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  • From: "Karl Randolph" <kwrandolph AT email.com>
  • To: b-hebrew AT lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: Re: [b-hebrew] Human Sacrifice - Qal, Hiphil, Hophal
  • Date: Mon, 24 Oct 2005 20:15:31 -0500

Jack:

> So, this ol' dog ain't quite ready to give up his bone just
> yet.

<grin>

Was that listing in the concordance for both verbal and
noun constructs, or verbs only? I noticed that Lisowski
counted 51 verbal uses, 29 noun uses, then there are
another 9 noun uses that refer to some sort of fish
catching apparatus (net? trap?).

We could go through each use of the word, but a few
should be sufficient:

Exodus 22:19 it is forbidden to sacrifice to gods except to
YHWH alone.

Leviticus 21:18 we are guessing as to its meaning, but the
context is not one of destruction, just to some sort of mark
or deformity.

Leviticus 27:21 refers to a field, which becomes the
property of the priest, marked out and forbidden from
other uses.

Leviticus 27:28 ff this refers to things well before standing
at the altar, when there is still time to sell or exchange that
which is XRM. This is one of the reasons I believe that
XRM does not refer to the destruction itself, but to the
designating of that which is to be destroyed.

Numbers 18:14 everything consecrated to the Lord, i.e.
forbidden for other uses, goes to the priest.

And so forth.

While it appears at times that XRM refers to the actual
destruction, e.g. 1 Samuel 15, even there it can be argued
that the destruction follows the designating, the marking,
that they should be destroyed, as the destruction is also
mentioned separately.

I think it is clear that there is no single word in English that
has the same meaning as XRM in Hebrew, but to say that
it refers to destruction itself is contradicted by the above
examples.

Another thing I think that needs to be recognized is the
indirect speech that is common in Tanakh. We have all
heard in English about when a person "assumes room
temperature" which only happens when one is dead,
hence "to assume room temperature" means "to die". Job
and Jeremiah especially have a lot of indirect speech,
that's what makes those books somewhat challenging to
read. That's what I notice in 1 Samuel 15 is that the
context already mentions that all of Amelek is to be
destroyed, with the command that all are designated to
that fate, thus some of the verses merely mention "they are
designated" with the context finishing the sentence. But a
translator into English often has to make explicit what is
implicit in Hebrew, just to make it clear. So for example,
verse 8 "they designated all the people to the bite (mouth)
of the sword" but in verse 9 the prime of the flocks "were
not so designated" while lesser animals "were so
designated." Can you imagine how confusing a literal
translation of these verses would sound in English?
Hence a translator's dictionary will give glosses that are
aids to translations, not what the words mean in their
original uses. Your friend's concordance sounds like a
translator's dictionary.

When I look at the span of meaning for XRM (other than
for the fish catching apparatus) there is the concept of
marking, such as to forbid other uses, with derivative
meanings of designation, consecration and banning.

Karl W. Randolph.

----- Original Message -----
From: tladatsi AT charter.net
>
> My posting was based on a concordance some fellow had
> prepared. It included a list how the root XRM was used in
> the OT. He had two main definitions with some sub-
> definitions with different stems. I included some examples
> of those that I could find.
>
> 1) to ban, devote, destroy utterly, completely destroy,
> dedicate for destruction, exterminate
>
> a) (Hiphil)
>
> 1) to prohibit (for common use), ban (1 Sam 15:9)
>
> 2) to consecrate, devote, dedicate for destruction (Mic
> 4:13)
>
> 3) to exterminate, completely destroy (Num 21:2 ? 3)
>
> b) (Hophal)
>
> 1) to be put under the ban, be devoted to destruction (Lev
> 27:28)
>
> 2) to be devoted, be forfeited (Ez 10:8)
>
> 3) to be completely destroyed (Ex 20:22)
>
> 2) to split, slit, mutilate (a part of the body)
>
> a) (Qal) to mutilate (Lev 21:18)
>
> b) (Hiphil) to divide
>
> There are 52 instances in the OT where XRM is the root of a
> word. Here is how two other groups of translators put
> those words into English.
>
> King James Version - accursed, 1; consecrate, 1; destroy,
> 34; devote, 2; flat nose, 1; forfeited, 1; slay, 1;
> utterly, 10; utterly to make away, 1;
>
> New American Standard - annihilate, 1; covet, 1; destroy
> them utterly, 1; destroy utterly, 1; destroyed them
> utterly, 1; destroying, 1; destroying them completely, 2;
> destruction, 2; devote, 2; disfigured, 1; forfeited, 1; set
> apart, 1; sets apart, 1; utterly destroy, 11; utterly
> destroyed, 22; utterly destroying, 3;
>
> Almost all of the destroyed and utterly destroyed words are
> either hiphil or hophal. If the qal is to mutilate (as in
> Lev 21:18) then the hiphil could be caused mutilation and
> hophal could be caused to be mutilated - both of which
> would be an adequate description of a sacrifed animal - or
> a slaughtered civilian.
>
> So, this ol' dog ain't quite ready to give up his bone just
> yet.
>
>
> Jack Tladatsi


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