וַיַּעַמְד֨וּ הָרָצִ֜ים אִ֣ישׁ וְכֵלָ֣יו בְּיָדֹ֗ו מִכֶּ֨תֶף הַבַּ֤יִת הַיְמָנִית֙ עַד־כֶּ֤תֶף הַבַּ֨יִת֙ הַשְּׂמָאלִ֔ית לַמִּזְבֵּ֖חַ וְלַבָּ֑יִת עַל־הַמֶּ֖לֶךְ סָבִֽיב׃
And the runners stood, each man with his weapons in his hand, from the right side of the house to the left side of the house, by the altar and by the house, surrounding the king.
Morphology
- וַיַּעַמְדוּ (va-yaʿamdu) – Root: עמד (ʿ-m-d); Form: Qal wayyiqtol 3rd person masculine plural; Translation: “And they stood”; Notes: Describes the positioning of the royal guard.
- הָרָצִים (ha-ratsim) – Root: רץ (r-ts); Form: Definite participle plural masculine; Translation: “the runners”; Notes: Likely elite royal guards or bodyguards.
- אִישׁ וְכֵלָיו בְּיָדֹו (ish ve-khelav be-yado) – Roots: איש (ʾ-ish), כלי (k-l-y), יד (y-d); Form: Noun + conjunction + noun with 3rd person suffix + prepositional phrase; Translation: “each man with his weapons in his hand”; Notes: Emphasizes personal readiness and armament.
- מִכֶּתֶף הַבַּיִת הַיְמָנִית (mi-ketef ha-bayit ha-yemanit) – Roots: כתף (k-t-p), בית (b-y-t), ימן (y-m-n); Form: Preposition + noun + construct noun + adjective; Translation: “from the right side of the house”; Notes: Refers to one side of the temple or royal structure.
- עַד־כֶּתֶף הַבַּיִת הַשְּׂמָאלִית (ʿad-ketef ha-bayit ha-semoʾlit) – Roots: כתף (k-t-p), שׂמאול (s-m-ʾ-l); Form: Preposition + noun + construct noun + adjective; Translation: “to the left side of the house”; Notes: Indicates full-span coverage across the structure.
- לַמִּזְבֵּחַ וְלַבָּיִת (la-mizbeaḥ ve-la-bayit) – Roots: מזבח (m-z-b-ḥ), בית (b-y-t); Form: Prepositions + definite nouns; Translation: “by the altar and by the house”; Notes: Positioning spans the sacred altar and building areas.
- עַל־הַמֶּלֶךְ סָבִיב (ʿal-ha-melekh saviv) – Roots: מלך (m-l-k), סבב (s-b-b); Form: Preposition + definite noun + adverb; Translation: “surrounding the king”; Notes: Circular protection indicating coronation security.