritance. |