Category Archives: Grammar

Biblical Hebrew Grammar

The Imperatives of Restraint: Jussive and Imperative in Proverbs 23:6

Posted on June 23, 2023 by Biblical Hebrew

אַל־תִּלְחַ֗ם אֶת־֭לֶחֶם רַ֣ע עָ֑יִן וְאַל־תתאו לְמַטְעַמֹּתָֽיו׃ Do not eat the bread of one with an evil eye; and do not desire his delicacies. In Proverbs 23:6, wisdom literature urges discernment not only through imagery, but through grammar. The verse commands the reader not to eat the bread of one with an “evil eye,” nor to desire his delicacies. While this appears straightforward in English, the Hebrew uses two imperative-like constructions with different moods and implications: אַל־תִּלְחַם and אַל־תִּתְאָו. This article explores the nuanced use of negative imperatives in Biblical Hebrew, especially the relationship between the imperfect with אַל and the jussive mood.… Learn Hebrew

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Mourning and Restraint: Imperatives, Prohibition, and Community Grief in Leviticus 10:6

Posted on June 10, 2023 by Biblical Hebrew

וַיֹּ֣אמֶר מֹשֶׁ֣ה אֶֽל־אַהֲרֹ֡ן וּלְאֶלְעָזָר֩ וּלְאִֽיתָמָ֨ר בָּנָ֜יו רָֽאשֵׁיכֶ֥ם אַל־תִּפְרָ֣עוּ וּבִגְדֵיכֶ֤ם לֹֽא־תִפְרֹ֨מוּ֙ וְלֹ֣א תָמֻ֔תוּ וְעַ֥ל כָּל־הָעֵדָ֖ה יִקְצֹ֑ף וַאֲחֵיכֶם֙ כָּל־בֵּ֣ית יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל יִבְכּוּ֙ אֶת־הַשְּׂרֵפָ֔ה אֲשֶׁ֖ר שָׂרַ֥ף יְהוָֽה׃ (Leviticus 10:6) And Moses said to Aaron and to Eleazar and to Ithamar, his sons: “Do not let your heads go unkempt, and do not tear your garments, so that you do not die and He not become angry against all the congregation. But your brothers, all the house of Israel, shall weep over the burning that YHWH has burned.”… Learn Hebrew

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“Come, Let Us Return to YHWH”: Cohortatives, Paradox, and Theological Healing in Hosea 6:1

Posted on June 1, 2023 by Biblical Hebrew

לְכוּ֙ וְנָשׁ֣וּבָה אֶל־יְהוָ֔ה כִּ֛י ה֥וּא טָרָ֖ף וְיִרְפָּאֵ֑נוּ יַ֖ךְ וְיַחְבְּשֵֽׁנוּ׃ (Hosea 6:1) Come, and let us return to YHWH: for He has torn, and He will heal us; He has struck, and He will bind us up. A Call to Return and Be Healed Hosea 6:1 begins a poetic and theological call for national repentance. Spoken by the prophet or the penitent community, the verse features a sequence of volitional and predictive verbs, framing divine discipline not as destruction but as a prelude to restoration.… Learn Hebrew

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Divine Gifts: Tripartite Blessings and Comparative Syntax in 1 Kings 5:9

Posted on May 9, 2023 by Biblical Hebrew

וַיִּתֵּן֩ אֱלֹהִ֨ים חָכְמָ֧ה לִשְׁלֹמֹ֛ה וּתְבוּנָ֖ה הַרְבֵּ֣ה מְאֹ֑ד וְרֹ֣חַב לֵ֔ב כַּחֹ֕ול אֲשֶׁ֖ר עַל־שְׂפַ֥ת הַיָּֽם׃ (1 Kings 5:9) And God gave Solomon wisdom and very great understanding and breadth of heart like the sand that is on the shore of the sea. Divine Action: וַיִּתֵּן אֱלֹהִים חָכְמָה לִשְׁלֹמֹה וַיִּתֵּן (“and He gave”) is a Qal wayyiqtol 3ms from נ־ת־ן (“to give”), a typical narrative verb form indicating completed divine action. אֱלֹהִים is the subject, emphasizing that Solomon’s wisdom originates from God. חָכְמָה (“wisdom”) is the direct object, and לִשְׁלֹמֹה (“to Solomon”) marks the recipient using the preposition לְ.… Learn Hebrew

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A Royal Menu: Quantifiers and Species in 1 Kings 5:3

Posted on May 3, 2023 by Biblical Hebrew

עֲשָׂרָ֨ה בָקָ֜ר בְּרִאִ֗ים וְעֶשְׂרִ֥ים בָּקָ֛ר רְעִ֖י וּמֵ֣אָה צֹ֑אן לְ֠בַד מֵֽאַיָּ֤ל וּצְבִי֙ וְיַחְמ֔וּר וּבַרְבֻּרִ֖ים אֲבוּסִֽים׃ (1 Kings 5:3) Ten fattened oxen and twenty pasture-fed oxen and one hundred sheep, besides deer, gazelles, roebucks, and fattened fowl. Numerals and Nouns: עֲשָׂרָ֨ה בָקָ֜ר The phrase עֲשָׂרָ֨ה בָקָ֜ר (“ten fattened oxen”) demonstrates the masculine plural numeral עֲשָׂרָה agreeing in gender with בָקָר (“cattle, oxen”), which though singular in form is treated as a collective or plural in sense. The numeral precedes the noun, which is typical in Hebrew counting expressions.… Learn Hebrew

