Biblical Hebrew Forum

[Dave Washburn <dwashbur AT nyx.net>]

On Tuesday 16 August 2005 17:27, Peter Kirk wrote:
> On 17/08/2005 00:03, Yitzhak Sapir wrote:
> > ...
> >
> >I am looking over Eliezer Rubinstein's booklet and it seems that the
> >interpretation is different from his point of view, and as I was "merely
> >rehashing" his description, I think that should be clarified: A QATAL
> >following a WAYYIQTOL suggests past perfect.  But a WAYYIQTOL
> >following a QATAL suggests simple sequence.  So in Gen 18:1, Abraham
> >still sits down because that is the end state of the verb "to sit down."
> >When I ask you to sit down and you complete my request you are
> >seated.  It would be a sort of smart-aleck response for you to sit
> >down and stand up and say "I sat down!"  A similar example is Gen
> >18:7 where Abraham ran to the cattle and then took a calf.
>
> Thanks for this. I tend to agree with Rubinstein, at least to a first
> approximation. But in 18:1 Abraham sitting is not QATAL but a participle
> and so stative. However, 18:7 is a QATAL followed by a participle and
> these are presumably sequential. 

Pardon my jumping in here, but I don't see a participle in that verse?

> The interesting point, however, is that 
> this QATAL is not apparently a past perfect preceding the previous
> WAYYIQTOL, as presumably Abraham told Sarah what to do before running
> off. This is more like a contrasting pair WAYYIQTOL followed by X-QATAL,
> the contrast being between Sarah's job of making the bread and Abraham's
> of getting the kebabs ready. It is interesting how in that culture as
> well as so many modern ones cooking a barbecue is the man's work,
> although most other food preparation is women's work.
>
> --
> Peter Kirk
> peter AT qaya.org (personal)
> peterkirk AT qaya.org (work)
> http://www.qaya.org/

-- 
Dave Washburn
http://www.nyx.net/~dwashbur
"Well, if I'd wanted a safe life, I guess I wouldn't have 
married a man who studies rocks." - Betty Armstrong (Fay Masterson)