| 30. Linguistic Exegesis The verse begins with the vav-consecutive in the nominal clause ve-khol hanefesh {וְכָל־הַנֶּ֗פֶשׁ | wə-kôl han-nē-p̄eš} ‘every person’, which functions as the subject of the prohibition. The relative clause asher taʿăšêh kôl mĕlākhah {אֲשֶׁר תַּעֲשֶׂה כָּל־מְלָאכָ֔ה | ʾă-šer ta-ʿă-šêh kôl mĕ-lā-ḵāh} ‘who does any work’ specifies the forbidden action. The adverbial phrase bĕ-ʿe-t͟sem ha-yôm ha-zêh {בְּעֶצֶם הַיּ֣וֹם הַזֶּה | bə-ʿe-t͟sem ha-yôm ha-zêh} ‘on this very day’ highlights the temporal restriction. The clause introduced by wə-hă-ʾă-vad-tî {וְהַֽאֲبַדְתִּ֛י | wə-hă-ʾă-vad-tî} ‘and I will destroy’ employs the Hifil perfect to express divine causative judgment. Finally, the prepositional phrase mî-qer-ēv ʿammāh {מִקֶּ֥רֶב עַמָּֽהּ | mî-qer-ēv ʿammāh} ‘from among his people’ indicates the communal scope of the sanction. The sequential arrangement underscores the covenantal framework by linking prohibition, divine pronouncement, and communal consequence. |