Biblical Hebrew Forum

["Lee R. Martin" <lmartin AT vol.com>]

Dear Rolf,
I was taught that yiqtol expresses future, past habitual, and
modal/subjunctive.  Deut. 2:12 may be subjunctive. Thus it reads,
"The Horites also lived in Seir formerly, but the sons of Esau would
dispossess them (yiqtol, showing intent or desire).  So they destroyed them
from before them, and they settled in their stead."
Lee R. Martin


Rolf Furuli wrote:
>We will discuss Deuteronomium chapter 2 in class this week. Verse 12 is
>quite thought-provoking.
>
>Deut. 2:12 The Horites also lived (QATAL) in Seir formerly, but the sons of
>Esau dispossessed them (YIQTOL), and destroyed them (WAYYIQTOL) from before
>them, and settled (WAYYIQTOL) in their stead; as Israel did (QATAL) to the
>land of their possession, which the LORD gave (QATAL) to them.
>
>The problem here is the past meaning of the YIQTOL YR$. To explain such
>creatures two procedures are followed: (1) To claim that formerly two
>YIQTOLs existed, a short preterit/modal form and a long form; and YIQTOLs
>with past meaning go back to the preterit. (2) The action expressed by the
>YIQTOL  is durative,iterative, habitual, frequentative etc.
>