וּבָנ֞וּ בָּמֹ֣ות הַתֹּ֗פֶת אֲשֶׁר֙ בְּגֵ֣יא בֶן־הִנֹּ֔ם לִשְׂרֹ֛ף אֶת־בְּנֵיהֶ֥ם וְאֶת־בְּנֹתֵיהֶ֖ם בָּאֵ֑שׁ אֲשֶׁר֙ לֹ֣א צִוִּ֔יתִי וְלֹ֥א עָלְתָ֖ה עַל־לִבִּֽי׃ ס
And they built the high places of the Tofet, which is in the Valley of Ben-hinnom, to burn their sons and their daughters in the fire, something I did not command, nor did it come up upon My heart.
Morphology
- וּבָנ֞וּ (u-vanu) – Root: בנה; Form: Qal perfect 3rd person masculine plural with vav; Translation: “And they built”; Notes: Describes the deliberate act of establishing illicit worship sites.
- בָּמֹ֣ות (bamot) – Root: במה; Form: Feminine plural noun; Translation: “high places”; Notes: Elevated sites often associated with idolatry.
- הַתֹּ֗פֶת (ha-tofet) – Root: תפת; Form: Definite feminine singular noun; Translation: “the Tofet”; Notes: Specific location of child sacrifice within the valley.
- אֲשֶׁר֙ (asher) – Root: אשר; Form: Relative pronoun; Translation: “which”; Notes: Introduces a relative clause describing the location.
- בְּגֵ֣יא (be-geʾ) – Root: גיא; Form: Preposition + masculine singular noun; Translation: “in the valley of”; Notes: Geographical reference.
- בֶן־הִנֹּ֔ם (ven-Hinnom) – Root: בן + הִנֹּם; Form: Construct chain with proper name; Translation: “Ben-Hinnom”; Notes: A valley south of Yerushalayim known for idolatrous practices.
- לִשְׂרֹ֛ף (lisrof) – Root: שׂרף; Form: Infinitive construct with preposition לְ; Translation: “to burn”; Notes: Expresses purpose of the high places.
- אֶת־בְּנֵיהֶ֥ם (et-benehem) – Root: בן; Form: Definite direct object marker + masculine plural noun + 3rd person masculine plural suffix; Translation: “their sons”; Notes: Victims of the sacrificial rites.
- וְאֶת־בְּנֹתֵיהֶ֖ם (ve-et-benoteihem) – Root: בת; Form: Conjunction + direct object marker + feminine plural noun + 3rd person masculine plural suffix; Translation: “and their daughters”; Notes: Extends the atrocity to both male and female children.
- בָּאֵ֑שׁ (ba-esh) – Root: אשׁ; Form: Preposition + definite noun feminine singular; Translation: “in the fire”; Notes: Indicates method of sacrifice.
- אֲשֶׁר֙ (asher) – Root: אשר; Form: Relative pronoun; Translation: “which”; Notes: Refers to the following divine disavowal.
- לֹ֣א (lo) – Root: לא; Form: Negative particle; Translation: “not”; Notes: Introduces divine denial.
- צִוִּ֔יתִי (tsivviti) – Root: צוה; Form: Piel perfect 1st person common singular; Translation: “I commanded”; Notes: Strong statement that YHWH never ordered such practices.
- וְלֹ֥א (ve-lo) – Root: לא; Form: Conjunction + negative particle; Translation: “and not”; Notes: Further negation of divine intent.
- עָלְתָ֖ה (ʿaltah) – Root: עלה; Form: Qal perfect 3rd person feminine singular; Translation: “did it come up”; Notes: Refers to divine thought or intention metaphorically.
- עַל־לִבִּֽי (ʿal-libbi) – Root: לב; Form: Preposition + masculine singular noun with 1st person singular suffix; Translation: “upon My heart”; Notes: Expression indicating YHWH never even conceived of such evil.