Skip to Content.
Sympa Menu

b-hebrew - Re: why isn't bereshit in Jer 26:1 in the construct state?

b-hebrew AT lists.ibiblio.org

Subject: Biblical Hebrew Forum

List archive

Chronological Thread  
  • From: Andrew & Debby Kulikovsky <hermeneutics AT kulikovskyonline.net>
  • To: b-hebrew AT franklin.oit.unc.edu
  • Subject: Re: why isn't bereshit in Jer 26:1 in the construct state?
  • Date: Mon, 12 Aug 2002 09:01:25 +0200


On 01:36 PM 12/08/2002 +1000, George Athas wrote:
Actually Andrew, it is in the construct state. The only reason I see that you might think it is not
in the construct state is by analogy with Gen 1.1 which always gets translated as an absolute,

Thanks for the response George. Good to hear from a fellow Aussie! Actually, I was confused about the state due to the parsing specified in the GRAMCORD BHS morph text.

"In
the beginning". This, however, is a troublesome translation of Gen 1.1. I refer you to B-Hebrew
archives to access previous discussions on that issue.

So are you saying that bereshit in Gen 1:1 actually has the FORM of the construct but that results in an impossible or unlikely translation?

Rest assured, however, that Jer 26.1 does start with a construct expression: The construct chain
involves the first three words -- ie, up to "Jehoiakim". And since "Jehoiakim" is a personal noun
(a name), it is automatically definite, thereby rendering the entire construct chain definite. "At
the beginning of the kingship of Jehoiakim ben-Josiah..."

If the first word were not definite, it would have a qamets vowel beneath the initial
beth-preposition. However, it has a shewa, making a construct reading the only real reading
possible.

OK, so what you are saying is that contextually it is part of a construct chain, even though it has the form of an absolute?

cheers,
Andrew
--
Andrew & Debby Kulikovsky
Check out my Biblical Hermeneutics web site:
http://hermeneutics.kulikovskyonline.net

Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?





Archive powered by MHonArc 2.6.24.

Top of Page