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Grammar Analysis: Daniel 8:17-19

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Daniel 8:17 (Hebrew): וַיָּבֹא֙ אֵ֣צֶל עָמְדִ֔י וּבְבֹאֹ֣ו נִבְעַ֔תִּי וָאֶפְּלָ֖ה עַל־פָּנָ֑י וַיֹּ֤אמֶר אֵלַי֙ הָבֵ֣ן בֶּן־אָדָ֔ם כִּ֖י לְעֶת־קֵ֥ץ הֶחָזֹֽון׃

KJV: So he came near where I stood: and when he came, I was afraid, and fell upon my face: but he said unto me, Understand, O son of man: for at the time of the end [shall be] the vision.

Daniel 8:18 (Hebrew): וּבְדַבְּרֹ֣ו עִמִּ֔י נִרְדַּ֥מְתִּי עַל־פָּנַ֖י אָ֑רְצָה וַיִּ֨גַּע־בִּ֔י וַיַּֽעֲמִידֵ֖נִי עַל־עָמְדִֽי׃

KJV: Now as he was speaking with me, I was in a deep sleep on my face toward the ground: but he touched me, and set me upright.

Daniel 8:19 (Hebrew): וַיֹּ֨אמֶר֙ הִנְנִ֣י מֹודִֽיעֲךָ֔ אֵ֥ת אֲשֶׁר־יִהְיֶ֖ה בְּאַחֲרִ֣ית הַזָּ֑עַם כִּ֖י לְמֹועֵ֥ד קֵֽץ׃

KJV: And he said, Behold, I will make thee know what shall be in the last end of the indignation: for at the time appointed the end [shall be].

Word-by-Word Parsing

Daniel 8:17

# Hebrew Lemma Parsing Gloss
1 וַ ו Conj and
2 יָּבֹא בוא Verb.Qal.Wayq.3ms come
3 אֵצֶל אצל Noun.s.Cst side / beside
4 עָמְדִי עמד Noun.ms.Abs.+1cs my standing place
5 וּ ו Conj and
6 בְ ב Prep in / when
7 בֹאוֹ בוא Verb.Qal.InfCon.+3ms his coming
8 נִבְעַתִּי בעת Verb.Niphal.Perf.1cs I was terrified
9 וָ ו Conj and
10 אֶפְּלָה נפל Verb.Qal.Wayq.1cs I fell
11 עַל על Prep upon
12 פָּנָי פנה Noun.mp.Abs.+1cs my face
13 וַ ו Conj and
14 יֹּאמֶר אמר Verb.Qal.Wayq.3ms he said
15 אֵלַי אל Prep.+1cs to me
16 הָבֵן בין Verb.Hiphil.Impv.2ms understand!
17 בֶּן בן Noun.ms.Cst son of
18 אָדָם אדם Noun.ms.Abs man / humankind
19 כִּי כי Conj for / because
20 לְ ל Prep to / at
21 עֶת עת Noun.s.Cst time of
22 קֵץ קץ Noun.ms.Abs end
23 הֶ ה Art the
24 חָזוֹן חזון Noun.ms.Abs vision

Daniel 8:18

# Hebrew Lemma Parsing Gloss
1 וּ ו Conj and
2 בְ ב Prep in / as
3 דַבְּרוֹ דבר Verb.Piel.InfCon.+3ms his speaking
4 עִמִּי עם Prep.+1cs with me
5 נִרְדַּמְתִּי רדם Verb.Niphal.Perf.1cs I fell into deep sleep
6 עַל על Prep upon
7 פָּנַי פנה Noun.mp.Abs.+1cs my face
8 אָרְצָה ארץ Noun.s.Abs (directional -āh) to the ground
9 וַ ו Conj and
10 יִּגַּע נגע Verb.Qal.Wayq.3ms he touched
11 בִּי ב Prep.+1cs me
12 וַ ו Conj and
13 יַּעֲמִידֵנִי עמד Verb.Hiphil.Wayq.3ms.+1cs he set me up / caused me to stand
14 עַל על Prep upon
15 עָמְדִי עמד Noun.ms.Abs.+1cs my standing place

