| 32. Linguistic Exegesis The verse begins with mipnei {מִפְּנֵי | mi-pə-nê} as a prepositional phrase indicating “before” or “because of.” Seivah {שֵׂיבָה | sê-ḇā} functions as a temporal noun “old age,” setting the context for the imperative takum {תָּקוּם | tā-qûm} in Qal imperfect, which directs the addressee to stand up in respect. The conjunction vav introduces vehadarta {וְהָדַרְתָּ | wə-hā-ḏar-tā} in the Piel perfect, intensifying the command to honor by explicitly specifying face penei {פְּנֵי | pə-nê} of the elder—an idiomatic construct. The second clause shifts to divine reverence with veyareta {וְיָרֵאתָ | wə-yā-rê-ṯā} plus me-Eloheicha {מֵאֱלֹהֶיךָ | mê-’ĕ-lō-hek-hā}, linking social ethics to covenantal fear of God. The final ani Yahweh {אֲנִי יְהוָה | ’ă-nî Yə-hō-wāh} asserts divine identity, functioning as a theophanic signature that grounds the social command in divine authority. |