Biblical Hebrew Forum

["Ken Penner" <pennerkm AT mcmaster.ca>]

Hi Liz,

What gave me pause was your word "always", with its implicit dismissal of
thousands of pages written over the last century about the problem of YIQTOL
used for the past and QATAL and WAYYIQTOL for the future. According to
McFall, there are over 1000 such exceptions to the general rule you stated.
What are we to say to these? Are they all misinterpretations? Or are they
simply so few as to be insignificant? 

When you say you "don't believe in a prophetic perfect," you don't mean it
is impossible that a QATAL could refer to the future, do you? I suppose you
must mean that it is extremely rare for a QATAL to be used for a future
event, right?

I would be interested in your translation of Psalm 107.

Ken Penner, McMaster/DSS
Dead Sea Scrolls scholars' list owner,
http://mailman.McMaster.CA/mailman/listinfo/g-megillot

> I don't believe in a prophetic perfect. Nope.

> > > I don't see a problem in the psalm. I would translate the 
> verbs the 
> > > way I always do: The WAYYIKTOBs, and KATABs are narrative 
> past, the 
> > > YIKTOBs, WEYIKTOBs are either future or jussive.