וַיְצַ֤ו מֹשֶׁה֙ אֶת־הַלְוִיִּ֔ם נֹֽשְׂאֵ֛י אֲרֹ֥ון בְּרִית־יְהוָ֖ה לֵאמֹֽר׃
And Moshe commanded the Levites who carried the Ark of the Covenant of YHWH, saying,
Morphology
- וַיְצַ֤ו (vayetstav) – Root: צוה (ts-v-h); Form: Conjunction + Piel imperfect 3rd person masculine singular (converted to past by vav-consecutive); Translation: “And he commanded”; Notes: Piel stem indicates an emphatic or intensive action.
- מֹשֶׁה֙ (Moshe) – Root: Proper noun; Form: Masculine singular proper noun; Translation: “Moshe”; Notes: Refers to the leader of Yisra’el.
- אֶת־הַלְוִיִּ֔ם (et-haLevi’im) – Root: לוי (l-w-y); Form: Direct object marker + definite article + masculine plural noun; Translation: “the Levites”; Notes: Refers to the tribe assigned priestly duties.
- נֹֽשְׂאֵ֛י (nose’ei) – Root: נשא (n-s-ʾ); Form: Qal active participle masculine plural construct; Translation: “who carried”; Notes: Indicates the ongoing role of the Levites.
- אֲרֹ֥ון (aron) – Root: ארון (ʾ-r-n); Form: Masculine singular noun; Translation: “the Ark”; Notes: Refers to the sacred chest containing the covenant tablets.
- בְּרִית־יְהוָ֖ה (berit-YHWH) – Root: ברית (b-r-y-t); Form: Feminine singular noun construct + proper name; Translation: “of the Covenant of YHWH”; Notes: Indicates the divine agreement between YHWH and Yisra’el.
- לֵאמֹֽר׃ (lemor) – Root: אמר (ʾ-m-r); Form: Preposition + Qal infinitive construct; Translation: “saying”; Notes: Introduces direct speech following the command.