Biblical Hebrew Forum

[Paul Zellmer <zellmer AT cag.pworld.net.ph>]

Paul Zellmer wrote:

> The parallel passage for 2Ki is 2Ch 32:15.  Here the phrase is:    
> )aL-Ya$$iY) )eTKeM
> which appears to parallel the Gen 3 example.  Is 36:10, another parallel 
> passage, uses
> the lamed again.  However, 2 Kings 19:10 and Isaiah 37:10, which both has 
> God as the
> supposed deceiver, both use the suffixed personal pronoun.  My guess is 
> that N$) can
> use either form (direct or indirect) to mark its object.

Just an addendum to my own note.  I don't have the tools or the training to 
investigate
this, but I can think of two reasons off the top of my head for this 
alternation between
the direct and indirect object.  The first is that this might be a verb that 
originally
required either the direct object or the lamed-form, but we are seeing it in 
a transition
to the other form.  The second could be a result of a minor, stylistic(?) 
difference in
meaning.

It would be interesting to find out how the object was marked in related 
languages,
especially in the earliest times.  I freely admit that I do not hold to a 
late date for
the Penteteuch, that I hold to Moses as the author of all except the final 
chapter of
Deuteronomy.  If this is the case, then *probably* the oldest forms would use 
the direct
object.  (Hey, I'm not trying to start a thread on early vs late dates.  I'm 
merely
clarifying my position while recognizing that there are others out there.  I 
often find
myself wishing others on this list would do the same.)

If it is the result of a subtle difference in nuance, I see this as a 
possibility:  Let's
assume that my answer to Monika Ulrich was accurate, that the basic meaning 
of the word is
to give a false hope, and that to deceive is an extension of that idea.  If 
that's the
case, then "give a false hope" would already include a direct object and the 
clause would
need an addressee, an indirect object.  But, in the case of "deceive," what's 
missing
would be a *direct* object, i.e., *who* is deceived.

I'm not claiming that these are the only two possibilities, nor am I saying 
that either
one is on the right track.  I repeat that I do not have the tools or the 
training to
investigate this further.  Some of you with the resources and ability might 
want to follow
this up.  Or some of you working on advanced degrees might be able to find 
the beginning
of some thesis or dissertation here.

Just my ramblings,

Paul

--
Paul and Dee Zellmer, Jimmy Guingab, Geoffrey Beltran
Ibanag Translation Project
Cabagan, Philippines

zellmer AT faith.edu.ph