| 9. Linguistic Exegesis The proverb uses synonymous parallelism with two balanced pairs. The first pair, shemen {שֶׁמֶן | šĕ-men} ‘oil’ and ketoret {קְטֹרֶת | qə-ṭō-reṯ} ‘incense’, functions as parallel agents that make the heart rejoice. The verb-object sequence yesamach-lev {יְשַׂמַּֽח־לֵב | yĕ-sam-maḥ-lēv} places emphasis on the resulting joy. In the second pair, u-metek re’ehu {וּמֶתֶק רֵעֵהוּ | ū-me-tek rê-’ê-hû} ‘the sweetness of a friend’ parallels me-atzat-nafesh {מֵעֲצַת־נָפֶשׁ | me-ʿa-ṣat nā-pheš} ‘from counsel of the soul’. The construct chain in me-ʿa-ṣat nā-pheš links counsel tightly to soul, highlighting depth and sincerity. The coordinating conjunction w- binds the parallel members, preserving poetic balance. The translation mirrors this structure by maintaining parallel syntax and coordination in English. |