וְרָבְצוּ־שָׁ֣ם צִיִּ֔ים וּמָלְא֥וּ בָתֵּיהֶ֖ם אֹחִ֑ים וְשָׁ֤כְנוּ שָׁם֙ בְּנֹ֣ות יַֽעֲנָ֔ה וּשְׂעִירִ֖ים יְרַקְּדוּ־שָֽׁם׃
And wild beasts shall lie there, and their houses shall be filled with howling creatures; and daughters of the ostrich shall dwell there, and goat-demons shall dance there.
Morphology
- וְרָבְצוּ־שָׁם (ve-ravtzu sham) – Root: רבץ (ravats); Form: Conjunction + Qal perfect 3rd person masculine plural + adverb; Translation: “And they shall lie down there”; Notes: Refers to wild animals settling in ruins.
- צִיִּים (tsiyyim) – Root: ציה (tsiyah); Form: Noun masculine plural; Translation: “wild beasts” or “desert dwellers”; Notes: Possibly jackals or mythical desert creatures.
- וּמָלְאוּ (u-maleʾu) – Root: מלא (male); Form: Conjunction + Qal perfect 3rd person masculine plural; Translation: “and they shall be filled”; Notes: Refers to the ruined houses now occupied.
- בָתֵּיהֶם (batteihem) – Root: בית (bayit); Form: Construct plural with 3rd person masculine plural suffix; Translation: “their houses”; Notes: Refers to the dwellings of former inhabitants.
- אֹחִים (oḥim) – Root: Possibly אח (aḥ), onomatopoeic; Form: Noun masculine plural; Translation: “howling creatures”; Notes: Likely refers to owls or other night-birds that emit eerie cries.
- וְשָׁכְנוּ (ve-shakhnu) – Root: שׁכן (shakhan); Form: Conjunction + Qal perfect 3rd person masculine plural; Translation: “and they shall dwell”; Notes: A new population of creatures inhabiting the ruins.
- שָׁם (sham) – Root: שם; Form: Adverb; Translation: “there”; Notes: Emphasizes the site of desolation.
- בְּנֹות יַעֲנָה (benot yaʿanah) – Root: בת + יען; Form: Construct noun feminine plural + noun feminine singular; Translation: “daughters of the ostrich”; Notes: Either literal ostriches or poetic imagery for eerie desert dwellers.
- וּשְׂעִירִים (u-seʿirim) – Root: שׂער (saʿir); Form: Conjunction + noun masculine plural; Translation: “and goat-demons”; Notes: May refer to wild goats or mythological satyrs (cf. Leviticus 17:7).
- יְרַקְּדוּ־שָׁם (yerakkedu sham) – Root: רקד (raqad); Form: Piel imperfect 3rd person masculine plural + adverb; Translation: “shall dance there”; Notes: Vivid image of unclean spirits or wild beasts taking over.