Zechariah 1:9

וָאֹמַ֖ר מָה־אֵ֣לֶּה אֲדֹנִ֑י וַיֹּ֣אמֶר אֵלַ֗י הַמַּלְאָךְ֙ הַדֹּבֵ֣ר בִּ֔י אֲנִ֥י אַרְאֶ֖ךָּ מָה־הֵ֥מָּה אֵֽלֶּה׃

And I said “What are these my lord?” and the messenger who speaks in me said to me “I will show you what these are.”

Morphology

1. וָאֹמַר (va-ʾomar) – Root: אמר (ʾamar); Form: Qal wayyiqtol (narrative past) 1st person singular; Translation: “And I said”; Notes: Introduces the prophet as the speaker responding to the vision.
2. מָה (mah) – Root: מה (mah); Form: Interrogative pronoun; Translation: “What”; Notes: Opens the question seeking explanation of the vision.
3. אֵלֶּה (ʾelleh) – Root: אלה (ʾlh); Form: Demonstrative pronoun masculine plural; Translation: “these”; Notes: Points directly to the visible objects in the prophet’s sight.
4. אֲדֹנִי (ʾadoni) – Root: אדן (ʾadon); Form: Noun masculine singular + suffix 1st person singular; Translation: “my lord”; Notes: Respectful address to the interpreting messenger.
5. וַיֹּאמֶר (va-yomer) – Root: אמר (ʾamar); Form: Qal wayyiqtol (narrative past) 3rd person masculine singular; Translation: “and he said”; Notes: Marks the reply of the interpreting messenger.
6. אֵלַי (ʾelai) – Root: אל (ʾel); Form: Preposition אֶל + suffix 1st person singular; Translation: “to me”; Notes: Specifies the prophet as the recipient of the explanation.
7. הַמַּלְאָךְ (ha-malʾakh) – Root: מלאך (malʾakh); Form: Definite noun masculine singular; Translation: “the messenger”; Notes: Identifies the angelic interpreter in Zechariah’s series of visions.
8. הַדֹּבֵר (ha-dober) – Root: דבר (dbr); Form: Definite Qal participle masculine singular; Translation: “who speaks”; Notes: Describes the messenger’s ongoing role as the one speaking.
9. בִּי (bi) – Root: ב (b); Form: Preposition בְּ + suffix 1st person singular; Translation: “in me”; Notes: Hebrew idiom for intimate communication “with me” or “to me” stressing close involvement.
10. אֲנִי (ʾani) – Root: אני (ʾani); Form: Independent pronoun 1st person singular; Translation: “I”; Notes: Emphatically highlights the messenger as the one who will act.
11. אַרְאֶךָּ (arʾekha) – Root: ראה (raʾah); Form: Qal imperfect 1st person singular + suffix 2nd person masculine singular; Translation: “I will show you”; Notes: Promises a future unveiling of the meaning of the vision.
12. מָה (mah) – Root: מה (mah); Form: Interrogative pronoun; Translation: “what”; Notes: Reintroduces the question of identity for the visionary objects.
13. הֵמָּה (hemmah) – Root: הם (hem); Form: Independent pronoun masculine plural; Translation: “they are”; Notes: Refers back to the plural entities seen by the prophet.
14. אֵלֶּה (ʾelleh) – Root: אלה (ʾlh); Form: Demonstrative pronoun masculine plural; Translation: “these”; Notes: Again points specifically to the objects whose meaning will be revealed.