| 14. Linguistic Exegesis The proverb employs parallelism with contrast. The first clause begins with ruach-ish {רֽוּחַ־אִ֭ישׁ | rūaḥ-ʾîš} ‘spirit of a man’ using a construct chain linking ruach (noun construct) to ish (noun absolute). This functions as the subject, followed by the verb yekhalkel {יְכַלְכֵּ֣ל | yəḵallēl} ‘will sustain’, taking machalehu {מַחֲלֵ֑הוּ | maḥălêhû} ‘his sickness’ as its direct object. The conjunction ve-ruach {וְר֥וּחַ | wə-rûaḥ} introduces the second parallel clause, where the adjective neke’ah {נְ֝כֵאָ֗ה | nekēʾāh} modifies ruach in an absolute form. The interrogative particle mi {מִ֣י | mî} marks the question, completed by yissāʼennâ {יִשָּׂאֶֽנָּה | yissāʼennâ} ‘can bear it’, with the feminine suffix personifying the spirit. The mirrored clause structure highlights the tension between endurance and collapse, and the semicolon in English captures the Hebrew disjunctive pause. |