-
Recent Articles
- Purified and Presented: A Hebrew Lesson on Numbers 8:21
- Like the Nations Before You: A Hebrew Walkthrough of Deuteronomy 8:20
- Voices of the Dead or the Living God? A Hebrew Lesson on Isaiah 8:19
- When the Ground Denies Him: A Hebrew Walkthrough of Job 8:18
- From Dust to Gnats: A Hebrew Lesson in Action
- The Power of Repetition: Exploring the Waw-Consecutive
- Through the Great and Fearsome Wilderness: From Fiery Serpent to Flowing Spring
- “Counsel Is Mine” — Exploring the Voice of Wisdom in Proverbs 8:14
- From the Garden to the Ear: Participles and Imperatives in Song of Songs 8:13
- Wisdom’s Self-Introduction: Where Insight Meets Strategy
- Guard Yourself: The Grammar of Memory and Obedience
- Mapping the Syntactic Battlefield
Categories
Archives
Author Archives: Aramaic Grammar
Lighting the Grammar: A Dialogue on יָת and Ritual Syntax in Onkelos (Numbers 8:2)
מַלֵּיל עִם אַהֲרֹן וְתֵימַר לֵיהּ בְּאַדְלָקוּתָךְ יָת בּוֹצִינַיָּא לָקֳבֵיל אַפֵּי מְנָרְתָא יְהוֹן מְנָהֲרִין שִׁבְעָא בוֹצִינַיָּא׃
(Numbers 8:2, Targum Onkelos)
Speak with Aharon and say to him: “When you kindle the lamps, opposite the face of the menorah, the seven lamps shall give light.”
Apprentice and Master Scribe: A Ritual Grammar Lesson
Apprentice: Master, I was copying from Onkelos, and in Numbers 8:2, I saw this word יָת — the direct object marker. But why here? Isn’t the verb clear enough?
Master: Ah, young scroll-rider, listen well.… Learn Hebrew
Posted in Aramaic
Tagged Numbers 8:2
Comments Off on Lighting the Grammar: A Dialogue on יָת and Ritual Syntax in Onkelos (Numbers 8:2)
Scroll Marginalia: Weighted Syntax and Sanctified Measures (Numbers 7:31, Onkelos)
קֻרְבָּנֵיהּ מְגִסְתָּא דִכְסַף חֲדָא מְאָה וּתְלָתִין סִלְעִין הֲוָה מַתְקְלַהּ מִזְרְקָא חַד דִּכְסַף מַתְקְלֵיהּ שַׁבְעִין סִלְעִין בְּסִלְעֵי קוּדְשָׁא תַּרְוֵיהוֹן מְלַן סֻלְתָּא דְּפִילָא בִמְשַׁח לְמִנְחָתָא
(Numbers 7:31, Targum Onkelos)
His offering: one silver bowl—its weight was one hundred and thirty sheqels; one silver basin—its weight was seventy sheqels, according to the sheqels of the sanctuary; both of them were filled with fine flour mixed with oil for the grain offering.
The Grammar of Quantified Worship
Though this passage lists weights and vessels, its grammar functions as liturgical architecture.… Learn Hebrew
Posted in Aramaic
Tagged Numbers 7:31
Comments Off on Scroll Marginalia: Weighted Syntax and Sanctified Measures (Numbers 7:31, Onkelos)
Syntax of Judgment: Divine Legal Language in Genesis 6:13 (Onkelos)
וַאֲמַר יְיָ לְנֹחַ קִצָּא דְכָל בִּשְׂרָא עַלַּת לִקֳדָמַי אֲרֵי אִתְמְלִיאַת אַרְעָא חֲטוֹפִין מִן קֳדָם עוֹבָדֵיהוֹן בִּישַׁיָּא וְהָא אֲנָא מְחַבֶּלְהוֹן עִם אַרְעָא:
And YHWH said to Noaḥ, “The end of all flesh has come before Me, for the earth is filled with plunder from before them because of their evil deeds, and behold, I am about to destroy them with the earth.”
