| 39. Linguistic Exegesis The narrative employs a vav-consecutive sequence with vayelekhu {וַיֵּלְכוּ | wayyēlĕḵû} to mark unfolding events. The construct phrase benei Makhir ben Menasheh defines tribal identity and territorial entitlement. Gil'adah {גִּלְעָדָה | gil·‘ā·ḏāh}, with a directional he, indicates movement into territory east of the Jordan. The two verbs vayilkeduha {וַיִּלְכְּדֻהָ | wayyilqedûhā} and vayyoresh {וַיּוֹרֶשׁ | wayyōreš} portray first the capture and then the dispossession of the Amorite inhabitants. The marker et {אֶת | ʾeṯ} introduces the target group, and the relative clause asher bah {אֲשֶׁר בָּהּ | ʾă·šer bāh} specifies their residence. Although vayyoresh is singular, our translation uses a plural subject to maintain the collective action of Machir’s descendants. |