Biblical Hebrew Forum

["Harold R. Holmyard III" <hholmyard AT ont.com>]

Dear Christopher,

> Num 10:4 HANN:&IY)IYM RF)$"Y )LP"Y YI&RF)"L
> Num 36:1 HANN:&IY)IYM RF)$"Y )FBWT LIBN"Y YI&RF)"L
> Ezk 38:2 N:&IY) RO)$ ME$EK W:TUBFL
> (Ezk 38:3 and 39:1 are the same as 38:2)
>
> Those look syntactically parallel to me. Also the Masoretic accentuation,
> for whatever it's worth, divides these phrases _the same way_. In each of
> the five cases of N&Y) + RO)$, the Masoretes accent N&Y) with zaqef (zaqef
> qatan in Num, zaqef gadol in Ezek), thus marking N&Y) as the end of a
> phrase. I can't really see any syntactical distinctiveness of Num 10:4; 36:1
> over against Ezk 38:2, 3; 39:1. The syntax looks analogous to me.
>
> As I suggested in my long post of 12/25, RO)$ and N&Y) seem to be appositive
> in each of the 5 cases where they appear side-by-side.

HH: The words in Ezekiel don't have to function as they do in 
Numbers. It seems to me that an accentual question in Ezekiel is how 
the following tiphha on R)$ is functioning. If it is the main divider 
of the athnach or silluq section, as I believe is normal, then it 
would conclude the phrase. The HCSB recently handled R)$ here as 
adjectival:

Ezek 38:2: Son of man, turn your face toward Gog, of the land of 
Magog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal.

                                        Yours,
                                        Harold Holmyard