| 20. Linguistic Exegesis The opening sequence employs the vav-consecutive wayyiṭṭāḇ {וַיִּיטַב֙ | wayyiṭṭāḇ} ‘it was good’ with the noun lēḇ {לֵ֣ב | lēḇ} ‘heart’ following the verb to emphasize the priest’s emotional state. The subject hak-kōhên {הַכֹּהֵ֔ן | hak-kōhên} ‘priest’ then initiates a chain of actions marked by the vav-consecutives wayyiqqaḥ {וַיִּקַּח֙ | wayyiqqaḥ} ‘and he took’ and wayyāḇōʾ {וַיָּבֹ֖א | wayyāḇōʾ} ‘and he came.’ Each direct object marker ʾet {אֶת־ | ʾet} links to definite nouns ʾēp̄ōḏ {הָאֵפ֔וֹד | ʾēp̄ōḏ} ‘ephod,’ hattərāfîm {הַתְּרָפִ֖ים | tərāfîm} ‘teraphim,’ and happāśel {הַפָּ֑סֶל | pāśel} ‘idol,’ underscoring their ritual significance. The prepositional phrase bə-qereḇ {בְּקֶרֶב | bə-qereḇ} followed by hā-ʿām {הָעָֽם | ʿām} functions locatively to denote “in the midst of the people.” The structure moves from affective description to concrete action, reflecting the historical prose pattern in Judges. |