Biblical Hebrew Forum

[Awohili AT aol.com]

Unlike some who have commented here, I am actually reading Robert Alter's  
translation (Norton, 2004), which I obtained several months ago.  I  think 
Alter 
succeeds admirably in fulfilling the translation  goals he set for himself.
 
At Genesis 1:1, Alter is in agreement with a number of Hebrew scholars and  
Bible translators from at least the time of Rashi.  The JPS Torah  Commentary 
on Genesis by Nahum M. Sarna (1989) has cogent explanations for the  JPS 
rendering of "When God began to create heaven and earth."  Everett Fox  uses 
a 
similar construction with "At the beginning of God's creating of the  heavens 
and 
the earth."  Mesorah-Artscroll versions read much the same  way.
 
I do not have to agree with everything a translation says in order to enjoy  
or benefit from it.  Personally, I am comfortable with the English  
traditional "In the beginning God created."  Yet I appreciate that the  
Hebrew also 
allows for the rendering of Alter and others: "When God began  to create."
 
Sometimes, it is not always either-or.  Sometimes, it can be  both-and.
 
Solomon Landers
 
In a message dated 11/22/2005 8:42:13 A.M. Pacific Standard Time,  
crazymulgogi AT gmail.com writes:

It's not so  strange to translate "When G"d began creating..." for in
this way every  word in Hebrew is given a place in English; ב B-
becomes "when" and ראשית  becomes "began". In other words, the meaning
is in no way violated, and we  can even call it a literal translation
because although BHebrew works  different, still all words reappear in
English.