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  • From: "Reginald Wallace Ponder, Jr." <rwponder AT lycos.com>
  • To: b-hebrew AT franklin.oit.unc.edu
  • Subject: Re: Job 42:5-6
  • Date: Tue, 14 Nov 2000 15:07:21 -0500


Dear Myron:
Thanks for your well-ordered and thoughtful analysis. I appreciate
your mentioning the other occurences of NHM in Job. This certainly is
important. I will study these occurences further, since I still am
reluctant to understand the niphal in 42:6 according to the usual piel
meaning. But regardless of whether the occurences of the root share a
common meaning or show a contrast in meaning, they surely help in
ubnderstanding the structure and meaning of a Biblical book. I agree with
Robert Alter's assessment (after Martin Buber and others) that repitition
of a root is significant, even when (or especially when?) the root shifts
markedly in meaning in different stems or in different contexts.

Your note on the preposition *'al* was helpful.

Finally, I think your analysis points to the importance of "big
picture" reading, or awareness of context, in interpreting BiblicaL texts.
You and I arrived at very similar understandings of the Book of Job as a
whole, and thus of the ending, despite divergent renderings of the Hebrew
in 42:6. I will take your grammatical/lexical points under advisement.
And also many thanks to everyone who has been helping to make this a
challenging and provocative discussion.
Shalom,
Rev. Reggie Ponder, Jr.
Mt. Tirzah United Methodist Church
Timberlake, NC USA



  • Job 42:5-6, myron kauk, 11/12/2000
    • <Possible follow-up(s)>
    • Re: Job 42:5-6, Reginald Wallace Ponder, Jr., 11/14/2000

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