לֽוּ־חַיָּ֥ה רָעָ֛ה אַעֲבִ֥יר בָּאָ֖רֶץ וְשִׁכְּלָ֑תָּה וְהָיְתָ֤ה שְׁמָמָה֙ מִבְּלִ֣י עֹובֵ֔ר מִפְּנֵ֖י הַחַיָּֽה׃
“If a wild beast I let pass through the land and it bereaves it, and it becomes desolate, so that no one passes through because of the beast.
Morphology
- לֽוּ (lu) – Root: —; Form: Conditional particle; Translation: “if”; Notes: Marks a hypothetical condition.
- חַיָּה (ḥayyah) – Root: חיה (ḥayah); Form: Noun feminine singular absolute; Translation: “beast”; Notes: Refers to a wild animal, agent of destruction.
- רָעָה (raʿah) – Root: רעע (raʿaʿ); Form: Adjective feminine singular; Translation: “wild / evil”; Notes: Qualifies the beast as dangerous.
- אַעֲבִיר (ʾaʿavir) – Root: עבר (ʿavar); Form: Hiphil imperfect 1st person common singular; Translation: “I let pass through”; Notes: Causative sense: YHWH allowing beasts to roam.
- בָּאָרֶץ (ba-ʾarets) – Root: ארץ (ʾerets); Form: Preposition בְּ + definite noun feminine singular; Translation: “in the land”; Notes: The land under divine judgment.
- וְשִׁכְּלָתָּה (ve-shikkeltah) – Root: שׁכל (shakal); Form: Piel perfect 3rd person feminine singular with 3rd person feminine singular suffix; Translation: “and it bereaves it”; Notes: Indicates making bereft, removing inhabitants.
- וְהָיְתָה (ve-hayetah) – Root: היה (hayah); Form: Qal perfect 3rd person feminine singular with waw-consecutive; Translation: “and it becomes”; Notes: Refers to the land’s state.
- שְׁמָמָה (shemamah) – Root: שׁמם (shamem); Form: Noun feminine singular absolute; Translation: “desolation”; Notes: Total ruin or wilderness.
- מִבְּלִי (mi-beli) – Root: בלי (beli); Form: Preposition with negative particle; Translation: “without”; Notes: Indicates absence of activity.
- עֹובֵר (ʿover) – Root: עבר (ʿavar); Form: Qal participle masculine singular; Translation: “passing through”; Notes: Refers to people moving through the land.
- מִפְּנֵי (mi-penei) – Root: פנים (panim); Form: Preposition מן + noun plural construct; Translation: “because of”; Notes: Denotes cause or reason.
- הַחַיָּה (ha-ḥayyah) – Root: חיה (ḥayah); Form: Definite article + noun feminine singular absolute; Translation: “the beast”; Notes: Specific reference to the destructive wild animal.