1 Samuel 20:7

אִם־כֹּ֥ה יֹאמַ֛ר טֹ֖וב שָׁלֹ֣ום לְעַבְדֶּ֑ךָ וְאִם־חָרֹ֤ה יֶֽחֱרֶה֙ לֹ֔ו דַּ֕ע כִּֽי־כָלְתָ֥ה הָרָעָ֖ה מֵעִמֹּֽו׃

If he says thus, ‘It is good,’ peace will be for your servant. But if he is very angry, know that evil is determined against him.

Morphology

1. אִם־כֹּ֥ה (im-ko) – Root: כה (ko); Form: Conditional particle + adverb; Translation: “If thus”; Notes: Introduces a conditional statement.
2. יֹאמַ֛ר (yoʾmar) – Root: אמר (ʾamar); Form: Imperfect 3rd person masculine singular, Qal; Translation: “he says”; Notes: Refers to Shaʾul.
3. טֹ֖וב (tov) – Root: טוב (tov); Form: Adjective, masculine singular; Translation: “good”; Notes: Describes the response.
4. שָׁלֹ֣ום (shalom) – Root: שלום (shalom); Form: Noun, masculine singular; Translation: “peace”; Notes: Outcome of a favorable response.
5. לְעַבְדֶּ֑ךָ (le-ʿavdekha) – Root: עבד (ʿeved); Form: Noun, masculine singular construct with 2nd person masculine singular suffix; Translation: “to your servant”; Notes: Refers to Dawid.
6. וְאִם־חָרֹ֤ה (ve-im-ḥaro) – Root: חרה (ḥarah); Form: Conjunctive vav + conditional particle + infinitive absolute, Qal; Translation: “But if very angry”; Notes: Infinitive absolute intensifies the verb.
7. יֶֽחֱרֶה֙ (yeḥereh) – Root: חרה (ḥarah); Form: Imperfect 3rd person masculine singular, Qal; Translation: “he is angry”; Notes: Refers to Shaʾul.
8. לֹ֔ו (lo) – Root: לו (lo); Form: Preposition with 3rd person masculine singular suffix; Translation: “to him”; Notes: Refers to Shaʾul’s anger.
9. דַּ֕ע (daʿ) – Root: ידע (yadaʿ); Form: Imperative 2nd person masculine singular, Qal; Translation: “know”; Notes: Directs Yehonatan to take notice.
10. כִּֽי־כָלְתָ֥ה (ki-khaltah) – Root: כלה (kalah); Form: Conjunction + perfect 3rd person feminine singular, Qal; Translation: “that it is determined”; Notes: Expresses certainty.
11. הָרָעָ֖ה (ha-raʿah) – Root: רעע (raʿaʿ); Form: Noun, feminine singular, definite; Translation: “the evil”; Notes: Refers to impending harm.
12. מֵעִמֹּֽו׃ (me-ʿimmo) – Root: עם (ʿim); Form: Preposition with 3rd person masculine singular suffix; Translation: “from him” or “against him”; Notes: Indicates the source. “against him ” : In this case, David refers to himself as “your servant” (“עַבְדֶּ֑ךָ“), but he uses “him” (“עִמֹּֽו“) in a more indirect way, which might seem unusual in English. However, the structure works in Hebrew, as the third-person reference reflects David’s deferential tone when addressing Jonathan. It’s a way for David to present his situation as though he’s speaking about someone else—perhaps to gain objectivity or emphasize the gravity of the situation. This feature of biblical Hebrew gives it a unique and nuanced tone that can sometimes seem odd when translated into English.