| 13. Linguistic Exegesis The verse comprises two parallel nominal clauses joined by the conjunction ve {וְ | wə} indicating addition. The first clause uses havot {הַוֺּת | ḥăvvôt} ‘calamities’ with the indirect object le’aviv {לְאָבִיו | lə-ʾă-vîw} ‘to his father’, followed by the predicate ben kesil {בֵּן כְּסִיל | bēn kə-sîl} ‘son of a fool’ in an equational construction. The second clause features the construct phrase vedelep tôred {וְדֶלֶף טֹרֵד | wə-dĕ-lĕp tô-rēḏ} ‘dripping continual’, and the source phrase midyenei ishah {מִדְיְנֵי אִשָּׁה | mî-ḏyē-nê ʾish-shāh} ‘from the disputes of a wife’. The Hebrew equational structure is rendered with the verbs “is” and “are,” and the metaphor of dripping water conveys the persistent nature of domestic conflict. |