כִּ֤י אִם־תְּכַבְּסִי֙ בַּנֶּ֔תֶר וְתַרְבִּי־לָ֖ךְ בֹּרִ֑ית נִכְתָּ֤ם עֲוֹנֵךְ֙ לְפָנַ֔י נְאֻ֖ם אֲדֹנָ֥י יְהוִֽה׃
For though you wash yourself with lye and use much soap, your iniquity is marked before Me,” declares the Lord YHWH.
Morphology
- כִּ֤י (ki) – Root: כי; Form: Conjunction; Translation: “For”; Notes: Introduces a concessive or emphatic clause.
- אִם־ (ʾim) – Root: אם; Form: Conditional particle; Translation: “though” (in concessive sense); Notes: Not a hypothetical condition but an emphatic “even if.”
- תְּכַבְּסִי (tekabbesi) – Root: כבס; Form: Piel imperfect 2fs; Translation: “you wash [yourself]”; Notes: Piel intensifies the washing action.
- בַּנֶּ֔תֶר (baneter) – Root: נתר; Form: Preposition + noun, masculine singular; Translation: “with lye”; Notes: An alkaline mineral used for cleansing.
- וְתַרְבִּי־לָ֖ךְ (vetarbi-lakh) – Root: רבה; Form: Hifil imperfect 2fs + prepositional phrase; Translation: “and you use abundantly for yourself”; Notes: Hifil implies causing abundance; reflexive nuance in “for yourself.”
- בֹּרִ֑ית (borit) – Root: ברר or בור; Form: Noun, feminine singular; Translation: “soap” or “alkaline cleanser”; Notes: A strong cleansing agent; paired with lye.
- נִכְתָּ֤ם (nikhtam) – Root: חתם; Form: Nifal perfect 3ms; Translation: “it is marked” or “engraved”; Notes: Passive stem—suggests permanence of the guilt.
- עֲוֹנֵךְ (ʿavonek) – Root: עון; Form: Noun, masculine singular + 2fs suffix; Translation: “your iniquity”; Notes: Refers to moral guilt or wrongdoing.
- לְפָנַ֔י (lefanai) – Root: פנה; Form: Preposition + 1cs suffix; Translation: “before Me”; Notes: Emphasizes that the guilt is evident to YHWH.
- נְאֻ֖ם (neʾum) – Root: נאם; Form: Noun, masculine singular construct; Translation: “utterance [of]”; Notes: Used in prophetic speech introducing a divine declaration.
- אֲדֹנָ֥י (ʾAdonai) – Root: אדן; Form: Proper noun, divine title; Translation: “Lord”; Notes: Often paired with YHWH to indicate sovereignty.
- יְהוִֽה (YHWH) – Root: הוה; Form: Proper noun; Translation: “YHWH”; Notes: The covenantal name of the God of Yisraʾel.