| 10. Linguistic Exegesis The narrative begins with vayyishlechu {וַיִּשְׁלְחוּ | wayyišḷêḥû} ‘and they sent’, illustrating the vav-consecutive Qal imperfect that advances the action. The noun haʾedah {הָעֵדָה | hāʾēdāh} ‘the assembly’ denotes the tribal council exercising authority. The coordinated numeral šənê ʿāśār {שְׁנֵים־עָשָׂר | šənê ʿāśār} ‘twelve’ and ʾelep̄ {אֶלֶף | ʾelep̄} ‘thousand’ men, governed by mibbənê heḥāyil {מִבְּנֵי הֶחָיִל | mibbənê ḥēḥāyil} ‘from the sons of valor’, highlights their military status. The command clause opens with wayyəṣawwû {וַיְצַוּוּ | wayyəṣawwû} ‘they commanded’ followed by the direct speech marker lēʾmōr {לֵאמֹר | lēʾmōr}. The imperatives ləḵû {לְכוּ | ləkū} ‘go’ and wəhiqqîtêm {וְהִכִּיתֶם | wəhīqqîtēm} ‘strike’ form the core of the order. The object marker ’et–yōšəḇê {אֶת־יוֹשְׁבֵי | ʾet-yōšəḇê} identifies Jabesh Gilead as the target. The idiomatic ləp̄î ḥereḇ {לְפִי־חֶרֶב | ləp̄î ḥereḇ} ‘by the edge of the sword’ signals complete destruction. The phrase wəhannašîm wəhattāp̄ {וְהַנָּשִׁים וְהַטָּף | wəhannašîm wəhattāp̄} ‘and the women and the little ones’ extends the violence to noncombatants. The English rendering preserves Hebrew sequence and imperative mood, retaining the original’s force. |