Daniel 8:19

# Hebrew Lemma Parsing Gloss
1 וַ ו Conj and
2 יֹּאמֶר אמר Verb.Qal.Wayq.3ms he said
3 הִנְנִי הנה Interj.+1cs behold I
4 מוֹדִיעֲךָ ידע Verb.Hiphil.Ptcp.ms.Abs.+2ms causing you to know
5 אֵת את Prep (obj marker) —
6 אֲשֶׁר אשׁר Rel what / that which
7 יִהְיֶה היה Verb.Qal.Impf.3ms will be
8 בְּ ב Prep in
9 אַחֲרִית אחרית Noun.fs.Cst latter end of
10 הַ ה Art the
11 זָּעַם זעם Noun.ms.Abs indignation / wrath
12 כִּי כי Conj for
13 לְ ל Prep to / at
14 מוֹעֵד מועד Noun.ms.Cst appointed time of
15 קֵץ קץ Noun.ms.Abs end

Clause Structure

Daniel 8:17 — 8 clauses

# Type Domain Text Function
1 Way0 N וַיָּבֹא אֵצֶל עָמְדִי Wayyiqtol narrative: "And he came beside my standing"
2 WxQ0 N וּנִבְעַתִּי waw + qatal non-wayyiqtol: "and I was terrified" (circumstantial/stative backgrounding)
3 InfC N בְבֹאוֹ Infinitive construct: "in his coming" (subordinate temporal)
4 Way0 N וָאֶפְּלָה עַל פָּנָי Wayyiqtol: "and I fell upon my face"
5 Way0 N וַיֹּאמֶר אֵלַי Wayyiqtol introducing speech: "and he said to me"
6 ZIm0 Q הָבֵן Imperative (Hiphil): "Understand!" (in quotation domain)
7 Voct Q בֶּן אָדָם Vocative: "son of man"
8 NmCl Q כִּי לְעֶת־קֵץ הֶחָזוֹן Verbless nominal clause: "for the vision [belongs] to a time of end"

Daniel 8:18 — 4 clauses

# Type Domain Text Function
1 WxQ0 N וְנִרְדַּמְתִּי עַל־פָּנַי אָרְצָה waw + qatal: "and I had fallen into deep sleep on my face toward the ground" (backgrounded state; not wayyiqtol — discourse backgrounding)
2 InfC N בְדַבְּרוֹ עִמִּי Infinitive construct: "in his speaking with me" (subordinate temporal)
3 Way0 N וַיִּגַּע בִּי Wayyiqtol: "and he touched me"
4 Way0 N וַיַּעֲמִידֵנִי עַל־עָמְדִי Wayyiqtol (Hiphil causative with 1cs suffix): "and he caused me to stand upright"

Daniel 8:19 — 5 clauses

# Type Domain Text Function
1 Way0 N וַיֹּאמֶר Wayyiqtol: "and he said"
2 NmCl Q הִנְנִי "Behold I" (presentative nominal)
3 Ptcp Q מוֹדִיעֲךָ Hiphil active participle with pronominal suffix — functions as futurum instans: "I am about to make you know"
4 xYq0 Q אֵת אֲשֶׁר יִהְיֶה בְּאַחֲרִית הַזָּעַם Relative clause with Qal imperfect: "that which will be in the latter end of the indignation"
5 NmCl Q כִּי לְמוֹעֵד קֵץ Verbless nominal clause: "for [it belongs] to an appointed time of end"

Construct Chains

Daniel 8:17

  • אֵצֶל עָמְדִי — "beside [lit. side of] my standing place" (Cst + Abs+1cs)
  • בֶּן־אָדָם — "son of man" (Cst + Abs) — idiomatic vocative for a human being
  • עֶת־קֵץ — "time of end" (Cst + Abs) — the anchor phrase of the passage

Daniel 8:19

  • אַחֲרִית הַזָּעַם — "latter end of the indignation" (Cst + Art+Abs) — the definite article on the nomen rectum makes the whole chain definite
  • מוֹעֵד קֵץ — "appointed-time of end" (Cst + Abs) — indefinite construct chain, parallel in structure to עֶת קֵץ in v17

