| 4. Linguistic Exegesis The verse begins with the conjunctive vav linking ve’aviv {וְאָבִיו | wə-ʾā-viv} ‘and his father’ and ve’immo {וְאִמּוֹ | wə-ʾim-mo} ‘and his mother’, forming a compound subject. It continues with the negated Qal perfect yad‘û {יָדְעוּ | yā-ḏə-‘û} ‘did not know’, expressing completed action with negation. The first causal conjunction kî {כִּי | kî} introduces the source clause mê-Yahweh hî {מֵיְהוָה הִיא | mê-Yə-hō-wāh hî} ‘this was from the LORD’, where min marks origin and hî resumes reference. A kî-to‘ănâ {כִּי־תֹאֲנָה | kî-ṭō-‘ă-nāh} clause (‘for an occasion’) uses a maqqef to link cause to purpose, leading into the Piel participial clause hû’-mĕvaqqēš {הוּא־מְבַקֵּשׁ | hû’-mə-bā-qē-š} ‘he is seeking’, emphasizing ongoing divine action. The phrase mi-Plištîm {מִפְּלִשְׁתִּים | mi-pə-liš-ṭîm} ‘from the Philistines’ identifies the adversary. The temporal clause ū-vā-‘ēt hā-hî {וּבָעֵת הַהִיא | ū-bā-‘ēt hā-hî} ‘and at that time’ situates the event historically. Finally, the participle mōšəlîm {מֹשְׁלִים | mō-šə-lîm} ‘ruling’ with Plištîm {פְּלִשְׁתִּים | Plištîm} as subject and bə-Yisra’ēl {בְּיִשְׂרָאֵֽל | bə-yis-rā-’ēl} ‘over Israel’ completes the narrative. In English translation, the causal clauses are rendered “for” (formal) and “since” (dynamic), participles receive progressive aspect (“was seeking,” “were ruling”), and the temporal phrase is preserved as “at that time” to maintain the Hebrew flow and emphasis. |