וְ֠עַתָּה כֹּֽה־תֹאמַ֞ר לְעַבְדִּ֣י לְדָוִ֗ד כֹּ֤ה אָמַר֙ יְהוָ֣ה צְבָאֹ֔ות אֲנִ֤י לְקַחְתִּ֨יךָ֙ מִן־הַנָּוֶ֔ה מֵאַחַ֖ר הַצֹּ֑אן לִֽהְיֹ֣ות נָגִ֔יד עַל־עַמִּ֖י עַל־יִשְׂרָאֵֽל׃
And now, thus you shall say to my servant Dawid, ‘Thus says YHWH of hosts: I took you from the pasture, from following the flock, to be ruler over my people, over Yisraʾel.
Morphology
- וְ֠עַתָּה (veʿattah) – Root: עתה (ʿattah); Form: Conjunction + adverb; Translation: “And now”; Notes: Indicates transition or emphasis.
- כֹּֽה־ (koh) – Root: Demonstrative adverb; Form: Adverb; Translation: “thus”; Notes: introduces prophetic instruction.
- תֹאמַ֞ר (tomar) – Root: אמר (ʾamar); Form: Qal imperfect, 2ms; Translation: “you shall say”; Notes: prophetic command form.
- לְעַבְדִּ֣י (leʿavdi) – Root: עבד (ʿeved); Form: Preposition ל + noun masculine singular construct + 1cs suffix; Translation: “to my servant”; Notes: relational term emphasizing Dawid’s status.
- לְדָוִ֗ד (le-Dawid) – Root: דוד (Dawid); Form: Preposition + proper noun masculine singular; Translation: “to Dawid”; Notes: identifies the recipient clearly.
- כֹּ֤ה (koh) – Root: Demonstrative adverb; Form: Adverb; Translation: “thus”; Notes: introduces direct quotation from YHWH.
- אָמַר֙ (ʾamar) – Root: אמר (ʾamar); Form: Qal perfect, 3ms; Translation: “says”; Notes: typical prophetic speech formula.
- יְהוָ֣ה (YHWH) – Root: יהוה (YHWH); Form: Proper noun; Translation: “YHWH”; Notes: the divine name, speaker of the prophecy.
- צְבָאֹ֔ות (tsevaʾot) – Root: צבא (tsavaʾ); Form: Noun masculine plural absolute; Translation: “hosts”; Notes: emphasizes YHWH’s power and authority.
- אֲנִ֤י (ʾani) – Root: Personal pronoun; Form: 1cs pronoun; Translation: “I”; Notes: emphasizes divine action.
- לְקַחְתִּ֨יךָ֙ (leqaḥtikha) – Root: לקח (laqach); Form: Qal perfect, 1cs + 2ms suffix; Translation: “I took you”; Notes: denotes active choice and divine calling.
- מִן־הַנָּוֶ֔ה (min-hanaveh) – Root: נוה (naveh); Form: Preposition + noun masculine singular definite; Translation: “from the pasture”; Notes: original humble context.
- מֵאַחַ֖ר (meʾaḥar) – Root: אחר (ʾaḥar); Form: Preposition מ + noun masculine singular construct; Translation: “from following”; Notes: indicates subordinate position behind flock.
- הַצֹּ֑אן (hatson) – Root: צאן (tson); Form: Noun feminine singular collective definite; Translation: “the flock”; Notes: shepherding imagery, humble beginnings.
- לִֽהְיֹ֣ות (lihyot) – Root: היה (hayah); Form: Preposition ל + Qal infinitive construct; Translation: “to be”; Notes: expresses intended purpose.
- נָגִ֔יד (nagid) – Root: נגד (nagad); Form: Noun masculine singular absolute; Translation: “ruler”; Notes: denotes leadership role.
- עַל־עַמִּ֖י (ʿal-ʿammi) – Root: עם (ʿam); Form: Preposition עַל + noun masculine singular construct + 1cs suffix; Translation: “over my people”; Notes: defines the scope of leadership.
- עַל־יִשְׂרָאֵֽל (ʿal-Yisraʾel) – Root: ישראל (Yisraʾel); Form: Preposition + proper noun; Translation: “over Yisraʾel”; Notes: identifies the nation specifically.