| 11. Linguistic Exegesis The verse opens with ki {כִּי־ | kî} ‘for’, linking the adversaries’ intentions to the preceding assurance of protection. The perfect verbs natu {נָטוּ | nā-ṭû} ‘they inclined’ and chashavū {חָשְׁבוּ | ḥāšə-ḇû} ‘they devised’ form a pair of hostile actions. The prepositional phrase aleikha {עָלֶיךָ | ʿā-lê-ḵā} ‘against you’ marks the divine addressee. The nouns raʿah {רָעָה | rāʿāh} ‘evil’ and mezimmāh {מְזִמָּה | məzimmāh} ‘scheme’ underscore intent and design. The negative particle bal {בַּל־ | bal} attached to the imperfect yukhalu {יוּכָלוּ | yûḵālû} ‘they are able’ highlights the failure of the plot. The verb-noun parallelism intensifies the contrast between malevolent purpose and its inevitable frustration. |