וְנָ֞ס אֶל־אַחַ֣ת מֵהֶעָרִ֣ים הָאֵ֗לֶּה וְעָמַד֙ פֶּ֚תַח שַׁ֣עַר הָעִ֔יר וְדִבֶּ֛ר בְּאָזְנֵ֛י זִקְנֵ֥י־הָעִֽיר הַהִ֖יא אֶת־דְּבָרָ֑יו וְאָסְפ֨וּ אֹתֹ֤ו הָעִ֨ירָה֙ אֲלֵיהֶ֔ם וְנָתְנוּ־לֹ֥ו מָקֹ֖ום וְיָשַׁ֥ב עִמָּֽם׃
And he shall flee to one of these cities, and stand at the entrance of the gate of the city, and speak in the ears of the elders of that city his words; and they shall gather him into the city to themselves and give him a place, and he shall dwell with them.
Morphology
- וְנָ֞ס (venas) – Root: נוס (nus); Form: Qal wayyiqtol (waw-consecutive imperfect) 3rd person masculine singular; Translation: “And he shall flee”; Notes: Describes an immediate action in response to an event.
- אֶל־אַחַ֣ת (el-aḥat) – Root: אחד (eḥad); Form: Preposition + feminine singular cardinal number; Translation: “to one”; Notes: Indicates the direction of escape.
- מֵהֶעָרִ֣ים (mehe’arim) – Root: עיר (ʿir); Form: Preposition + noun, feminine plural construct; Translation: “of the cities”; Notes: Specifies the cities designated as refuges.
- הָאֵ֗לֶּה (ha’eleh) – Root: אלה (eleh); Form: Demonstrative pronoun, feminine plural; Translation: “these”; Notes: Refers to the cities mentioned earlier.
- וְעָמַד֙ (veʿamad) – Root: עמד (ʿmd); Form: Qal wayyiqtol (waw-consecutive imperfect) 3rd person masculine singular; Translation: “and he shall stand”; Notes: Indicates his positioning at the city’s entrance.
- פֶּ֚תַח (petakh) – Root: פתח (ptḥ); Form: Noun, masculine singular absolute; Translation: “entrance”; Notes: The place where legal matters were typically discussed.
- שַׁ֣עַר (sha’ar) – Root: שער (shʿr); Form: Noun, masculine singular absolute; Translation: “gate”; Notes: The entrance to the city, where legal decisions were made.
- הָעִ֔יר (haʿir) – Root: עיר (ʿir); Form: Noun, feminine singular absolute with definite article; Translation: “the city”; Notes: Specifies the location of the action.
- וְדִבֶּ֛ר (vedibber) – Root: דבר (dbr); Form: Piel wayyiqtol (waw-consecutive imperfect) 3rd person masculine singular; Translation: “and he shall speak”; Notes: Expresses an intensive action of communication.
- בְּאָזְנֵ֛י (be’oznei) – Root: אוזן (ʾzn); Form: Preposition + noun, feminine plural construct; Translation: “in the ears of”; Notes: A Hebrew idiom for addressing someone directly.
- זִקְנֵ֥י־הָעִֽיר (ziqnei-ha’ir) – Root: זקן (zqn); Form: Noun, masculine plural construct + noun, feminine singular absolute; Translation: “the elders of the city”; Notes: Refers to the respected leaders who made legal decisions.
- הַהִ֖יא (hahiy) – Root: הוא (hw); Form: Demonstrative pronoun, feminine singular; Translation: “that”; Notes: Refers back to the specific city.
- אֶת־דְּבָרָ֑יו (et-devarav) – Root: דבר (dbr); Form: Direct object marker + noun, masculine plural construct with 3rd person masculine singular suffix; Translation: “his words”; Notes: Indicates the legal plea of the fugitive.
- וְאָסְפ֨וּ (ve’aspʿu) – Root: אסף (ʾsp); Form: Qal wayyiqtol (waw-consecutive imperfect) 3rd person plural; Translation: “and they shall gather”; Notes: Expresses the elders’ action of taking him in.
- אֹתֹ֤ו (oto) – Root: את (ʾt); Form: Direct object marker with 3rd person masculine singular pronoun; Translation: “him”; Notes: Refers to the fugitive seeking refuge.
- הָעִ֨ירָה֙ (ha’irah) – Root: עיר (ʿir); Form: Noun, feminine singular absolute with directive ה; Translation: “into the city”; Notes: Indicates movement toward the city.
- אֲלֵיהֶ֔ם (aleihem) – Root: אל (ʾl); Form: Preposition with 3rd person masculine plural suffix; Translation: “to them”; Notes: Specifies the elders as the recipients.
- וְנָתְנוּ־לֹ֥ו (venatnu-lo) – Root: נתן (ntn); Form: Qal wayyiqtol (waw-consecutive imperfect) 3rd person plural + preposition; Translation: “and they shall give him”; Notes: The act of providing shelter.
- מָקֹ֖ום (maqom) – Root: קום (qum); Form: Noun, masculine singular absolute; Translation: “a place”; Notes: A location for the fugitive to stay.
- וְיָשַׁ֥ב (veyashav) – Root: ישב (yashav); Form: Qal wayyiqtol (waw-consecutive imperfect) 3rd person masculine singular; Translation: “and he shall dwell”; Notes: Indicates the fugitive’s continued residence in the city.
- עִמָּֽם (imam) – Root: עם (ʿim); Form: Preposition with 3rd person masculine plural suffix; Translation: “with them”; Notes: Denotes the fugitive’s integration into the community.