Biblical Hebrew Forum

[Michael Hildenbrand <hildenbr AT Haas.Berkeley.EDU>]

We seem to be slipping in this thread.  I sent what is written below out
to the list some time this past month.  The issue is a non-issue.  YOM in
Gen 1 linguistically *has* to refer to a day of the 24 hour variety.  
That is a certainty.  Now, what you DO with that is up to your theology.  
It is not optional as to the intent of the author/editor of Gen 1.  The
meaning of YOM is a linguistic question, not theological.

Michael

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Actually, YOM falls into quite clear categories.  When it is not augmented
(prefixed article or pronoun-like "b"- or in the plural) and used with
numbers, the word *always* refers to a literal day (some 200x), Gen 1 of
course being a battleground.  Further in Gen 1, YOM is delimited by
"evening and morning" a phrase which is never used in reference to
anything other than a literal day.  I am sure that we do not want to get
too deeply into this (presuppositions being what they are in this area)-I
don't either.  BDB had this figured out a long time ago (they have these
categories very clearly set out).  Also Evan-Shoshan divides up the usages
quite neatly.

Michael