Biblical Hebrew Forum

["Lewis Reich" <lbr AT sprynet.com>]

On 16 Apr 99, at 20:50, Ken Litwak wrote:

>     If you look in a good lexicon for Min, you'll find that MiN has as
> an exceedingly wide range of meaning, as many prepositions in many
> languages do. Whomever Isaiah had in mind (and I don't think it has
> anything to do with the exiles), it is perfectly fine, as JIm West
> noted, to render this as "because of", i.e., "for the sake of".  

Although "MiN" (and its abbreviated prefix form) has a variety of 
meanings, I have to agree with George that there is a significant 
difference in meaning between the suggested conjunctions.  "From" 
implies that it was the sins that directly caused the wounding, and I 
think it is this meaning that most fits the context.  "Because of" 
seems to me to imply that it was something or someone else that 
did the wounding because of the fact of the sins.  "For the sake of" 
implies that the wounding's purpose was atonement.  I do not think 
that one can progress quite so easily from "MiN" as "for" to "for the 
sake of".  If the latter meaning had been clearly intended , it seems 
to me likely that another locution, perhaps (L, would have been 
used.

Lewis Reich
lbr AT sprynet.com