| 2. Linguistic Exegesis The verse opens with the negative particle lo {לֹא | lōʾ} negating yachpotz {יַחְפֹּץ | yaḥ-pō-ṣ}, “he delights,” to prohibit delight. The subject kesil {כְּסִיל | ke-sîl} precedes the prepositional object bi-tebunah {בִּתְבוּנָה | bi-te-bū-nâ}. The idiom ki im {כִּי אִם | kî ʾim} forms an exclusive contrast, introducing the infinitive construct be-hitgalot {בְּהִתְגַּלוֹת | bə-hit-gal-lōt} which governs the construct libbo {לִבּוֹ | lib-bō}, “his heart,” yielding a reflexive sense of self-disclosure. English “does not delight…but only in revealing” mirrors this Hebrew contrast and preserves the Hitpael stem’s nuance. |