| 28. Linguistic Exegesis The verse begins with the coordinated nouns chesed {חֶסֶד | ḥeṣed} ‘steadfast love’ and emet {אֱמֶת | ʾĕmet} ‘truth’ functioning as the compound subject of the Qal imperfect verb yitzru {יִצְּרוּ | yiṣṣə·rû} ‘they preserve’, with melekh {מֶלֶךְ | meleḵ} ‘king’ as its object. The conjunction ve {וְ | wə} introduces the second clause containing the Qal perfect verb sa’ad {סָעַד | sā·ʿaḏ} ‘he supports’ plus the instrumental phrase ba-chesed {בַּחֶסֶד | ba-ḥeṣed} ‘by loyalty’ modifying kis’o {כִּסְאֽוֹ | kisʼô} ‘his throne’. In the formal translation the passive rendering “is upheld” highlights the causal force of chesed and emet in sustaining royal authority. The parallel syntax emphasizes how these virtues both establish and maintain the king’s reign. |