Biblical Hebrew Forum

[John Ronning <ronning AT ilink.nis.za>]

yochanan bitan wrote:

> shalom, john,
> and thank you for the references.
>
> some additional questions on your references, with an application:
>
> 1. would two people in the market* use "ha-yom" for "now"?.

If you want to call the place where Esau sold his birthright a market
(the place where Esau was going in order to die, right Bryan?), the
answer may be yes - Gen 25:31 - mikrah kayyom 'eth bekoratheka li, sell
NOW your birthright to me (i.e. sell it first, before I give you some of
this red stuff).  If there is a better way of saying "now" in such
contexts, let me know.

>
>
> 2. why only anoxi and not ani?

I'm not saying you can't use 'ani - the answers I gave were based on
scriptural examples which all used 'anoki.
>
> if ha-yom is not the plain vanilla way of saying 'at this moment' then
> all of the "hits" that you have recorded should maybe be read as just a tad 
> > "elevated" in register, legality or solemnity. they are still "hits", but 
> > were presented to the reader as specialized.
> we the readers need to immediately feel this when we hear 'ha-yom'.

I would agree that hayyom in the Deuteronomy examples I gave should be
translated "today" not specifically "now at this moment" since it was a
very long sermon - closer to a day than a moment.

John Ronning