Author Archives: Biblical Hebrew

About Biblical Hebrew

Learn Biblical Hebrew Online. Studying Biblical Hebrew online opens a direct window into the sacred texts of the Hebrew Bible, allowing readers to engage with Scripture in its original linguistic and cultural context. By learning the language in which much of the Tanakh was written, students can move beyond translations and discover the nuanced meanings, poetic structures, and theological depth embedded in the Hebrew text. Online learning provides flexible and accessible avenues to build these skills, whether through self-paced modules, guided instruction, or interactive resources. As one grows in proficiency, the richness of biblical narratives, laws, prayers, and prophetic visions comes to life with renewed clarity, making the study of Biblical Hebrew not only an intellectual pursuit but a deeply rewarding spiritual and cultural journey.

“Who Did Not Go Up?”: Syntax of Sworn Judgment in Judges 21:5

Posted on May 21, 2020 by Biblical Hebrew

וַיֹּֽאמְרוּ֙ בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל מִ֠י אֲשֶׁ֨ר לֹא־עָלָ֧ה בַקָּהָ֛ל מִכָּל־שִׁבְטֵ֥י יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל אֶל־יְהוָ֑ה כִּי֩ הַשְּׁבוּעָ֨ה הַגְּדֹולָ֜ה הָיְתָ֗ה לַ֠אֲשֶׁר לֹא־עָלָ֨ה אֶל־יְהוָ֧ה הַמִּצְפָּ֛ה לֵאמֹ֖ר מֹ֥ות יוּמָֽת׃ (Judges 21:5) And the sons of Yisraʾel said: Who is the one who did not go up in the assembly from all the tribes of Yisraʾel to YHWH? For the great oath had been made against whoever did not go up to YHWH at Mizpah, saying: He shall surely be put to death. A Syntax of Oath and Outrage Judges 21:5 is steeped in crisis.… Learn Hebrew

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Wealth Kept to Harm: Irony, Relative Clauses, and Poetic Diagnosis in Ecclesiastes 5:12

Posted on May 12, 2020 by Biblical Hebrew

יֵ֚שׁ רָעָ֣ה חֹולָ֔ה רָאִ֖יתִי תַּ֣חַת הַשָּׁ֑מֶשׁ עֹ֛שֶׁר שָׁמ֥וּר לִבְעָלָ֖יו לְרָעָתֹֽו׃ Contextual Introduction Ecclesiastes 5:12 delivers a paradoxical observation: wealth, often seen as a blessing, can bring harm to its possessor. The verse uses compact Hebrew syntax with thematic irony. The grammar enhances the verse’s pathos by employing apposition, participial constructions, and purpose clauses to emphasize that hoarded wealth is not neutral—it may destroy the one who clings to it. Grammatical Focus: Existential ישׁ-Clause, Noun Apposition, and Construct Chains 1. יֵ֚שׁ רָעָ֣ה חֹולָ֔ה – Existential with Appositive Qualifier – יֵ֚שׁ (“there is”) introduces an existential clause—an observation of something present.… Learn Hebrew

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Where I Will Dwell: The Syntax of Relative Clauses and the Nuance of Imperfect Aspect

Posted on May 7, 2020 by Biblical Hebrew

וַיֹּ֣אמֶר אֵלַ֗י בֶּן־אָדָם֙ אֶת־מְקֹ֣ום כִּסְאִ֗י וְאֶת־מְקֹום֙ כַּפֹּ֣ות רַגְלַ֔י אֲשֶׁ֧ר אֶשְׁכָּן־שָׁ֛ם בְּתֹ֥וךְ בְּנֵֽי־יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל לְעֹולָ֑ם וְלֹ֣א יְטַמְּא֣וּ עֹ֣וד בֵּֽית־֠יִשְׂרָאֵל שֵׁ֣ם קָדְשִׁ֞י הֵ֤מָּה וּמַלְכֵיהֶם֙ בִּזְנוּתָ֔ם וּבְפִגְרֵ֥י מַלְכֵיהֶ֖ם בָּמֹותָֽם׃ (Ezekiel 43:7) And He said to me, “Son of man, the place of My throne and the place of the soles of My feet, where I will dwell among the children of Yisraʾel forever—never again shall the house of Yisraʾel defile My holy name, they and their kings, by their harlotry and by the corpses of their kings in their death.”… Learn Hebrew

