| 7. Linguistic Exegesis The causal conjunction ki {כִּי | kî} introduces a reason clause that links Wisdom’s declaration to the preceding argument. Emet {אֱמֶת | ʾĕ-met} in initial position foregrounds the theme of truthful speech. The imperfect yehgeh {יֶהְגֶּה | yeẖgĕh} conveys iterative utterance, with chiki {חִכִּי | ḥî-qî} marking Wisdom’s mouth as the agent. The coordinating vav on ve-toavat {וְתוֹעֲבַת | wə-toʿă-vat} sets up a parallel clause, where sefatay {שְׂפָתַי | sə-pā-tāy} links directly to resha {רֶשַׁע | ré-šaʿ} in a construct chain. This parallel structure balances affirmation of truth with unequivocal rejection of wickedness, a rhetorical symmetry preserved in English. |