וַיִּתְגַּנֵּ֥ב הָעָ֛ם בַּיֹּ֥ום הַה֖וּא לָבֹ֣וא הָעִ֑יר כַּאֲשֶׁ֣ר יִתְגַּנֵּ֗ב הָעָם֙ הַנִּכְלָמִ֔ים בְּנוּסָ֖ם בַּמִּלְחָמָֽה׃
And the people crept into the city on that day, as people who are ashamed creep in when they flee in battle.
Morphology
- וַיִּתְגַּנֵּב (vayyitgannev) – Root: גנב; Form: Wayyiqtol Hitpael imperfect 3rd masculine singular; Translation: “And he/they crept” / “sneaked in”; Notes: Reflexive nuance—indicates quiet, secretive entry.
- הָעָם (ha-ʿam) – Root: עם; Form: Definite noun masculine singular (collective); Translation: “the people”; Notes: Subject of the verb.
- בַּיֹּום (ba-yom) – Root: יום; Form: Preposition + definite noun masculine singular; Translation: “on the day”; Notes: Temporal phrase.
- הַהוּא (ha-hu) – Root: הוא; Form: Demonstrative pronoun masculine singular; Translation: “that”; Notes: Modifies “day.”
- לָבֹוא (lavo) – Root: בוא; Form: Preposition + Qal infinitive construct; Translation: “to enter”; Notes: Purpose clause—”to come into.”
- הָעִיר (ha-ʿir) – Root: עיר; Form: Definite noun feminine singular; Translation: “the city”; Notes: Object of the infinitive.
- כַּאֲשֶׁר (kaʾasher) – Root: אשר; Form: Comparative conjunction; Translation: “as when”; Notes: Introduces a comparison or analogy.
- יִתְגַּנֵּב (yitgannev) – Root: גנב; Form: Hitpael imperfect 3rd masculine singular; Translation: “he creeps” / “one creeps”; Notes: Generic behavior in a given situation.
- הָעָם (ha-ʿam) – Root: עם; Form: Definite noun masculine singular (collective); Translation: “the people”; Notes: Subject of the comparison.
- הַנִּכְלָמִים (ha-nikhlamim) – Root: כלם; Form: Nifal participle masculine plural; Translation: “those who are ashamed”; Notes: Describes the emotional state of the returning people.
- בְּנוּסָם (benusam) – Root: נוס; Form: Preposition + Qal infinitive construct with 3rd masculine plural suffix; Translation: “when they flee”; Notes: Describes circumstance of the shame.
- בַּמִּלְחָמָה (ba-milḥamah) – Root: לחם; Form: Preposition + definite noun feminine singular; Translation: “in the battle”; Notes: Indicates context of their shame and retreat.