| 15. Linguistic Exegesis The verse opens with the vav-consecutive vayehi {וַיְהִי | va-yĭ-hî} ‘and it came to pass,’ marking sequential narrative progression. The temporal phrase bayyom hashvi’i {בַּיּוֹם הַשְּׁבִיעִי | bā-y-yôm haš-šĕ-wî-ʿî} ‘on the seventh day’ establishes precise chronology. Some Septuagint manuscripts read “fourth day,” but the Hebrew Masoretic Text reads “seventh day,” and this translation follows that reading. The Piel imperative pati {פַּתִּי | paṭ-ṭî} ‘entice’ intensifies the demand, while the Hif‘il imperfect veyagged {וְיַגֶּד | wə-ya-ggēd} ‘let him tell’ conveys causation. The particle pen {פֶּן | pən} ‘lest’ introduces the threat, followed by the Qal imperfect nisrof {נִשְׂרֹף | nis-rôp} ‘we burn,’ emphasizing volition. Finally, the interrogative halo {הֲלֹא | hă-lōʾ} plus the Hif‘il infinitive hal-yarshenu {הַלְיָרְשֵׁנוּ | hal-yār-šē-nû} ‘to impoverish us’ forms a rhetorical question, revealing the guests’ suspicion. The English rendering preserves Hebrew word order to maintain emphasis and causative nuance. |