Poetic Reflection: When Grammar Bears Witness
The world is not judged with thunder, but with syntax. In Targum Onkelos, YHWH’s speech to Noaḥ is a juridical declaration — not merely emotional or punitive, but constructed with linguistic precision.… Learn Hebrew
Posted in Aramaic
Tagged Genesis 6:13
Comments Off on Syntax of Judgment: Divine Legal Language in Genesis 6:13 (Onkelos)
Erasure by Divine Speech: Volition, Object Marking, and Decreation in Genesis 6:7
וַאֲמַר יְיָ אֶמְחֵי יָת אֲנָשָׁא דִּי בְרֵאתִי מֵעַל אַפֵּי אַרְעָא מֵאֱנָשָׁא עַד בְּעִירָא עַד רִיחֲשָׁא וְעַד עוֹפָא דִּשְׁמַיָּא אֲרֵי תָבִית בְּמֵימְרִי אֲרֵי עֲבַדְתִּנוּן:
(Genesis 6:7)
And YHWH said, “I will wipe out mankind whom I created from the face of the earth, from man to beast, to creeping thing and to the bird of the heavens—for I have repented by My word that I made them.”
Scroll Marginalia: A Commentary of Undoing
In a single decree, existence recoils. The language of Targum Onkelos captures this moment not only with legal exactness but with a grammar of divine reversal.… Learn Hebrew
Posted in Aramaic
Tagged Genesis 6:7
Comments Off on Erasure by Divine Speech: Volition, Object Marking, and Decreation in Genesis 6:7
On the Heart and from the Mouth: Command Syntax in Targum Onkelos on Deuteronomy 6:6
וִיהוֹן פִּתְגָּמַיָּא הָאִלֵּין דִּי אֲנָא מְפַקְּדָךְ יוֹמָא דֵין עַל לִבָּךְ
And these words which I am commanding you today shall be upon your heart.
Why This Verse?
This pivotal line from Targum Onkelos on Deuteronomy 6:6, part of the daily Shema, showcases:
Emphatic demonstrative construction: פִּתְגָּמַיָּא הָאִלֵּין
Paʿel verb with object suffix: מְפַקְּדָךְ
Temporal immediacy: יוֹמָא דֵין
Internalization: עַל לִבָּךְ
Targum Onkelos is generally more literal than Targum Jonathan, and this verse is a prime example of its restrained yet precise interpretive style.… Learn Hebrew
Posted in Aramaic
Tagged Deuteronomy 6:6
Comments Off on On the Heart and from the Mouth: Command Syntax in Targum Onkelos on Deuteronomy 6:6
Sevens and Sacrifice: Numerals, Imperatives, and Construct Syntax in Targum Onkelos on Numbers 23:1
וַאֲמַר בִּלְעָם לְבָלָק בְּנֵה לִי הָכָא שַׁבְעָא מַדְבְּחִין וְאַתְקֵן לִי הָכָא שַׁבְעָא תוֹרִין וְשַׁבְעָא דִכְרִין
And Bilʿam said to Balaq, “Build for me here seven altars, and prepare for me here seven bulls and seven rams.”
Why This Verse?
This verse illustrates multiple grammatical domains in action:
Use of Peal vs. Aphel imperatives (בְּנֵה vs. אַתְקֵן)
Definite numeral constructions with plural nouns (שַׁבְעָא מַדְבְּחִין)
Construct phrase syntax (שַׁבְעָא דִכְרִין)
It also reveals the ritual-literary tone of Targum Onkelos, maintaining closeness to the Hebrew while embedding subtle Aramaic flavor.… Learn Hebrew
Posted in Aramaic
Tagged Numbers 23:1
Comments Off on Sevens and Sacrifice: Numerals, Imperatives, and Construct Syntax in Targum Onkelos on Numbers 23:1
The Grammar of Perfection: Divine Integrity in Deuteronomy 32:4 (Onkelos)
תַּקִּיפָא דְּשָׁלְמִין עוֹבָדוֹהִי אֲרֵי כָּל ארְחָתֵיהּ דִּינָא אֱלָהָא מְהֵימְנָא דְּמִן קֳדָמוֹהִי עַוְלָה לָא נָפֵק דְּמִן קֳדָם זַכַּי וְקַשִּׁיט הוּא:
(Deuteronomy 32:4)
Mighty is He, whose works are complete, for all His ways are justice; a faithful God, from before whom no injustice proceeds, from before whom [comes only] innocence and uprightness.
