Skip to Content.
Sympa Menu

b-hebrew - Re: [b-hebrew] Isaiah 53: pierced?

b-hebrew AT lists.ibiblio.org

Subject: Biblical Hebrew Forum

List archive

Chronological Thread  
  • From: "Harold R. Holmyard III" <hholmyard AT ont.com>
  • To: b-hebrew AT lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: Re: [b-hebrew] Isaiah 53: pierced?
  • Date: Wed, 19 May 2004 15:18:54 -0500

Dear Vadim,

Just to be sure, let me clarify that I'm speaking of the semantic difference between mehulal and meholal (although I would suggest that meholal is not poal, but ayn-ayn root).

HH: The verb XLL is an ayn-ayn root. It can still be POAL. By the way, the lexicons have no trouble with the idea of one verb having both POAL and PUAL forms.

For example, consider this instance:

If Ezekiel's mehulal means the same as Isaiah's meholal, mhll in Ezekiel is not killed, because killed is denoted everywhere in Ez32 with hll.

HH: That does not matter. XLL is an adjective and a verb. Ezekiel elsewhere uses the adjective but with Ezek 32:36 he uses the verb in a participle, which can be a verbal adjective.

The difference is also evidenced by that mhll is employed only toward Meshech and Tubal, the only two tribes in the list, not described as smashed anywhere in Tanakh.

HH: XLL would indicate pierced, not smashed.

That Ezekiel also did not consider them dead is clear from his continuation, with its sense, Shouldn't they have been among the dead, too?

HH: They are among the dead. Everybody mentioned is in the pit.

In Proverbs 26:10, the rendering of mhll as killed is wrong. The proverb compares someone who hires a criminal or passer-by with rav mhll kol. The correct sense of the latter phrase is not archer who kills everyone (which does not have immediate relation to the hire of passer-by), but master who empties all, presumably by foolish management. The correct translation, therefore, is Like a master who empties all is he who hires a criminal or passer-by, meaning that such employer would be emptied of his wealth.

HH: Proverbs 26:10 is recognized as a proverb difficult to understand. There are many suggested interpretations. However, "empties" does not suit the context well even by your interpretation. A verb like "loses" might. And what verb are you taking it from to get the idea of "empty"? The idea in the normal translation is that an archer shooting passers-by would be exceedingly thoughtless and hurtful. So somebody who hires fools is thoughtless and hurtful, because the people he hires will bring harm to everyone around.

And more complicated argument below:

Isaiah's use is modeled upon Job 26:13, "His hand holelah the serpent." Serpent here is the traditional nahash, copper colored snake, the tempter, with no implication of the mythical monsters Tiamat or Leviathan. Is27:1 tells the same story in the same words, distinguishing nahash from the sea serpent. After successfully tempting Eve, the serpent was cursed, deprived of the covenant God gave to living beings. The serpent's life was made miserable, and he was emptied.

HH: Note that the contest in Job is mythological. The gliding serpent is another way to describe Rahab. And piercing is parallel to cutting to pieces:

Job 26:12 By his power he churned up the sea; by his wisdom he cut Rahab to pieces.
Job 26:13 By his breath the skies became fair; his hand pierced the gliding serpent.
Isaiah 51:9 "Are not you [the arm of God] the one cutting the monster [Egypt], meholelet the crocodile [pharaoh]?" The next verse clarifies the meaning by mentioning the passing through the Reed Sea. The Torah is explicit that Pharaoh did not die pursuing the Israelites. He was what could be described as emptied, losing his chariots: the cream of his army.

(Cutting, incidentally, is incorrect, because the word has a positive, creative connotation, like cutting stone, but not destruction. The correct meaning is made the one who cut the stone [made the pyramids], showing that God can give power to the pharaoh and empty him of it.)

HH: The imagery is the same here in Isaiah as in Job 26. Again there is Rahab, a sea monster, cutting to pieces (or striking), and piercing. The verb XCB ("hew") can certainly speak of destructive action. See the first verb in Hos 6:5:

Hos. 6:5 Therefore I cut you in pieces with my prophets, I killed you with the words of my mouth; my judgments flashed like lightning upon you.

Yours,
Harold Holmyard





Archive powered by MHonArc 2.6.24.

Top of Page