Biblical Hebrew Forum

["Peter Kirk"<peter_kirk AT sil.org>]

Dear Lee,

Thank you for your examples. I think you could do a computer search 
for this using BibleWorks, but not a 100% accurate one. But I fear it 
would take more than an hour to set up such a search, except perhaps 
for an expert. So thanks for your effort at finding examples by hard 
work.

Yes, the following four cases really are examples of hanging 
prepositional phrases with no verb, followed by a WAW which is not 
part of a WAYYIQTOL. I notice that in each case the following WAW is 
instead part of a WEQATAL, and they all refer to a future event in 
direct speech.

Gen 3:5
Exodus 32:34
Amos 3:14
1 Ki 2:42 (this is embarrassing as I quoted the first part of this 
very verse on this list only last week!)

The following are slightly different:

Gen 19:15: this has a WAYYIQTOL verb, which I specifically excluded as 
I knew there were a few examples like this.

Lev 7:16: the syntax here is odd, perhaps "umimmoxorat" goes with the 
preceding clause (despite the Masoretic punctuation) as it must do in 
the very similar 19:6.

Psalm 138:3: Interesting! BeYOM is followed by a finite verb. But the 
next verb is WAYYIQTOL. There seems to be the same ambiguity here as 
in Genesis 1:1, for the meaning could be something like "In one day I 
called and you answered me".

Ruth 4:5 has more than one overall interpretation (compare NIV with 
NRSV), only one of them involves the structure in question.

Eccl 12:3-4: No, here the main clause is in verse 1 and the whole of 
verses 3-7 is dependent on BAYYOWM $E- in verse 3 (see NRSV).

Your other examples have a verb with the prepositional phrase. It is 
an interesting study why there is sometimes but not always a following 
WAW, but this is not quite my point. Two sentences may be linked by 
WAW or may be in asyndeton, but that is not strictly relevant to the 
question of whether a prepositional phrase without a verb may make a 
sentence on its own.

So let me revise my conclusion: A hanging prepositional phrase of 
time, in a clause on its own, is occasionally found in Hebrew. It is 
always followed by a WAYYIQTOL or WEQATAL verb. A construct chain with 
a finite verb is also found but is also very rare. The combination of 
these two rare constructions in one phrase is attested possibly in 
Psalm 138:3, and there are no other known examples apart from the 
possible interpretation of Genesis 1:1.

So I stick to what I have written elsewhere, that where two 
constructions are possible the common one should be preferred to the 
very rare one.

Peter Kirk



______________________________ Reply Separator 
_________________________________
Subject: Gen 1:1 Grammar
Author:  <lmartin AT vol.com> at Internet
Date:    20/01/2000 11:09


Dear Peter,
I do not know how one could do a computer search for such a construction, but 
I 
will
offer the following as examples.  This manual searching is very time 
consuming, 
so I
will give only these following examples that I was able to find in about an 
hour
.
Gen 3:5 "in the day of your eating it your eyes will be opened."  BeYOM does 
not
have the article because it is in construct (like BeReShiT in Gen. 1:1).  
This 
temporal phrase is followed by a WaW (weqatal). (Contrast with Gen.2:17)
Others are:
Exodus 32:34 "in the day I visit I will visit upon them their sin." (Contrast 
wi
th
Lev. 25:9)
Ex. 6:28-29 & 16:5 seem to be applicable, even though preceded by HYH, 
especiall
y
when you contrast them with 16:22, 27, and Lev. 9:1, 14:9 
Num 7:1
Deut 27:2 (contrast the similar construction in Deut 21:16, but without waw) 
Josh 6:15
Ruth 4:5
1 Sam 13:22
1 Ki 2:37
1 Ki 2:42
Psalm 138:3
Eccl 12:3-4
Isa 14:3-4
Isa 22:20 & 23:15 (contrast with Isa 24:21, 27:12,13) 
Hosea 1:5 (contrast with 2:23)
Amos 3:14
Micah 5:9 (contrast with Hosea 2:18)
Lev 7:16b  And on the morrow (waw) the remainder of it shall be eaten. 
Gen 19:15 And when morning dawned, (waw) the angels urged Lot . . .

<snip>