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Temporal Weaving — The Syntax of Biblical Time

Posted on May 6, 2020 by Biblical Hebrew

וַֽיְחִי־שֵׁ֕ת חָמֵ֥שׁ שָׁנִ֖ים וּמְאַ֣ת שָׁנָ֑ה וַיֹּ֖ולֶד אֶת־אֱנֹֽושׁ׃ Opening the Text What does it mean for time to be counted, not just measured? This verse from Genesis 5:6 — the simple notice of שֵׁת’s lifespan and fatherhood — opens more than a genealogical record. It offers a portal into the architecture of biblical temporality. Time here is not a sequence of numbers; it is lived, layered, and linguistically arranged. Our journey begins with two verbs — וַֽיְחִי and וַיֹּולֶד — and a puzzling time construct that invites us to explore a phenomenon known as the split temporal clause in Biblical Hebrew: the division of numerical age into dual units, ordered for thematic, not just chronological, purpose.… Learn Hebrew

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Negative Imperatives with Particles of Emotion and Possession

Posted on May 4, 2020 by Biblical Hebrew

Introduction to Genesis 45:20 In this verse, Yosef instructs his brothers not to grieve over their belongings as they are invited to dwell in Egypt with full provision. The verse includes a negative jussive with emotional nuance, using אַל + imperfect verb, along with the rare verb חוס (“to pity, spare, regret”), which often carries emotional or psychological implications. This lesson examines the syntax of emotional negation and the construction of possessive prepositional phrases in Hebrew imperative contexts. וְעֵ֣ינְכֶ֔ם אַל־תָּחֹ֖ס עַל־כְּלֵיכֶ֑ם כִּי־ט֛וּב כָּל־אֶ֥רֶץ מִצְרַ֖יִם לָכֶ֥ם הֽוּא׃ Analysis of Key Words and Structures וְעֵ֣ינְכֶ֔ם (veʿeinekhem) – “And your eyes.”… Learn Hebrew

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“Turn Away, Unclean!”: Analyzing ס֤וּרוּ… ס֨וּרוּ in Lamentations 4:15

Posted on May 1, 2020 by Biblical Hebrew

Introduction to Lamentations 4:15: Public Shame and Ritual Defilement This verse from Lamentations 4:15 depicts the depth of Jerusalem’s humiliation after the Babylonian destruction. The once-honored people of YHWH are now driven away with the cry ס֣וּרוּ טָמֵ֞א—“Turn aside! Unclean!” The command ס֤וּרוּ is then repeated for emphasis: ס֤וּרוּ ס֨וּרוּ. This article focuses on the grammatical structure, literary repetition, and ritual-theological implications of the verb ס֤וּרוּ in this context of impurity, exile, and national rejection. ס֣וּרוּ טָמֵ֞א קָ֣רְאוּ לָ֗מֹו ס֤וּרוּ ס֨וּרוּ֙ אַל־תִּגָּ֔עוּ כִּ֥י נָצ֖וּ גַּם־נָ֑עוּ אָֽמְרוּ֙ בַּגֹּויִ֔ם לֹ֥א יֹוסִ֖יפוּ לָגֽוּר׃ Grammatical Analysis of ס֤וּרוּ The repeated verb ס֤וּרוּ is from the root סוּר (s-w-r), meaning “to turn aside, to depart, to avoid.”… Learn Hebrew

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Striking the Depths: Object Concord and Parallel Syntax in Proverbs 20:30

