וְ֠הָיוּ שְׁלֹ֨שֶׁת הָאֲנָשִׁ֤ים הָאֵ֨לֶּה֙ בְּתֹוכָ֔הּ נֹ֖חַ דנאל וְאִיֹּ֑וב הֵ֤מָּה בְצִדְקָתָם֙ יְנַצְּל֣וּ נַפְשָׁ֔ם נְאֻ֖ם אֲדֹנָ֥י יְהוִֽה׃
And if these three men were in its midst—Noaḥ, Danʾel, and Iyyov—they by their righteousness would deliver their own souls,” declares the Lord YHWH.
Morphology
- וְהָיוּ (ve-hayu) – Root: היה (hayah); Form: Qal perfect 3rd person masculine plural with waw-consecutive; Translation: “and they were / and if they were”; Notes: Conditional sense here, marking a hypothetical scenario.
- שְׁלֹשֶׁת (sheloshet) – Root: שלשׁ (shalosh); Form: Noun masculine singular construct; Translation: “three (of)”; Notes: Construct form introducing the group.
- הָאֲנָשִׁים (ha-anashim) – Root: אישׁ (ʾish); Form: Definite article + noun masculine plural; Translation: “the men”; Notes: Refers to specific exemplary figures.
- הָאֵלֶּה (ha-elleh) – Root: אלה (ʾelleh); Form: Demonstrative pronoun masculine plural; Translation: “these”; Notes: Deictic, pointing to the named individuals.
- בְּתֹוכָהּ (be-tokhah) – Root: תוך (tokh); Form: Preposition + noun masculine singular with 3rd person feminine singular suffix; Translation: “in its midst”; Notes: Refers to the land under judgment.
- נֹחַ (Noaḥ) – Root: נח (Noaḥ); Form: Proper noun; Translation: “Noaḥ”; Notes: The righteous patriarch known from Genesis.
- דנאל (Danʾel) – Root: דנאל (Danʾel); Form: Proper noun (without internal yod here); Translation: “Danʾel”; Notes: Likely the righteous figure known in tradition, distinct from later Daniel spelling דניאל.
- וְאִיֹּוב (ve-Iyyov) – Root: איוב (Iyyov); Form: Conjunction + proper noun; Translation: “and Iyyov”; Notes: The righteous sufferer of wisdom tradition.
- הֵמָּה (hemmah) – Root: הם (hem); Form: Independent pronoun masculine plural; Translation: “they”; Notes: Emphasizes subject for clarity.
- בְצִדְקָתָם (ve-tsidqatam) – Root: צדק (tsedeq); Form: Preposition + noun feminine singular construct + 3rd person masculine plural suffix; Translation: “by their righteousness”; Notes: Indicates the basis of their deliverance.
- יְנַצְּלוּ (yenattselu) – Root: נצל (natsal); Form: Piel imperfect 3rd person masculine plural; Translation: “they would deliver”; Notes: Intensive stem, rescue or deliverance by effort.
- נַפְשָׁם (nafsham) – Root: נפשׁ (nefesh); Form: Noun feminine singular construct + 3rd person masculine plural suffix; Translation: “their soul”; Notes: Refers to their own lives, not others’.
- נְאֻם (neʾum) – Root: נאם (naʾam); Form: Noun masculine singular absolute; Translation: “declaration”; Notes: Prophetic formula affirming divine authority.
- אֲדֹנָי (ʾadonai) – Root: אדן (ʾadon); Form: Plural of majesty with 1st person suffix; Translation: “my Lord”; Notes: Honorific title paired with YHWH.
- יְהוִה (YHWH) – Root: הוה (hawah); Form: Proper noun, Tetragrammaton; Translation: “YHWH”; Notes: Divine covenant name, closing the oracle.