| 5. Linguistic Exegesis The narrative opens with wayipol {וַיִּפֹּ֥ל | wayyip̄ōl} ‘and he fell’, a vav-consecutive Qal imperfect that advances the sequence. The coordinated proper names Moshe {מֹשֶׁ֛ה | mōšeh} and ve-Aharon {וְאַהֲרֹ֖ן | və-ʾaharōn} function as joint agents. The phrase ʿal-pənêhem {עַל־פְּנֵיהֶ֑ם | ʿal-pənêhem} ‘upon their faces’ expresses an idiom of submissive humility. The preposition līpnê {לִפְנֵ֕י | līpnê} ‘before’ introduces the participants kol-qəhāl ʿăḏat bənê Yiśrāʾēl {כָּל־קְהַ֥ל עֲדַ֖ת בְּנֵ֥י יִשְׂרָאֵֽל | kol-qəhāl ʿăḏat bənê yiśrāʾēl} ‘the whole assembly of the congregation of the sons of Israel’. The English mirrors the Hebrew’s nested construct genitives with nested modifiers, preserving hierarchical emphasis and communal scope. |