Biblical Hebrew Forum

[Yigal Levin <Yigal-Levin AT utc.edu>]

Hi, Lew,

I assume you mean what in the Hebrew is verse 1. The two words translated
"forth" are actually the same Hebrew root, meaning "to go [or come] out".
It is the same root as that used for the emptying of bowels, but this is
incidental. In the first case, the speaker (God through the prophet) is
referring to the future ruler, to be born of the clan ("the thousands") of
Bethlehem Ephratah (i.e. the house of Jesse); in the secong he reffers to
their "origins" in the past. 
There is no reference anywhere here to a woman: note that the entire
statement is addressed in the masculine, including "thou,
Bethlehem-Ephratah" (indicating that the "clan" of Bethlehem-Ephratah, and
NOT the town, is meant).

Yigal


At 07:31 AM 10/22/2002 +1000, Lew Osborne wrote:
>Greetings
>
>Micah 5:2
>2 But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands
>of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler
>in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting.
>In this translation the word from which forth is translated is a different
>word in these two places. The second word gives the impression that it
>relates at the very least to the emptying of bowels or toilets or possibly
>in the context of the first section of the verse to 'birth'.
>
>I gain the impression that it relates to many women over a long period of
>time giving birth and looking for the one one who will come from Bethlehem
>Ephratah.
>
>Any comments.
>
>Lew Osborne
>osbo AT hn.ozemail.com.au
>
>
>
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Dr. Yigal Levin
Dept. of Philosophy and Religion
University of Tennessee at Chattanooga
615 McCallie Avenue
Chattanooga TN 37403-2598
U.S.A.