| 21. Linguistic Exegesis Hebrew presents two antithetical clauses linked by the conjunction and+direct-object marker ve·ʾet {וְאֶת־ | wə-ʾet}. The first clause has the pattern noun (chatta’im {חַטָּאִים | ḥaṭ-ṭā-ʾim} ‘sinners’) + verb (teraddeph {תְּרַדֵּף | tə-rad-dé-p̄} ‘pursues’) + object (ra‘ah {רָעָה | rā-ʿā} ‘evil’). The second clause reverses order: ve·ʾet + noun (tsaddiqim {צַדִּיקִים | ṣad-dî-qîm} ‘righteous’) + verb-object (yeshallem-tov {יְשַׁלֶּם־טוֹב | yə-šal-lem-ṭōv} ‘repays good’). This antithetic parallelism balances sinners/evil against righteous/good, underscoring moral reciprocity. In English, an SVO structure with “but” conveys the contrast, preserving the immediacy of pursuit and recompense. |