וַיְהִ֗י בְּאַחַ֤ת עֶשְׂרֵה֙ שָׁנָ֔ה בָּֽרִאשֹׁ֖ון בְּשִׁבְעָ֣ה לַחֹ֑דֶשׁ הָיָ֥ה דְבַר־יְהוָ֖ה אֵלַ֥י לֵאמֹֽר׃
And it came to pass in the eleventh year, in the first month, on the seventh day of the month, that the word of YHWH came to me, saying,
Morphology
- וַיְהִי (vayehi) – Root: היה (hayah); Form: Qal wayyiqtol (consecutive imperfect) 3rd person masculine singular; Translation: “and it came to pass”; Notes: Typical narrative opening in Hebrew, marking a new prophetic event or oracle.
- בְּאַחַת (be’aḥat) – Root: אחד (eḥad); Form: Preposition בְּ + numeral feminine singular; Translation: “in the one”; Notes: Used idiomatically for “in the eleventh,” as part of a construct with עֶשְׂרֵה.
- עֶשְׂרֵה (ʿesreh) – Root: עשר (ʿasar); Form: Numeral construct; Translation: “ten”; Notes: Combined with אַחַת to form “eleven.”
- שָׁנָה (shanah) – Root: שנה (shanah); Form: Noun feminine singular; Translation: “year”; Notes: Temporal marker referring to the prophetic dating system.
- בָּרִאשֹׁון (ba-rishon) – Root: ראשׁ (rosh); Form: Preposition בְּ + adjective masculine singular definite; Translation: “in the first (month)”; Notes: Refers to the first month of the Hebrew calendar—Nisan (March/April).
- בְּשִׁבְעָה (be-shivʿah) – Root: שבע (shevaʿ); Form: Preposition בְּ + numeral masculine singular; Translation: “on the seventh”; Notes: Indicates the seventh day of the month.
- לַחֹדֶשׁ (la-ḥodesh) – Root: חדשׁ (ḥadash); Form: Preposition לְ + noun masculine singular definite; Translation: “of the month”; Notes: Completes the temporal expression—“on the seventh day of the month.”
- הָיָה (hayah) – Root: היה (hayah); Form: Qal perfect 3rd person masculine singular; Translation: “was”; Notes: Marks the occurrence or state—introducing the reception of the divine message.
- דְבַר־יְהוָה (devar-YHWH) – Root: דבר (davar); Form: Noun masculine singular construct + proper noun; Translation: “the word of YHWH”; Notes: A key prophetic formula denoting divine revelation.
- אֵלַי (elai) – Root: אל (ʾel); Form: Preposition אֶל + suffix 1st person singular; Translation: “to me”; Notes: Indicates direct divine address to the prophet Yeḥezqel (Ezekiel).
- לֵאמֹר (lemor) – Root: אמר (ʾamar); Form: Preposition לְ + infinitive construct; Translation: “saying”; Notes: Introduces the content of YHWH’s speech—standard in prophetic speech formulas.