לֹ֥א יָדְע֖וּ וְלֹ֣א יָבִ֑ינוּ כִּ֣י טַ֤ח מֵֽרְאֹות֙ עֵֽינֵיהֶ֔ם מֵהַשְׂכִּ֖יל לִבֹּתָֽם׃
They do not know and they do not understand, for their eyes are smeared from seeing, their hearts from discerning.
Morphology
- לֹא (lo) – Root: לא; Form: Negative particle; Translation: “not”; Notes: Negates the following verbs.
- יָדְעוּ (yadʿu) – Root: ידע; Form: Qal perfect 3rd person masculine plural; Translation: “they knew”; Notes: Refers to cognitive awareness or comprehension, here denied.
- וְלֹא (ve-lo) – Root: לא; Form: Conjunction + negative particle; Translation: “and not”; Notes: Continues the negation.
- יָבִינוּ (yavinu) – Root: בין; Form: Qal imperfect 3rd person masculine plural; Translation: “they understand”; Notes: Mental discernment or insight, lacking in this context.
- כִּי (ki) – Root: כי; Form: Conjunction; Translation: “for” or “because”; Notes: Introduces the reason for their lack of understanding.
- טַח (taḥ) – Root: טח; Form: Qal perfect 3rd person masculine singular; Translation: “he has smeared” or “has coated”; Notes: Refers to a blinding or covering action that prevents vision.
- מֵרְאֹות (me-reʾot) – Root: ראה; Form: Preposition + Qal infinitive construct; Translation: “from seeing”; Notes: Indicates the purpose or effect of the smearing.
- עֵינֵיהֶם (ʿeinehem) – Root: עין; Form: Noun feminine plural + 3rd person masculine plural suffix; Translation: “their eyes”; Notes: Subject of the visual impairment.
- מֵהַשְׂכִּיל (me-haskil) – Root: שׂכל; Form: Preposition + Hifil infinitive construct; Translation: “from discerning” or “from understanding”; Notes: Refers to internal perception or insight.
- לִבֹּתָם (libbotam) – Root: לבב; Form: Noun masculine plural (poetic dual/plural form) + 3rd person masculine plural suffix; Translation: “their hearts”; Notes: The seat of understanding in biblical Hebrew thought.