וַיֹּ֨אמֶר דָּוִ֤ד אֶל־אֲבִישַׁי֙ וְאֶל־כָּל־עֲבָדָ֔יו הִנֵּ֥ה בְנִ֛י אֲשֶׁר־יָצָ֥א מִמֵּעַ֖י מְבַקֵּ֣שׁ אֶת־נַפְשִׁ֑י וְאַ֨ף כִּֽי־עַתָּ֜ה בֶּן־הַיְמִינִ֗י הַנִּ֤חוּ לֹו֙ וִֽיקַלֵּ֔ל כִּ֥י אָֽמַר־לֹ֖ו יְהוָֽה׃
And Dawid said to Avishai and to all his servants, “Behold, my son who came forth from my own body seeks my life; how much more now this Binyamini! Let him alone, and let him curse, for YHWH has said to him.
Morphology
- וַיֹּ֨אמֶר (vayyomer) – Root: אמר; Form: Qal wayyiqtol 3rd masculine singular; Translation: “And he said”; Notes: Marks a narrative action by Dawid.
- דָּוִ֤ד (Dawid) – Root: דוד; Form: Proper noun; Translation: “Dawid”; Notes: Subject of the verb.
- אֶל־אֲבִישַׁי֙ (el-Avishai) – Root: אבישי; Form: Preposition + proper noun; Translation: “to Avishai”; Notes: Addressee of Dawid’s speech.
- וְאֶל־כָּל־עֲבָדָ֔יו (ve-el-kol-avadav) – Root: עבד; Form: Conjunction + preposition + noun + 3mp suffix; Translation: “and to all his servants”; Notes: Plural audience of Dawid.
- הִנֵּ֥ה (hinneh) – Root: הנה; Form: Interjection; Translation: “Behold”; Notes: Draws attention to what follows.
- בְנִ֛י (veni) – Root: בן; Form: Noun + 1cs suffix; Translation: “my son”; Notes: Refers to Avshalom.
- אֲשֶׁר־יָצָ֥א (asher-yatsa) – Root: יצא; Form: Relative pronoun + Qal perfect 3ms; Translation: “who came out”; Notes: Subordinate clause introducing son.
- מִמֵּעַ֖י (mi-meʿai) – Root: מעים; Form: Preposition + noun (plural form, singular meaning) + 1cs suffix; Translation: “from my body”; Notes: A vivid phrase meaning “my own flesh.”
- מְבַקֵּ֣שׁ (mevaqqesh) – Root: בקש; Form: Piel participle masculine singular; Translation: “seeks”; Notes: Ongoing action.
- אֶת־נַפְשִׁ֑י (et-nafshi) – Root: נפש; Form: Object marker + noun + 1cs suffix; Translation: “my life”; Notes: Target of aggression.
- וְאַ֨ף (ve-af) – Root: אף; Form: Conjunction/adverb; Translation: “how much more”; Notes: Emphatic comparison.
- כִּֽי־עַתָּ֜ה (ki-ʿattah) – Root: עתה; Form: Conjunction + adverb; Translation: “now”; Notes: Present circumstance contrasted with past.
- בֶּן־הַיְמִינִ֗י (ben-ha-Yemini) – Root: ימין; Form: Construct noun + adjective; Translation: “this Benjaminite”; Notes: Refers to Shimʿi.
- הַנִּ֤חוּ לֹו֙ (hanichu lo) – Root: נוח; Form: Hifil imperative masculine plural + 3ms suffix; Translation: “let him alone”; Notes: Directive to his men.
- וִֽיקַלֵּ֔ל (vayekallel) – Root: קלל; Form: Piel jussive 3ms with vav; Translation: “and let him curse”; Notes: Expresses concession.
- כִּ֥י (ki) – Root: כי; Form: Conjunction; Translation: “for”; Notes: Gives the reason for the concession.
- אָמַר־לֹ֖ו (amar-lo) – Root: אמר; Form: Qal perfect 3ms + preposition + 3ms suffix; Translation: “He has said to him”; Notes: Refers to YHWH’s command to Shimʿi.
- יְהוָֽה (YHWH) – Root: יהוה; Form: Proper noun; Translation: “YHWH”; Notes: Ultimate source of permission or decree.