| 6. Linguistic Exegesis The narrative opens with vayavo {וַיָּבֹא֩ | way-yā-ḇōʾ} ‘and he came’, employing the vav-consecutive imperfect to continue the narrative action. The compound subject Moshe {מֹשֶׁ֨ה | mō-šē} ‘Moses’ and veAharon {וְאַהֲרֹן | wə-ʼă-hǎ-rōn} ‘and Aaron’ maintains focus on leadership figures. The prepositional phrase mipnei hakkahal {מִפְּנֵ֣י הַקָּהָ֗ל | mip-pə̂-nê ha-qā-hāl} ‘from the presence of the assembly’ denotes withdrawal from the communal context. The directional construct el-petach ohel moed {אֶל־פֶּ֙תַח֙ אֹ֣הֶל מוֹעֵ֔ד | ’el-pē-ţaḥ ’ō-hel mō-ʿēd} ‘to the entrance of the tent of meeting’ establishes the sacred locus. The sequence vayyiplu al-penehem {וַֽיִּפְּּלוּ עַל־פְּנֵיהֶ֑ם | way-yip-plû ʿal-pə-nê-hem} ‘and they fell upon their faces’ communicates a posture of submission. Finally, vayeira kevod-Yahweh aleihem {וַיֵּרָ֥א כְבוֹד־יְהוָ֖ה אֲלֵיהֶֽם | way-yērāʾ ke-vōd Yə-hō-wāh ’ă-lê-hem} ‘and the glory of the LORD appeared to them’ signals the theophanic climax through a Nifal imperfect verb. |