וַתִּבָּקַ֣ע הָעִ֗יר וְכָל־אַנְשֵׁ֨י הַמִּלְחָמָ֤ה הַלַּ֨יְלָה֙ דֶּ֜רֶךְ שַׁ֣עַר בֵּ֣ין הַחֹמֹתַ֗יִם אֲשֶׁר֙ עַל־גַּ֣ן הַמֶּ֔לֶךְ וְכַשְׂדִּ֥ים עַל־הָעִ֖יר סָבִ֑יב וַיֵּ֖לֶךְ דֶּ֥רֶךְ הָעֲרָבָֽה׃
And the city was breached, and all the men of war fled by night by the way of the gate between the two walls which is by the king’s garden, while the Kasdim were against the city round about, and he went by the way of the ʿArava.
Morphology
- וַתִּבָּקַע (va-tibbāqaʿ) – Root: בקע (baqaʿ); Form: Nifal wayyiqtol (narrative past) 3rd person feminine singular; Translation: “And it was breached”; Notes: Passive verb indicating the city’s defenses were broken.
- הָעִיר (ha-ʿir) – Root: עיר (ʿir); Form: Definite noun feminine singular; Translation: “the city”; Notes: Subject of the passive verb.
- וְכָל־אַנְשֵׁי (ve-khol-ʾanshei) – Root: אנשׁ (ʾenosh); Form: Conjunction + noun construct masculine plural; Translation: “and all the men of”; Notes: Construct chain introducing the fighters.
- הַמִּלְחָמָה (ha-milḥamah) – Root: לחם (laḥam); Form: Definite noun feminine singular; Translation: “the war”; Notes: Completes the construct phrase “men of war.”
- הַלַּיְלָה (ha-laylah) – Root: לילה (laylah); Form: Definite noun masculine singular; Translation: “the night”; Notes: Temporal adverbial modifier—when the escape happened.
- דֶּרֶךְ (derekh) – Root: דרך (derekh); Form: Noun masculine singular; Translation: “by the way”; Notes: Indicates the route taken by the fleeing men.
- שַׁעַר (shaʿar) – Root: שער (shaʿar); Form: Noun masculine singular in construct; Translation: “of the gate”; Notes: Specifies which gate they used to escape.
- בֵּין הַחֹמֹתַיִם (bein ha-ḥomotayim) – Root: חומה (ḥomah); Form: Preposition + dual noun with definite article; Translation: “between the two walls”; Notes: Locates the gate spatially.
- אֲשֶׁר (ʾasher) – Root: —; Form: Relative pronoun; Translation: “which”; Notes: Introduces a relative clause modifying the gate.
- עַל־גַּן (ʿal-gan) – Root: גן (gan); Form: Preposition + noun masculine singular; Translation: “by the garden”; Notes: Prepositional phrase indicating proximity.
- הַמֶּלֶךְ (ha-melekh) – Root: מלך (melekh); Form: Definite noun masculine singular; Translation: “the king”; Notes: Completes the phrase “the king’s garden.”
- וְכַשְׂדִּים (ve-Kasdim) – Root: כשׂד (Kasdim); Form: Conjunction + proper noun masculine plural; Translation: “and the Kasdim”; Notes: Refers to the Babylonian forces surrounding the city.
- עַל־הָעִיר (ʿal-ha-ʿir) – Root: עיר (ʿir); Form: Preposition + definite noun feminine singular; Translation: “against the city”; Notes: Denotes the opposing force around the city.
- סָבִיב (saviv) – Root: סביב (saviv); Form: Adverb; Translation: “round about”; Notes: Indicates complete encirclement.
- וַיֵּלֶךְ (va-yelekh) – Root: הלך (halakh); Form: Qal wayyiqtol (narrative past) 3rd person masculine singular; Translation: “and he went”; Notes: Refers to the king’s movement, contextually inferred.
- דֶּרֶךְ (derekh) – Root: דרך (derekh); Form: Noun masculine singular; Translation: “by the way”; Notes: Repeated phrase emphasizing the escape path.
- הָעֲרָבָה (ha-ʿaravah) – Root: ערבה (ʿaravah); Form: Definite noun feminine singular; Translation: “the ʿAravah”; Notes: Refers to the desert plain, south of Yerushalayim.