Skip to Content.
Sympa Menu

b-hebrew - Re: [b-hebrew] Daniel 6:27 (time indefinite) II

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] Daniel 6:27 (time indefinite) II
  • Date: Mon, 14 Nov 2005 17:17:30 -0600

Dear Robert,

Seeing as the focus of this thread seems to be what the expression "time/s indefinite" communicates to the English reader and whether it correcly communicates 'olam', I give the perspective of one who grew up using primarily the NWT. I feel my understanding of the expression was shaped at least partly by scriptural context. (one does't have to be a trained linguist to recognize the role of context - it's a universal tool for communication). I took the expression to roughly equal 'forever' although the possibility is left open in NWT that in some contexts the time period may have an end. In the physical world the further something is away the more unclear it becomes, so I took 'time indefinite' as a natural way of expressing a long, never-ending or else undefined time period. I never thought 'oh that could be five minutes'. Actually my English thesaurus gives these alternatives to the word "indefinately" "ad infinitum, continually, endlessly, for ever, sine die".

HH: What you're saying is true about "indefinitely," but it's not true about "indefinite." Here is Roget's Thesaurus on "indefinite:

Main Entry: indefinite
Part of Speech: adjective
Definition: ambiguous
Synonyms: broad, confused, doubtful, dubious, equivocal, evasive, general, ill-defined, imprecise, indeterminable, indeterminate, indistinct, inexact, inexhaustible, infinite, innumerable, intangible, loose, obscure, shadowy, uncertain, unclear, undefined, undependable, undetermined, unfixed, unknown, unlimited, unsettled, unspecific, unsure, vague, wide

A couple of these glosses might give a meaning like "eternal," but most don't.

Yours,
Harold Holmyard





Archive powered by MHonArc 2.6.24.

Top of Page