| 21. Linguistic Exegesis The construction begins with vekhol {וְכָל־ | wə-khol} ‘and all,’ which introduces a general case. This is followed by hanoge’a {הַנֹּגֵעַ | han-nō-ḡēaʿ} ‘the one touching,’ a Qal participle signaling a generic agent. The prepositional construct bemishkavah {בְּמִשְׁכָּבָהּ | bə-miškā-ḇāh} ‘in her bed’ localizes the ritual contact. The sequence yekhabbes {יְכַבֵּס | yə-ḵabbēs} ‘he shall wash’ (imperfect) and verachats {וְרָחַץ | wə-rā-ḥaṣ} ‘and he shall bathe’ (perfect) lays out prescriptive actions, with English modals conveying obligation. The resultant state vetame {וְטָמֵא | wə-ṭāmēʾ} ‘and he will be unclean’ uses the perfect to denote a lasting condition, and the temporal adhaarev {עַד־הָעָרֶב | ʿad-hā-ʿāreḇ} ‘until evening’ specifies duration. In English the participial rule becomes a generic “Anyone who” clause, preserving the ritual sequence and priestly temporal framing. |