THE SPEAKER-ORIENTED CONNECTIVE PARTICLE ʽAL-KĒN IN 2 SAM. 7:22.

The connective particle ʽal-kēn 'therefore' usually functions to introduce a logical conclusion or consequence: 'A therefore B'. However, in cases such as 2 Sam 7:22 it functions as a speaker-oriented particle -- what is mentioned in the preceding verse is the reason why the speaker makes the following statement. This usage may be compared with another speaker-oriented particle kî 'for', which explains the reason for the speaker's previous utterance. These two speaker-oriented particles may be explained thus: speaker-oriented kî: 'This (B) is the reason why I said that (A)' speaker-oriented ʽal-kēn: 'That (A) is the reason why I say this (B)'. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]