וְהֻסַּ֤ג אָחֹור֙ מִשְׁפָּ֔ט וּצְדָקָ֖ה מֵרָחֹ֣וק תַּעֲמֹ֑ד כִּֽי־כָשְׁלָ֤ה בָֽרְחֹוב֙ אֱמֶ֔ת וּנְכֹחָ֖ה לֹא־תוּכַ֥ל לָבֹֽוא׃
And justice is driven back, and righteousness stands far off; for truth has stumbled in the street, and uprightness cannot enter.
Morphology
- וְהֻסַּג (ve-hussag) – Root: סוג; Form: Pual perfect 3rd person masculine singular; Translation: “is driven back”; Notes: Passive voice emphasizes how justice is forcefully pushed away.
- אָחֹור (aḥor) – Root: אחור; Form: Adverb; Translation: “back”; Notes: Spatial or metaphorical withdrawal.
- מִשְׁפָּט (mishpat) – Root: שׁפט; Form: Noun masculine singular; Translation: “justice”; Notes: Legal or divine judgment.
- וּצְדָקָה (u-tsedaqah) – Root: צדק; Form: Conjunction + noun feminine singular; Translation: “and righteousness”; Notes: Moral integrity, often parallel to justice.
- מֵרָחֹוק (me-raḥoq) – Root: רחוק; Form: Preposition + noun masculine singular; Translation: “from far away”; Notes: Righteousness is out of reach.
- תַּעֲמֹד (taʿamod) – Root: עמד; Form: Qal imperfect 3rd person feminine singular; Translation: “stands”; Notes: Feminine subject referring to righteousness.
- כִּי (ki) – Root: כי; Form: Conjunction; Translation: “for”; Notes: Introduces the reason for previous statements.
- כָשְׁלָה (kashlah) – Root: כשל; Form: Qal perfect 3rd person feminine singular; Translation: “has stumbled”; Notes: Refers to falling or failure.
- בָרְחֹוב (va-rḥov) – Root: רחוב; Form: Preposition + noun masculine singular; Translation: “in the street”; Notes: Public space—symbol of societal life.
- אֱמֶת (ʾemet) – Root: אמת; Form: Noun feminine singular; Translation: “truth”; Notes: Concept of reliability and moral truth.
- וּנְכֹחָה (u-nekhokhah) – Root: נכח; Form: Conjunction + noun feminine singular; Translation: “and uprightness”; Notes: That which is straight, honest, and clear.
- לֹא (lo) – Root: לא; Form: Negative particle; Translation: “not”; Notes: Denies the following verb.
- תוּכַל (tukhal) – Root: יכל; Form: Qal imperfect 3rd person feminine singular; Translation: “can”; Notes: Indicates inability.
- לָבֹוא (la-vo) – Root: בוא; Form: Preposition + Qal infinitive construct; Translation: “to enter”; Notes: Describes access being denied to righteousness.