Key Grammatical Features

1. לְעֶת־קֵץ / לְמוֹעֵד קֵץ — the inclusio that frames the angel's response

Two parallel verbless clauses bracket the interpretation:

  • v17c: כִּי לְעֶת־קֵץ הֶחָזוֹן — "for to a time of end [belongs] the vision"
  • v19b: כִּי לְמוֹעֵד קֵץ — "for [it belongs] to an appointed-time of end"

Both clauses share the same skeleton: כִּי לְ + [construct chain with קֵץ as the absolute]. The particle כִּי gives the grounds; the preposition לְ (lamedh of reference / pertinence) assigns the vision to a specific timeframe. Neither clause has a finite verb — in Hebrew a verbless nominal clause predicates identity, possession, or classification. The structure is equational: vision = (at-end-time-phenomenon).

The shift in vocabulary from עֶת (common, any point in time) to מוֹעֵד (an appointed time, a time fixed by decree) is deliberate and significant. מוֹעֵד comes from the root יעד "to appoint, fix by agreement"; the noun designates a time whose arrival is not contingent but decreed. Where v17 locates the vision at "end-time" generally, v19 sharpens it: it is appointed.

2. Verbless nominal clauses in prophetic interpretation

Clauses 8:17c and 8:19b are both NmCl (nominal/verbless clauses) in the quotation domain Q — the angel's speech. Hebrew uses a verbless clause to predicate a static, timeless relationship rather than an event. By choosing NmCl rather than a finite verb ("the vision is for / will come at the end-time"), the text asserts the vision's temporal reference as a matter of its essence, not an event it undergoes. This is why neither clause needs a copula in Hebrew — the assignment of the vision to its timeframe is the predicate.

The word order matters in the v17 clause: - לְעֶת־קֵץ (PreC — predicate complement) precedes הֶחָזוֹן (Subj — the subject) - Fronting the prepositional phrase places focus on the time reference, not on the vision itself. Reading: "it is to the time of the end that the vision pertains" — answering the question "when?"

3. בְּאַחֲרִית הַזָּעַם — "in the latter end of the indignation"

The construct chain אַחֲרִית הַזָּעַם makes two claims at once:

  • אַחֲרִית (latter end, after-part, issue) is the terminus of something — not just "end" but the "hinder part," the outcome at the back of a process.
  • הַזָּעַם (the indignation) has the definite article — a specific, already-identified indignation. In Dan 8's context, this is God's indignation against the profaning power of the little horn (8:9-13), and by extension the period during which that indignation runs its course.

Placed inside a relative clause with the Qal imperfect יִהְיֶה ("will be"), the phrase says the angel will reveal "what shall be at the hinder-part of the indignation" — i.e., what happens when God's indignation reaches its terminus. This frames the קֵץ / מוֹעֵד קֵץ not as the end of the world per se, but as the end of the indignation period tied to the vision's timeframe.

4. מוֹדִיעֲךָ — Hiphil active participle as futurum instans

The angel's answer begins הִנְנִי מוֹדִיעֲךָ — "behold me [who am] causing-you-to-know." מוֹדִיעֲךָ is a Hiphil active participle, masculine singular, from ידע ("know"). The Hiphil stem makes the verb causative: not "know" but "cause to know / make known / inform."

The pairing הִנֵּה + participle is a standard Hebrew idiom called futurum instans — an imminent future. It does not describe an action in progress so much as an action on the verge of happening. English "I am about to make you know" captures it better than a simple present. The angel is not saying "here is the knowledge I am now pouring out," but "here I am, ready to inform you" — the disclosure that follows (vv. 20-26) is the content he is about to deliver.

5. הָבֵן בֶּן־אָדָם — Hiphil imperative + vocative

The angel's opening command הָבֵן is a Hiphil imperative 2ms from בין. The Qal of בין means "discern, perceive"; the Hiphil intensifies toward "bring to understanding, make [something] make sense" — but in the imperative addressed to a human subject it collapses into the reflexive-causative "cause yourself to understand" = "pay attention and grasp this." It is stronger than the Qal would have been: not "notice" but "apply your mind and get this."

