וְעַתָּה֙ הִתְעָ֣רֶב נָ֔א אֶת־אֲדֹנִ֖י אֶת־מֶ֣לֶךְ אַשּׁ֑וּר וְאֶתְּנָ֤ה לְךָ֙ אַלְפַּ֣יִם סוּסִ֔ים אִם־תּוּכַ֕ל לָ֥תֶת לְךָ֖ רֹכְבִ֥ים עֲלֵיהֶֽם׃
And now, make a pledge please with my lord, with the king of Ashshur, and I will give you two thousand horses, if you are able to put riders upon them.
Morphology
- וְעַתָּה֙ (ve-ʿattah) – Root: עת; Form: Conjunction + adverb; Translation: “And now”; Notes: Introduces a rhetorical challenge or demand.
- הִתְעָ֣רֶב (hitʿarev) – Root: ערב; Form: Hitpael imperative masculine singular; Translation: “make a pledge”; Notes: Suggests entering into a wager or agreement, here sarcastically.
- נָ֔א (na) – Form: Particle of entreaty; Translation: “please”; Notes: Adds politeness or irony to the imperative.
- אֶת־אֲדֹנִ֖י (et-adoni) – Root: אדן; Form: Accusative marker + noun with 1st person singular suffix; Translation: “with my lord”; Notes: Refers to the king of Ashshur, speaker’s master.
- אֶת־מֶ֣לֶךְ אַשּׁ֑וּר (et-melekh Ashshur) – Root: מלך, אשׁור; Form: Accusative marker + construct noun + proper noun; Translation: “with the king of Ashshur”; Notes: Restates and emphasizes the authority being invoked.
- וְאֶתְּנָ֤ה (ve-ettenah) – Root: נתן; Form: Conjunction + Qal cohortative 1st person singular; Translation: “and I will give”; Notes: Offer made as part of the challenge.
- לְךָ֙ (lekha) – Root: ל; Form: Preposition + 2nd person masculine singular suffix; Translation: “to you”; Notes: Recipient of the horses.
- אַלְפַּ֣יִם (alpayim) – Root: אלף; Form: Dual form noun; Translation: “two thousand”; Notes: Number of horses offered.
- סוּסִ֔ים (susim) – Root: סוס; Form: Plural noun masculine; Translation: “horses”; Notes: War animals offered as mock generosity.
- אִם־תּוּכַ֕ל (im-tukhal) – Root: יכל; Form: Conditional particle + Qal imperfect 2nd person masculine singular; Translation: “if you are able”; Notes: Conditional clause challenging capability.
- לָ֥תֶת (latet) – Root: נתן; Form: Preposition + Qal infinitive construct; Translation: “to place” or “to provide”; Notes: Refers to assigning riders to horses.
- לְךָ֖ (lekha) – Root: ל; Form: Preposition + 2nd person masculine singular suffix; Translation: “for yourself”; Notes: Reflects the challenge being personal.
- רֹכְבִ֥ים (rokhvim) – Root: רכב; Form: Qal participle masculine plural; Translation: “riders”; Notes: Soldiers or cavalrymen to mount the horses.
- עֲלֵיהֶֽם (ʿalehem) – Root: על; Form: Preposition + 3rd person masculine plural suffix; Translation: “upon them”; Notes: Refers to the horses offered.