Posted on April 30, 2020 by Biblical Hebrew

חַבֻּרֹ֣ות פֶּ֭צַע תמריק בְּרָ֑ע וּ֝מַכֹּ֗ות חַדְרֵי־בָֽטֶן׃ Proverbs 20:30 is not merely a proverb about discipline—it is a poetic microcosm of how Biblical Hebrew uses parallelism and object syntax to create emphasis. The verse reads literally: “Bruises of a wound cleanse in evil; and blows [cleanse] the inner chambers of the belly.” This puzzling phrasing contains a grammatical and poetic tension: a verb that seems to float without a second subject, and parallel objects that mirror each other. At the heart of this proverb lies a Hebrew verb with a peculiar object pattern: תמריק (you will cleanse / it will cleanse), and how Hebrew poetry frequently omits verbs in parallelism while preserving syntactic expectation.… Learn Hebrew

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“The Glory of Young Men Is Their Strength”: The Grammar of Age and Honor in Proverbs 20:29

Posted on April 29, 2020 by Biblical Hebrew

תִּפְאֶ֣רֶת בַּחוּרִ֣ים כֹּחָ֑ם וַהֲדַ֖ר זְקֵנִ֣ים שֵׂיבָֽה׃ In the poetic brevity of Mishlei 20:29, we find a verse that captures one of life’s most universal truths — the changing nature of human value with age. It opens with a declaration about young men, then pivots to the aged: תִּפְאֶרֶת בַּחוּרִים כֹּחָם וַהֲדַר זְקֵנִים שֵׂיבָה “The glory of young men is their strength; the beauty of the aged is their gray hair.” Beneath its concise form lies a grammatical structure rich with contrast — not only between youth and old age, but between two kinds of value: power and dignity.… Learn Hebrew

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If I Perish, I Perish: Imperatives, Volition, and Repetition in Esther 4:16

Posted on April 16, 2020 by Biblical Hebrew

Esther 4:16 לֵךְ֩ כְּנֹ֨וס אֶת־כָּל־הַיְּהוּדִ֜ים הַֽנִּמְצְאִ֣ים בְּשׁוּשָׁ֗ן וְצ֣וּמוּ עָ֠לַי וְאַל־תֹּאכְל֨וּ וְאַל־תִּשְׁתּ֜וּ שְׁלֹ֤שֶׁת יָמִים֙ לַ֣יְלָה וָיֹ֔ום גַּם־אֲנִ֥י וְנַעֲרֹתַ֖י אָצ֣וּם כֵּ֑ן וּבְכֵ֞ן אָבֹ֤וא אֶל־הַמֶּ֨לֶךְ֙ אֲשֶׁ֣ר לֹֽא־כַדָּ֔ת וְכַאֲשֶׁ֥ר אָבַ֖דְתִּי אָבָֽדְתִּי׃ Imperative Sequence: לֵךְ כְּנֹוס לֵךְ and כְּנֹוס are masculine singular imperatives. לֵךְ (“Go!”) comes from י־ל־ךְ and כְּנֹוס (“Gather!”) from כ־נ־ס. These commands are direct and urgent, addressed to Mordekhai. The sequential imperatives stress immediate action and communal mobilization. Participle Clause: הַנִּמְצְאִים הַנִּמְצְאִים is a Niphal participle masculine plural from מ־צ־א (“to be found”).… Learn Hebrew

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“Her Iniquity Is Greater Than the Sin of Sodom”: The Grammar of Moral Collapse in Lamentations 4:6

Posted on April 6, 2020 by Biblical Hebrew

וַיִּגְדַּל עֲוֹן בַּת־עַמִּי מֵחַטַּאת סְדֹם הַהֲפוּכָה כְמֹו־רָגַע וְלֹא־חָלוּ בָהּ יָדָיִם׃ In the lament over Jerusalem’s fall, Eikhah 4:6 delivers a declaration of staggering moral gravity: וַיִּגְדַּל עֲוֹן בַּת־עַמִּי מֵחַטַּאת סְדֹם “Her iniquity is greater than the sin of Sodom.” This verse does not merely compare sins — it defines the nature of transgression through grammatical structure. At its center lies a comparative clause that uses an unusual form of contrast: not “like Sodom,” but “greater than the sin of Sodom.” This shift from simile to superlative intensifies the theological weight of the statement and marks a turning point in how Hebrew encodes moral failure.… Learn Hebrew

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