Biblical Hebrew Forum

["Dr. Theodore H. Mann" <thmann AT juno.com>]

Hello:

I'm a new subscriber, and am pleased to be part of B-Hebrew.  I have 
participated in B-Greek for some time now, and I know enough about that 
language to understand most of the grammatical aspects of NT Greek.  
However, I know nothing at all about Hebrew, so I trust you will be patient 
with me, as I attempt to learn from you.

Probably I will spend most of my time lurking, but from time to time a  
question will occur to me about the translation of some passage or other in 
the OT. My questions will no doubt be simple ones, since I don't know 
enough about the language to ask intelligent questions, and I have no 
significant Hebrew resources at my disposal.

If I violate any of the list rules, please inform me.  Any violation on my 
part will be completely unintended.

I do happen to have a question at this time:

I have a translation that renders Gen. 1:2 as:  "But the earth became waste 
and emptiness, and darkness was on the surface of the deep."
No doubt this is an issue that has been dealt with extensively in the past. 
 If so, I would appreciate being directed to the appropriate entries in 
your archives.

My question is:  Is this a valid translation of the verse?  I notice that 
the English translations I have consulted use the term "was," rather than 
"became," and most of them use "without form," rather than "waste."  
However, the NIV does include a footnote indicating that "was" could be 
translated "became."

Thanks for your help.

Ted

Dr. Theodore "Ted" H. Mann
thmann AT juno.com