מַה־נֶּאֶנְחָ֣ה בְהֵמָ֗ה נָבֹ֨כוּ֙ עֶדְרֵ֣י בָקָ֔ר כִּ֛י אֵ֥ין מִרְעֶ֖ה לָהֶ֑ם גַּם־עֶדְרֵ֥י הַצֹּ֖אן נֶאְשָֽׁמוּ׃
How the beasts groan! The herds of cattle are perplexed, for there is no pasture for them; even the flocks of sheep suffer punishment.
Morphology
- מַה (mah) – Root: מה; Form: Interrogative particle; Translation: “how”; Notes: Used exclamatively to express astonishment or lament over the condition of the animals.
- נֶּאֶנְחָה (neʾenḥah) – Root: אנח; Form: Nifal perfect 3rd person feminine singular; Translation: “has groaned,” “how it groans”; Notes: Refers to the sound of distress or suffering, attributed here to the cattle collectively (feminine collective noun).
- בְהֵמָה (behemah) – Root: בהם; Form: Noun feminine singular; Translation: “beast,” “livestock”; Notes: Collective term for domesticated animals; representative of the land’s suffering.
- נָבֹכוּ (navokhu) – Root: בוך; Form: Qal perfect 3rd person common plural; Translation: “are perplexed,” “are confused”; Notes: Indicates disorientation or helplessness, depicting the herds wandering aimlessly in search of food.
- עֶדְרֵי (ʿedrei) – Root: עדר; Form: Noun masculine plural construct; Translation: “herds of”; Notes: Used in construct with the following noun to specify the type of animals.
- בָקָר (baqar) – Root: בקר; Form: Noun masculine singular; Translation: “cattle,” “oxen”; Notes: Refers to domesticated herd animals used for plowing and sustenance.
- כִּי (ki) – Root: כי; Form: Conjunction; Translation: “for,” “because”; Notes: Introduces the cause of the animals’ distress.
- אֵין (ʾein) – Root: אין; Form: Negative particle of nonexistence; Translation: “there is no”; Notes: Used to negate existence or availability of something—in this case, pasture.
- מִרְעֶה (mirʿeh) – Root: רעה; Form: Noun masculine singular; Translation: “pasture,” “feeding place”; Notes: Refers to green grazing fields, now absent due to drought or plague.
- לָהֶם (lahem) – Root: הם; Form: Preposition לְ + suffix 3rd person masculine plural; Translation: “for them”; Notes: Refers to the herds mentioned previously.
- גַּם (gam) – Root: גם; Form: Adverb; Translation: “also,” “even”; Notes: Introduces an additional group (the flocks of sheep) sharing in the affliction.
- עֶדְרֵי (ʿedrei) – Root: עדר; Form: Noun masculine plural construct; Translation: “flocks of”; Notes: Construct form again linking to the next noun “sheep.”
- הַצֹּאן (ha-tson) – Root: צאן; Form: Definite noun collective feminine singular with article הַ; Translation: “the sheep,” “the flock”; Notes: Collective term for small livestock such as sheep and goats.
- נֶאְשָׁמוּ (neʾshamu) – Root: אשם; Form: Nifal perfect 3rd person common plural; Translation: “suffer punishment,” “are made guilty,” “are desolate”; Notes: The verb conveys the idea of bearing guilt or suffering consequence; figuratively, the animals share in the punishment of the land’s sins.