The vocative בֶּן־אָדָם (son of man / mortal) is a construct chain functioning as address. In Daniel this title for Daniel himself (cf. Ezek's repeated use of it for Ezekiel) emphasizes the hearer's creaturely frailty in the presence of heavenly revelation — reinforced here by Daniel's collapse in v17a and his stupor in v18a. The command to understand is paired with a body that literally cannot stand up without help.

6. The wayyiqtol ⇄ WxQ0 alternation in vv. 17-18 — discourse backgrounding

The narrative texture of vv. 17-18 alternates between Way0 (wayyiqtol, foreground) and WxQ0 (waw-x-qatal, background):

| v17 cl1 | Way0 | וַיָּבֹא | "he came" | foreground | | v17 cl2 | WxQ0 | וְנִבְעַתִּי | "I was terrified" | background / circumstantial | | v17 cl4 | Way0 | וָאֶפְּלָה | "I fell" | foreground | | v18 cl1 | WxQ0 | וְנִרְדַּמְתִּי | "I had fallen into deep sleep" | background / prior state | | v18 cl3 | Way0 | וַיִּגַּע | "he touched" | foreground | | v18 cl4 | Way0 | וַיַּעֲמִידֵנִי | "he raised me" | foreground |

The WxQ0 clauses (נִבְעַתִּי, נִרְדַּמְתִּי) are not mainline events — they are Daniel's internal state set against the angel's actions. Niphal perfect forms ("I was terrified," "I was put into deep sleep") are passives of affected experience: things that happened to Daniel. Foreground Way0 verbs are all the angel's actions (came, said, touched, raised). The grammar itself paints the picture: Daniel is the passive recipient; the angel is the active agent.

7. Infinitive-construct temporal clauses — בְּבֹאוֹ / בְּדַבְּרוֹ

Both verses open their main narrative with a בְּ + infinitive construct + pronominal suffix construction:

  • v17: בְּבֹאוֹ = בְּ (when) + בוא (come, Qal InfCon) + וֹ (3ms suffix as subject) = "in/when his coming" = "when he came"
  • v18: בְּדַבְּרוֹ = בְּ (when) + דבר (speak, Piel InfCon) + וֹ (3ms suffix) = "in/when his speaking" = "while he was speaking"

The infinitive construct with בְּ produces a temporal subordinate clause whose logical subject is carried by the possessive suffix. These clauses are not independent events on the timeline; they frame the timing of the main verb. Together they establish a pattern: while / as the angel does X, Daniel responds with Y.

Exegetical Significance of the Passage

Verses 17 and 19 together frame the vision of Daniel 8 — which culminates in the 2,300 evenings-mornings of 8:14 — within a deliberately extended time horizon:

  • v14 alone ("unto 2,300 evenings-mornings, then shall the sanctuary be vindicated") gives a specific number.
  • v17 adds: לְעֶת־קֵץ הֶחָזוֹן — "the vision [pertains] to a time of end."
  • v19 tightens: לְמוֹעֵד קֵץ — "it is for an appointed end-time."

The grammatical moves are three: 1. Construct chains with קֵץ as absolute: the vision's temporal target is defined by its relationship to "end" — not an end in the vision, but the vision locked to an "end-time." 2. Verbless predication (NmCl): the relationship is stated as a matter of being, not event — the vision belongs to the end-time as a defining property. 3. Escalation עֶת → מוֹעֵד: an ordinary temporal reference is sharpened to a decreed appointed time.

Together these grammatical choices push the timeframe of the vision forward — beyond the immediate historical horizon of the 2,300-day count — to an eschatological "appointed end-time" whose arrival is certain because it is appointed.

Cross-References

Grammar library

Word studies

  • dan-8-14.md — the 2,300 evenings-mornings; same vision whose timeframe is extended here
  • dan-8-23-25.md — the "latter time of their kingdom" within the same chapter
  • dan-7-25-26.md — parallel time-of-the-end structure in Dan 7
  • dan-11-36-37.md — עֵת קֵץ re-used in Dan 11

Generated from: hebrew_parser.py (--verse, --clause, --construct) on Dan 8:17, 8:18, 8:19; KJV text from tools/data/kjv.txt. Last updated: 2026-04-17