Biblical Hebrew Forum

[mjoseph <mjoseph AT terminal.cz>]

In Deut. 32:37 there is a perfect/qatal/suffix conjugation verb XFSFYW. 
which is translated unremarkably as a past tense, "they took refuge" 
(NIV). In the next verse, though with a change of subject, there are two 
more past tenses, "ate" and "drank," though the verb in each case is an 
imperfect/yiqtol/prefix conjugation verb, YO)K"LW. and YI$:T.W. 
respectively.

I'm not sure if this bears on the endless thread concerning the Hebrew 
conjugations or not, but in any case I was wondering if someone could 
address the question of imperfect/yiqtol/prefix conjugation as a past 
tense, not so much generally, but rather specifically in this verse, 
where there is no waw, consecutive or otherwise, and where the verbs in 
question are found in a subordinate clause introduced by )$ER

Mark Joseph