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“For Judgment Is for You”: Vocative Structure and Second-Person Plural Indictment in Hosea 5:1

Posted on May 1, 2023 by Biblical Hebrew

שִׁמְעוּ־זֹ֨את הַכֹּהֲנִ֜ים וְהַקְשִׁ֣יבוּ בֵּ֣ית יִשְׂרָאֵ֗ל וּבֵ֤ית הַמֶּ֨לֶךְ֙ הַאֲזִ֔ינוּ כִּ֥י לָכֶ֖ם הַמִּשְׁפָּ֑ט כִּֽי־פַח֙ הֱיִיתֶ֣ם לְמִצְפָּ֔ה וְרֶ֖שֶׁת פְּרוּשָׂ֥ה עַל־תָּבֹֽור׃ (Hosea 5:1) Hear this, O priests; pay attention, house of Israel; and give ear, house of the king. For the judgment is for you, because you have been a snare at Mizpah and a net spread over Tabor. A Multi-Level Call to Account Hosea 5:1 opens with a sharp prophetic rebuke structured around three vocatives and a climactic declaration of judgment. The verse strategically builds tension by summoning three key leadership groups—priests, the house of Yisra’el, and the royal house—and declares that the judgment (מִשְׁפָּט) pertains directly to them.… Learn Hebrew

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Grammatical-Theological Analysis of Ruth 4:18

Posted on April 18, 2023 by Biblical Hebrew

וְאֵ֨לֶּה֙ תֹּולְדֹ֣ות פָּ֔רֶץ פֶּ֖רֶץ הֹולִ֥יד אֶת־חֶצְרֹֽון׃ 1. Narrative Formula and Literary Structure: וְאֵלֶּה תֹּולְדֹות The phrase וְאֵלֶּה תֹּולְדֹות (“and these are the generations of…”) is a recurring genealogical formula found throughout the Torah (cf. Genesis 2:4; 5:1; 10:1). It introduces a transition or literary boundary marker, often leading to a genealogy or important narrative shift. תֹּולְדֹות is a feminine plural noun from the root יָלַד (“to bear, beget”), referring to genealogical records, descendants, or historical developments stemming from a person. The prefixed וְ (“and”) ties the verse back to the previous context, providing continuity from the story of Ruth and Boaz to the Davidic line.… Learn Hebrew

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“You Have Strengthened Knees That Were Bowing”: Causative Stems and Parallelism in Job 4:4

Posted on April 4, 2023 by Biblical Hebrew

כֹּ֭ושֵׁל יְקִימ֣וּן מִלֶּ֑יךָ וּבִרְכַּ֖יִם כֹּרְעֹ֣ות תְּאַמֵּֽץ׃ (Job 4:4) Strengthen the weak hands, and make firm the knees that give way. Eliphaz and the Power of Speech Job 4:4 is part of Eliphaz’s opening speech, where he reminds Job of his past influence and moral strength. The verse praises Job for encouraging the weak, using evocative imagery of stumbling and bowed knees. The focus of this study is the poetic structure and the grammatical form תְּאַמֵּֽץ, a Piel stem that adds causative force to the meaning of the verb “to be strong.”… Learn Hebrew

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Ezekiel 43:3 – Repetition with כ and אֲשֶׁר in Comparative Clauses

Posted on April 3, 2023 by Biblical Hebrew

וּכְמַרְאֵ֨ה הַמַּרְאֶ֜ה אֲשֶׁ֣ר רָאִ֗יתִי כַּמַּרְאֶ֤ה אֲשֶׁר־רָאִ֨יתִי֙ בְּבֹאִי֙ לְשַׁחֵ֣ת אֶת־הָעִ֔יר וּמַרְאֹ֕ות כַּמַּרְאֶ֕ה אֲשֶׁ֥ר רָאִ֖יתִי אֶל־נְהַר־כְּבָ֑ר וָאֶפֹּ֖ל אֶל־פָּנָֽי׃ (Ezekiel 43:3) And like the appearance of the vision that I saw, like the vision that I saw when I came to destroy the city, and the visions were like the vision that I saw by the river Kevar, and I fell upon my face. Explanation of Feature This verse from Ezekiel 43:3 highlights two key grammatical features: 1. Repetitive comparative clauses using the particle כְּ (“like/as”) combined with אֲשֶׁר (“which/that”) to form descriptive comparisons.… Learn Hebrew

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We Are Utterly Ruined”: Syntax of Satire and Loss in Micah 2:4

Posted on April 2, 2023 by Biblical Hebrew

בַּיֹּ֨ום הַה֜וּא יִשָּׂ֧א עֲלֵיכֶ֣ם מָשָׁ֗ל וְנָהָ֨ה נְהִי נִֽהְיָה֙ אָמַר֙ שָׁדֹ֣וד נְשַׁדֻּ֔נוּ חֵ֥לֶק עַמִּ֖י יָמִ֑יר אֵ֚יךְ יָמִ֣ישׁ לִ֔י לְשֹׁובֵ֥ב שָׂדֵ֖ינוּ יְחַלֵּֽק׃ On that day one will raise a parable against you, and he will wail a lament with grief, saying: “We are utterly ruined! The portion of my people He changes! How He removes it from me! To the apostate He parcels out our fields!” Prophetic Mockery and the Breakdown of Inheritance Micah 2:4 delivers a sharp prophetic rebuke through the vehicle of ironic lamentation.… Learn Hebrew

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