וַיֹּ֧אמֶר אֲלֵהֶ֛ם יֹוסֵ֖ף אַל־תִּירָ֑אוּ כִּ֛י הֲתַ֥חַת אֱלֹהִ֖ים אָֽנִי׃
And Yosef said to them, “Do not be afraid, for am I in the place of God?”
Morphology
- וַיֹּ֧אמֶר (vayyoʾmer) – Root: אמר (ʾamar); Form: Verb, Qal, Wayyiqtol, 3ms; Translation: “And he said”; Notes: Describes Yosef’s speech to his brothers.
- אֲלֵהֶ֛ם (ʾalehem) – Root: אל (ʾel); Form: Preposition with 3mp suffix; Translation: “to them”; Notes: Indicates the direction of Yosef’s words.
- יֹוסֵ֖ף (Yosef) – Root: יסף (yasaf); Form: Proper noun; Translation: “Yosef”; Notes: Refers to the speaker.
- אַל־תִּירָ֑אוּ (ʾal-tiraʾu) – Root: ירא (yara); Form: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, 2mp, Jussive; Translation: “Do not be afraid”; Notes: Expresses a command to dispel fear.
- כִּ֛י (ki) – Root: כי (ki); Form: Conjunction; Translation: “for”; Notes: Introduces the rationale for Yosef’s reassurance.
- הֲתַ֥חַת (hataḥat) – Root: תחת (taḥat); Form: Preposition; Translation: “Am I in the place of”; Notes: Indicates a rhetorical question implying Yosef’s humility.
- אֱלֹהִ֖ים (Elohim) – Root: אלה (ʾelah); Form: Noun, masculine plural; Translation: “God”; Notes: Refers to the divine authority Yosef acknowledges.
- אָֽנִי (ʾani) – Root: אני (ʾani); Form: Pronoun, first person singular; Translation: “I”; Notes: Emphasizes Yosef’s self-reference in the rhetorical question.