| 6. Linguistic Exegesis The fronted emphatic pronoun anokhi {אָנֹכִי | ʾā-nō-ḵî} ‘I’ intensifies the speaker’s self-deprecation. The coordinating conjunction vav {וְ | wə-} ‘and’ with velo {וְלֹא־ | wə-lōʾ} ‘and not’ sets up contrast with ish {אִישׁ | ʾîš} ‘man’. The merism tolaat {תוֹלַעַת | tō-la-ʿaṯ} ‘worm’ and negation underscores utter abasement. The construct chain kherpat adam {חֶרְפַּת אָדָם | ḥerp̄aṯ ʾā-ḏām} ‘reproach of man’ binds shame to humanity. The passive-participial clause uvezui am {וּבְזוּי עָם | û-ḇə-zûy ʿām} ‘despised by the people’ expresses communal rejection. |