וַיִּשְׁמַ֞ע יִתְרֹ֨ו כֹהֵ֤ן מִדְיָן֙ חֹתֵ֣ן מֹשֶׁ֔ה אֵת֩ כָּל־אֲשֶׁ֨ר עָשָׂ֤ה אֱלֹהִים֙ לְמֹשֶׁ֔ה וּלְיִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל עַמֹּ֑ו כִּֽי־הֹוצִ֧יא יְהוָ֛ה אֶת־יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל מִמִּצְרָֽיִם׃
And Yitro, the priest of Midyan, the father-in-law of Moshe, heard about all that Elohim had done for Moshe and for Yisra’el His people, how YHWH had brought Yisra’el out of Mitsrayim.
Morphology
- וַיִּשְׁמַ֞ע (vayyishmaʿ) – Root: שׁמע (sh-m-ʿ); Form: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, 3ms with vav consecutive; Translation: “And he heard”; Notes: Introduces Yitro’s reaction to the events.
- יִתְרֹ֨ו (Yitro) – Root: N/A; Form: Proper noun; Translation: “Yitro”; Notes: The name of Moshe’s father-in-law.
- כֹהֵ֤ן (kohen) – Root: כהן (k-h-n); Form: Noun, masculine singular absolute; Translation: “Priest”; Notes: Denotes Yitro’s religious position in Midyan.
- מִדְיָן֙ (Midyan) – Root: N/A; Form: Proper noun; Translation: “Midyan”; Notes: A region or people in the ancient Near East.
- חֹתֵ֣ן (ḥoten) – Root: חתן (ḥ-t-n); Form: Noun, masculine singular construct; Translation: “Father-in-law of”; Notes: Indicates Yitro’s relationship to Moshe.
- מֹשֶׁ֔ה (Moshe) – Root: N/A; Form: Proper noun; Translation: “Moshe”; Notes: The central figure in the narrative.
- אֵת֩ (ʾet) – Root: N/A; Form: Direct object marker; Translation: N/A; Notes: Marks the direct object of the verb.
- כָּל־אֲשֶׁ֨ר (kol-asher) – Root: כל (k-l) + אשר (ʾ-sh-r); Form: Noun, masculine singular construct + relative pronoun; Translation: “All that”; Notes: Refers to the entirety of Elohim’s deeds.
- עָשָׂ֤ה (ʿasah) – Root: עשׂה (ʿ-s-h); Form: Verb, Qal, Perfect, 3ms; Translation: “He had done”; Notes: Refers to Elohim’s actions.
- אֱלֹהִים֙ (Elohim) – Root: אלה (ʾ-l-h); Form: Proper noun; Translation: “Elohim”; Notes: Refers to God in a general or divine capacity.
- לְמֹשֶׁ֔ה (le-Moshe) – Root: N/A; Form: Preposition + Proper noun; Translation: “For Moshe”; Notes: Indicates the recipient of Elohim’s actions.
- וּלְיִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל (u-le-Yisraʾel) – Root: N/A; Form: Conjunction + Preposition + Proper noun; Translation: “And for Yisra’el”; Notes: Identifies the people who benefitted from Elohim’s deeds.
- עַמֹּ֑ו (ammo) – Root: עם (ʿ-m); Form: Noun, masculine singular construct + 3ms suffix; Translation: “His people”; Notes: Refers to Yisra’el as Elohim’s people.
- כִּֽי־הֹוצִ֧יא (ki-hotsi) – Root: יצא (y-ts-ʾ); Form: Conjunction + Verb, Hifil, Perfect, 3ms; Translation: “How He had brought out”; Notes: Explains the reason for the hearing.
- יְהוָ֛ה (YHWH) – Root: N/A; Form: Proper noun; Translation: “YHWH”; Notes: The covenant name of God.
- אֶת־יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל (et-Yisraʾel) – Root: N/A; Form: Direct object marker + Proper noun; Translation: “Yisra’el”; Notes: The object of YHWH’s deliverance.
- מִמִּצְרָֽיִם׃ (mi-Mitsrayim) – Root: מצר (m-ts-r); Form: Preposition + Proper noun; Translation: “Out of Mitsrayim”; Notes: Indicates the place of deliverance.