Inner Monologue of the Text Itself
“I am the stone,” the verse declares silently. Not merely metaphor—תקיפא, unbreakable, immovable. I speak of One whose justice needs no correction, whose every action fits the blueprint of perfect righteousness.… Learn Hebrew
Posted in Aramaic
Tagged Deuteronomy 32:4
Comments Off on The Grammar of Perfection: Divine Integrity in Deuteronomy 32:4 (Onkelos)
“Let Him Be Killed Now!”: Direct Object Chains and Deictic Emphasis in Targum Jonathan on Jeremiah 38:4
וַאֲמַרוּ רַבְרְבַיָא לְמַלְכָּא יִתְקְטֵיל כְּעַן גַבְרָא הָדֵין אֲרֵי עַל כֵּן הוּא מְרַשֵׁל יַת יְדֵי גַבְרֵי עָבְדֵי קְרָבָא דְאִשְׁתָּאֲרוּ בְּקַרְתָּא הָדָא וְיַת יְדֵי כָל עַמָא לְמֵלָלָא עִמְהוֹן כְּפִתְגָמַיָא הָאִלֵין אֲרֵי גַבְרָא הָדֵין לֵיתוֹהִי תָּבַע לִשְׁלָמָא לְעַמָא הָדֵין אֱלָהֵן לְבִישׁוּ:
And the nobles said to the king, “Let this man now be killed, for because of this he is weakening the hands of the men, the warriors who remain in this city, and the hands of all the people, by speaking with them according to these words.… Learn Hebrew
Posted in Aramaic
Tagged Jeremiah 38:4
Comments Off on “Let Him Be Killed Now!”: Direct Object Chains and Deictic Emphasis in Targum Jonathan on Jeremiah 38:4
“Before Me”: Pronominal Prepositions and Divine Proximity in Targum Onkelos
בְּעִדָּנָא הַהִיא אֲמַר יְיָ לִי פְּסַל לָךְ תְּרֵין לוּחֵי אַבְנַיָּא כְּקַדְמָאֵי וְסַק לָקֳדָמַי לְטוּרָא וְתַעְבֵּד לָךְ אֲרוֹנָא דְאָעָא
(Deuteronomy 10:1)
At that time the LORD said to me, “Carve for yourself two tablets of stone like the first ones and go up before Me to the mountain, and make for yourself an ark of wood.”
Why This Verse?
This verse from Targum Onkelos contains a rich variety of morphological and syntactic constructions, but our focus will be on the phrase לָקֳדָמַי — a superb illustration of compound prepositions with attached pronominal suffixes in literary Jewish Aramaic.… Learn Hebrew
Posted in Aramaic
Tagged Deuteronomy 10:1
Comments Off on “Before Me”: Pronominal Prepositions and Divine Proximity in Targum Onkelos
One Night, Two Dreams: The Syntax of Paired Constructs in Targum Onkelos
וַחֲלָמוּ חֶלְמָא תַּרְוֵיהוֹן גְּבַר חֶלְמֵיהּ בְּלֵילְיָא חַד גְּבַר כְּפוּשְׁרַן חֶלְמֵיהּ שָׁקְיָא וְנַחְתּוֹמָא דִּי לְמַלְכָּא דְמִצְרַיִם דִּי אֲסִירִין בְּבֵית אֲסִירֵי:
(Genesis 40:5)
And they dreamed a dream, the two of them—each man his dream in one night—each man, the cupbearer and the baker of the king of Mitsrayim, who were confined in the house of imprisonment.
Whispers Behind Bars: A Narrative Opening
In the depths of a prison cell in Mitsrayim, two officials of the king—each tarnished by suspicion—share not only confinement, but something stranger: a dream.… Learn Hebrew
Posted in Aramaic
Tagged Genesis 40:5
Comments Off on One Night, Two Dreams: The Syntax of Paired Constructs in Targum Onkelos