| 25. Linguistic Exegesis The verse begins with the adverbial simile ka-avor {כַּעֲב֣וֹר | ka-ʿă-vōr} ‘as passing’ in a Qal infinitive construct, with sufa {ס֭וּפָה | sū-p̄āh} ‘storm’ as the illustrative image. The negative existential ein {אֵ֣ן | ʾēn} ‘there is not’ negates rasha {רָשָׁ֑ע | rā-šāʿ} ‘wicked,’ highlighting their disappearance. The coordinating conjunction ve links the antithetical clause where tsaddiq {צַדִּ֗יק | ṣaddîq} ‘righteous’ functions as subject and yesod {יְס֣וֹד | yə-sōḏ} ‘foundation’ as predicate, with olam {עוֹלָֽם | ʿô-lām} ‘forever’ specifying enduring duration. The Hebrew verbless clauses are rendered with explicit verbs in English to preserve clarity and parallelism, characteristic of wisdom literature’s antithetical structure. |