The Birth of Power: The Grammar of Beginning and Becoming in Genesis 10:8
וְכ֖וּשׁ יָלַ֣ד אֶת־נִמְרֹ֑ד ה֣וּא הֵחֵ֔ל לִֽהְיֹ֥ות גִּבֹּ֖ר בָּאָֽרֶץ׃ (Genesis 10:8) And Kush fathered Nimrod; he began to be a mighty one in the earth. At first glance, Genesis 10:8 appears to be a simple genealogical statement — a brief note within the Table of Nations. Yet the Hebrew syntax of this verse does far more…