שָׂ֥ם תֵּבֵ֛ל כַּמִּדְבָּ֖ר וְעָרָ֣יו הָרָ֑ס אֲסִירָ֖יו לֹא־פָ֥תַח בָּֽיְתָה׃
He made the world like a wilderness and destroyed its cities; his prisoners he did not open the house for release.
Morphology
- שָׂם (sam) – Root: שׂים (sim); Form: Qal perfect 3rd person masculine singular; Translation: “he made” or “he set”; Notes: Indicates deliberate transformation.
- תֵּבֵל (tevel) – Root: תבל; Form: Noun feminine singular; Translation: “world” or “inhabited earth”; Notes: Refers to civilization or the human domain broadly.
- כַּמִּדְבָּר (ka-midbar) – Root: מדבר (midbar); Form: Preposition + noun masculine singular; Translation: “like the wilderness”; Notes: Emphasizes desolation and lifelessness.
- וְעָרָיו (ve-ʿarav) – Root: עיר (ʿir); Form: Conjunction + noun feminine plural with 3rd person masculine singular suffix; Translation: “and its cities”; Notes: Points to urban destruction.
- הָרָס (haras) – Root: הרס (haras); Form: Qal perfect 3rd person masculine singular; Translation: “he destroyed”; Notes: Violent ruination.
- אֲסִירָיו (asirav) – Root: אסר (asar); Form: Noun masculine plural with 3rd person masculine singular suffix; Translation: “his prisoners”; Notes: Those taken captive by the ruler.
- לֹא־פָתַח (lo-pataḥ) – Root: פתח (pataḥ); Form: Negative particle + Qal perfect 3rd person masculine singular; Translation: “he did not open”; Notes: Shows cruelty or denial of liberty.
- בָּיְתָה (baytah) – Root: בית (bayit); Form: Noun masculine singular with directional ה (he locale); Translation: “the house [of release]” or “to the house”; Notes: Implies a prison or house of bondage, from which he refused to release captives.