Biblical Hebrew Forum

[Peter Kirk <peter AT qaya.org>]

On 22/11/2005 02:08, B. M. Rocine wrote:

> ...
>
> Do you mean that readers of the Bible cannot look up words with which 
> they are unfamiliar?  Bohu hardly seems to have been a familiar Hebrew word.
>
>  
Not all Bible readers have good dictionaries (and this sense of "welter" 
isn't in bad ones). They certainly don't carry them with them wherever 
they take their Bibles or hear them read. Does your congregation? Would 
they understand this translation if it was read out to them?

As for the familiarity of Hebrew bohu, we have no way of judging that. 
Even though it is rare in the Bible, it may have been a very familiar 
colloquial word. It seems highly probable that at least the narrative 
parts of the Hebrew Bible were written with ordinary words which would 
have been understood by any Hebrew speaker. The total number of 
different words is well within the passive vocabulary of native speakers 
of any language - and I am not sure how else we might judge such things.

> Then we have "and
>  
>
> > God’s breath hovering over the waters" 
> >    
>
> I don't like "breath" myself.  I prefer spirit, wind--going in that 
> direction.
>  

Agreed, but that was not my point.

> with no main verb, a clear
>  
>
> > grammatical error which would be marked wrong in first grade. 
> >    
>
> He has not written in the 'to be' verbs in the two adjective clauses in 
> an attempt to capture the rhythm of the Hebrew.  It is very readable 
> because the first clause in the series of three has the verb.  We know 
> what he has done.
>  

Well, not necessarily. Grammatical and punctuation rules are in place 
for a very good reason, so that readers can understand which subjects go 
with which verbs, which objects etc etc. Alter has ignored those English 
rules and so left a sentence which is at best ambiguous, because it is 
capable of meaning (and in fact by strict grammar must mean) that the 
earth was God's breath. Well, that is a possible theological position, 
that the earth is some kind of emanation from God. But is that what 
Alter meant to say? Almost certainly not. But it is what he is in fact 
saying because he is using the English language incompetently.

> ... I would give him an A for 
> diction and for having such a respect and feel for the text's structure.
>
>  
OK, but a D for grammar and punctuation and an F for the translation 
error which he didn't actually intend.

> Hey, Bro., be happy!  :-)
>  

Sorry to be heavy. But checking Bible translations is my main work, and 
by the professional standards which I use Alter has made a complete mess 
of this.

--
Peter Kirk
peter AT qaya.org (personal)
peterkirk AT qaya.org (work)
http://www.qaya.org/