כֹּ֥ה אָמַ֖ר אֲדֹנָ֣י יְהוִ֑ה וְהִשְׁבַּתִּי֙ אֶת־הֲמֹ֣ון מִצְרַ֔יִם בְּיַ֖ד נְבוּכַדְרֶאצַּ֥ר מֶלֶךְ־בָּבֶֽל׃
Thus says the Lord YHWH: “I will cause the multitude of Mitsrayim to cease by the hand of Nevukhadretstsar, king of Bavel.
Morphology
- כֹּה (koh) – Root: —; Form: Demonstrative adverb; Translation: “thus”; Notes: Common prophetic formula introducing direct divine speech.
- אָמַר (amar) – Root: אמר (ʾamar); Form: Qal perfect 3rd person masculine singular; Translation: “has said”; Notes: Refers to YHWH’s authoritative declaration through the prophet.
- אֲדֹנָי (ʾAdonai) – Root: אדן (ʾadon); Form: Noun plural of majesty used as a divine title; Translation: “Lord”; Notes: Paired with YHWH to emphasize divine sovereignty.
- יְהוָה (YHWH) – Root: הוה (havah); Form: Proper noun (Tetragrammaton); Translation: “YHWH”; Notes: The covenantal name of God, emphasizing His eternal being and authority.
- וְהִשְׁבַּתִּי (ve-hishbatti) – Root: שׁבת (shavat); Form: Hiphil perfect 1st person singular with conjunction וְ; Translation: “and I will cause to cease”; Notes: Causative stem indicating YHWH’s active role in ending Egypt’s power or tumult.
- אֶת (ʾet) – Root: —; Form: Direct object marker; Translation: —; Notes: Marks the following noun phrase as the object of the verb.
- הֲמֹון (hamon) – Root: המם (hamam); Form: Noun masculine singular with definite article; Translation: “the multitude” or “the tumult”; Notes: Can denote both a population and its noisy activity—referring here to Egypt’s people and wealth.
- מִצְרַיִם (Mitsrayim) – Root: מצרים (Mitsrayim); Form: Proper noun; Translation: “Mitsrayim (Egypt)”; Notes: The nation under divine judgment.
- בְּיַד (be-yad) – Root: יד (yad); Form: Preposition בְּ + noun feminine singular construct; Translation: “by the hand of”; Notes: Idiomatically denotes agency—through the instrumentality of someone.
- נְבוּכַדְרֶאצַּר (Nevukhadretstsar) – Root: —; Form: Proper noun; Translation: “Nevukhadretstsar (Nebuchadnezzar)”; Notes: King of Babylon (605–562 BCE), portrayed as YHWH’s instrument of judgment.
- מֶלֶךְ־בָּבֶל (melekh-Bavel) – Root: מלך (malakh); Form: Noun masculine singular construct + proper noun; Translation: “king of Bavel (Babylon)”; Notes: Identifies Nevukhadretstsar’s title and realm, the empire executing divine retribution on Egypt.