עָרֵ֥י קָדְשְׁךָ֖ הָי֣וּ מִדְבָּ֑ר צִיּוֹן֙ מִדְבָּ֣ר הָיָ֔תָה יְרוּשָׁלִַ֖ם שְׁמָמָֽה׃
Your holy cities have become a wilderness; Tsiyyon has become a wilderness, Yerushalayim a desolation.
Morphology
- עָרֵ֥י (ʿarei) – Root: עיר (ʿir); Form: Construct plural feminine; Translation: “cities of”; Notes: Construct relationship with “Your holiness.”
- קָדְשְׁךָ֖ (qodshkha) – Root: קדשׁ (qodesh); Form: Noun masculine singular + 2nd person masculine singular suffix; Translation: “Your holiness” or “Your holy”; Notes: Refers to cities sanctified to YHWH, such as Yerushalayim.
- הָי֣וּ (hayu) – Root: היה (hayah); Form: Qal perfect 3rd person common plural; Translation: “they became” or “they were”; Notes: Refers to the transformation of the cities’ state.
- מִדְבָּ֑ר (midbar) – Root: דבר (davar); Form: Noun masculine singular; Translation: “a wilderness”; Notes: A barren, desolate region—symbolic of judgment or abandonment.
- צִיּוֹן֙ (Tsiyon) – Form: Proper noun; Translation: “Tsiyon”; Notes: A poetic name for Yerushalayim, often used in prophetic literature.
- מִדְבָּ֣ר (midbar) – Form: Repetition of earlier noun; Translation: “a wilderness”; Notes: Emphasizes the ruin of a formerly glorious city.
- הָיָ֔תָה (haytah) – Root: היה (hayah); Form: Qal perfect 3rd person feminine singular; Translation: “she became”; Notes: Feminine subject referring to Tsiyon or Yerushalayim.
- יְרוּשָׁלִַ֖ם (Yerushalayim) – Form: Proper noun; Translation: “Yerushalayim”; Notes: The central city of worship, now in ruins.
- שְׁמָמָֽה (shemamah) – Root: שׁמם (shamam); Form: Noun feminine singular; Translation: “a desolation”; Notes: Denotes utter ruin and emptiness.