מַפֵּץ־אַתָּ֣ה לִ֔י כְּלֵ֖י מִלְחָמָ֑ה וְנִפַּצְתִּ֤י בְךָ֙ גֹּויִ֔ם וְהִשְׁחַתִּ֥י בְךָ֖ מַמְלָכֹֽות׃
You are My war-club, My weapons of battle; and with you I will shatter nations, and with you I will destroy kingdoms.
Morphology
- מַפֵּץ (mapetz) – Root: פוץ / נפץ; Form: Noun masculine singular absolute; Translation: “war-club/hammer”; Notes: Instrument of smashing, symbol of destructive power.
- אַתָּה (attah) – Root: —; Form: Independent pronoun masculine singular; Translation: “you”; Notes: Directly addresses the object (Babylon’s conqueror, often interpreted as Medo-Persia).
- לִי (li) – Root: —; Form: Preposition לְ + first person singular suffix; Translation: “to Me / for Me”; Notes: Expresses possession: “My.”
- כְּלֵי (klei) – Root: כלי; Form: Noun masculine plural construct; Translation: “weapons of”; Notes: Refers to instruments, here of war.
- מִלְחָמָה (milḥamah) – Root: לחם; Form: Noun feminine singular absolute; Translation: “battle”; Notes: Refers to armed conflict.
- וְנִפַּצְתִּי (ve-nippatsti) – Root: נפץ; Form: Piel perfect 1st person singular with vav-consecutive; Translation: “and I will shatter”; Notes: God declares His use of the “club” to crush nations.
- בְךָ (vekha) – Root: —; Form: Preposition בְּ + second masculine singular suffix; Translation: “with you”; Notes: Babylon’s conqueror is the instrument of divine judgment.
- גֹּויִם (goyim) – Root: גוי; Form: Noun masculine plural absolute; Translation: “nations”; Notes: Peoples subject to conquest.
- וְהִשְׁחַתִּי (ve-hishḥatti) – Root: שׁחת; Form: Hifil perfect 1st person singular with vav-consecutive; Translation: “and I will destroy”; Notes: Stronger than “shatter,” indicating complete ruin.
- בְךָ (vekha) – Root: —; Form: Preposition בְּ + second masculine singular suffix; Translation: “with you”; Notes: Repetition emphasizes the role of the instrument.
- מַמְלָכוֹת (mamlakhot) – Root: מלך; Form: Noun feminine plural absolute; Translation: “kingdoms”; Notes: Political entities subject to God’s judgment.