Tag Archives: Deuteronomy 5:26

Who Has Heard and Lived? — Interrogatives, Apposition, and the Grammar of Wonder

כִּ֣י מִ֣י כָל־בָּשָׂ֡ר אֲשֶׁ֣ר שָׁמַ֣ע קֹול֩ אֱלֹהִ֨ים חַיִּ֜ים מְדַבֵּ֧ר מִתֹּוךְ־הָאֵ֛שׁ כָּמֹ֖נוּ וַיֶּֽחִי׃ The Cry of the Awestruck Deuteronomy 5:26 captures the trembling voice of Israel as they recall standing at Sinai, hearing the living voice of God emerging from fire. The verse is cast as a rhetorical question — not seeking information but expressing astonishment. Yet the Hebrew does not use a simple interrogative. Instead, it layers clauses, shifts from perfect to participle, and suspends the verb וַיֶּֽחִי (“and [he] lived”) until the very end.… Learn Hebrew
Posted in Grammar | Tagged | Comments Off on Who Has Heard and Lived? — Interrogatives, Apposition, and the Grammar of Wonder