To learn to read and to understand the words of Scripture
The Aramaic of Targum Onkelos and Targum Jonathan
וְהַוָּה קַל שׁוֹפָרָא אָזִיל וְתַקִּיף לַחֲדָא משֶׁה הֲוָה מְמַלֵּיל וּמִן קֳדָם יְיָ הֲוָה מִתְעַנֵי בְקַל נָעִים וּמְשַׁבַּח וּנְעִימָתָא מַלְיָא And the sound of the shofar kept going and becoming very strong; Moshe was speaking, and from before YHWH, there came a pleasant voice responding and praising—full of melody. Poetic Reflection: The Mountain that Listened The…
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.…
וּקְרָא משֶׁה לְכָל יִשְׂרָאֵל וַאֲמַר לְהוֹן שְׁמַע יִשְׂרָאֵל יָת קְיָמַיָּא וְיָת דִּינַיָּא דִּי אֲנָא מְמַלֵּל קֳדָמֵיכוֹן יוֹמָא דֵין וְתַלְּפוּן יָתְהוֹן וְתִטְּרוּן לְמֶעְבָּדְהוֹן: And Moshe called to all Yisraʾel and said to them, “Hear, O Yisraʾel, the statutes and the judgments that I am speaking before you today, and you shall learn them and keep them…
וַאֲמֶרֶת לֵאָה יְהַב יְיָ אַגְרִי דִּיהָבִית אַמְתִי לְבַעְלִי וּקְרַת שְׁמֵיהּ יִשָּׂשׂכָר: (Genesis 30:18) And Leʾah said, “YHWH has given my reward, because I gave my maidservant to my husband,” and she called his name Yissakhar. The Voice of Leʾah: A Dramatic Monologue “Yehav YHWH agri”—the words burst forth from Leʾah’s lips, not with self-pity but…
וּנְטָלוּ כָּל כְּנִשְׁתָּא דִבְנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל מִמַדְבְּרָא דְסִין לְמַטְלָנֵיהוֹן עַל מֵימְרָא דַיְיָ וּשְׁרוֹ בִּרְפִידִים וְלֵית מַיָא לְמִשְׁתֵּי עַמָא (Exodus 17:1, Targum Onkelos) And the entire assembly of the children of Yisraʾel departed from the wilderness of Sin for their journeys by the word of the LORD, and they camped in Rephidim, and there was no water…
וְיֶחֱתוּן מֵעַל כּוּרְסְוָתֵיהוֹן כָּל רַבְרְבֵי יַמָא וְיַעְדוּן יַת מְעִילֵיהוֹן וְיַת לְבוּשֵׁי צִיוּרֵיהוֹן יַשְׁלְחוּן זְיַע יִלְבְּשׁוּן עַל אַרְעָא יַתְבוּן וִיזוּעוּן מִן קֳדָם תְּבִירֵיהוֹן וְיִצְדוּן עֲלָךְ And all the lords of the sea shall descend from their thrones, and they shall remove their cloaks and the garments of their adornments; trembling they shall put on; they shall…
וַעֲבַד לְהוֹן יְהוֹשֻׁעַ שְׁלָם וּגְזַר לְהוֹן קְיָם לְקַיָמוּתְהוֹן וְקַיְימוּ לְהוֹ רַבְרְבֵי כְּנִשְׁתָּא: And Yehoshua made peace with them and established a covenant with them to let them live, and the leaders of the congregation ratified it with him. Narrative Exposition: The Grammar Behind the Treaty The Gibeonite deception led to more than a clever ruse—it…
וּשְׁלִים יְיָ בְּיוֹמָא שְׁבִיעָאָה עֲבִידְתֵּיהּ דְעָבַד וְעִישַרְתֵּי עִיסְקִין דִבְרָא בֵּינֵי שִׁמְשְׁתָא וְנַח בְּיוֹמָא שְׁבִיעָאָה מִכָּל עֲבִידְתֵּיהּ דְעָבָד And the LORD completed on the seventh day His work which He had done, and He enriched the operations of creation between the suns, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work that He had…
בְּקַדְמִין בְּרָא יְיָ יָת שְׁמַיָּא וְיָת אַרְעָא (Genesis 1:1 in Targum Onkelos) In the beginning, the LORD created the heavens and the earth Opening Focus: Why Study יָת? In Biblical Aramaic, and especially in Targum Onkelos, the particle יָת (yat) plays a critical grammatical role. It marks definite direct objects, a feature not found in…
וִיהֵי בָּתַר כֵּן אֶשְׁפּוֹךְ יַת רוּחַ קוּדְשִׁי עַל כָּל בִּסְרָא וְיִתְנַבּוּן בְּנֵיכוֹן וּבְנָתֵיכוֹן סָבֵיכוֹן חֶלְמִין יַחְלְמוּן עוּלֵמֵיכוֹן חֶזְוָנִין יֶחֱזוּן: (Joel 3:1 in Targum Jonathan) And it shall be afterward, I will pour out My Holy Spirit upon all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy; your elders shall dream dreams, your young men…