Isaiah 42:14

הֶחֱשֵׁ֨יתִי֙ מֵֽעֹולָ֔ם אַחֲרִ֖ישׁ אֶתְאַפָּ֑ק כַּיֹּולֵדָ֣ה אֶפְעֶ֔ה אֶשֹּׁ֥ם וְאֶשְׁאַ֖ף יָֽחַד׃

I have kept silent from eternity, I have been still, I restrained Myself; like a woman in labor I will groan, I will pant and gasp together.

Morphology

1. הֶחֱשֵׁ֨יתִי (heḥešēti) – Root: חשׁה; Form: Hifil perfect 1st person singular; Translation: “I have kept silent”; Notes: Hifil with causative nuance of making oneself silent or refraining.
2. מֵֽעֹולָ֔ם (me-ʿolam) – Root: עולם; Form: Preposition + noun masculine singular; Translation: “from eternity / forever”; Notes: Indicates prolonged or ancient duration.
3. אַחֲרִ֖ישׁ (ʾaḥarish) – Root: חרשׁ; Form: Hifil imperfect 1st person singular; Translation: “I have been still / silent”; Notes: Reinforces silent inaction.
4. אֶתְאַפָּ֑ק (ʾetʾappaq) – Root: אפק; Form: Hitpael imperfect 1st person singular; Translation: “I restrained Myself”; Notes: Reflexive—restraining one’s own actions or emotions.
5. כַּיֹּולֵדָ֣ה (ka-yolēdah) – Root: ילד; Form: Preposition + participle feminine singular; Translation: “like a woman in labor”; Notes: Vivid metaphor for intense struggle or imminent eruption.
6. אֶפְעֶ֔ה (efʿeh) – Root: פעה; Form: Qal imperfect 1st person singular; Translation: “I will groan”; Notes: Expresses audible travail or distress.
7. אֶשֹּׁ֥ם (ʾeššom) – Root: שׁאם (likely onomatopoetic); Form: Qal imperfect 1st person singular; Translation: “I will pant”; Notes: Very rare verb, likely linked with gasping sounds.
8. וְאֶשְׁאַ֖ף (ve-ʾešʾaf) – Root: שׁאף; Form: Qal imperfect 1st person singular with conjunction; Translation: “and I will gasp”; Notes: Indicates breathing with effort, used metaphorically for divine release of pent-up energy.
9. יָֽחַד (yaḥad) – Root: יחד; Form: Adverb; Translation: “together / all at once”; Notes: Indicates simultaneity of the actions described.