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  • From: "Harold R. Holmyard III" <hholmyard AT ont.com>
  • To: b-hebrew AT lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: Re: [b-hebrew] Gen 1:1-3 (was "Gen 1:2- And the earth . . .")
  • Date: Fri, 14 Apr 2006 19:07:55 -0500

Dear Herman,

Please let me share this passage that suggests a parallel with Gen 1:1:


A completely different viewpoint, but imho a very legitimate one
(there's been a nice controversy about this on this forum before) is
to reanalyse the syntax of Gen 1,1-3.
I don't think we should go over the entire discussion, but I'll just
give here a translation that represents the syntactic viewpoint of
Rashi, Ibn Ezra, the Stone Chumash, quite a few scholars I know in
Leiden, Alter's translation, etc.

"In the beginning of God's creating the heavens and the earth - when
the earth was astonishingly empty, with darkness upon the surface of
the deep, and the Divine Presence hovered upon the surface of the
waters - God said, "Let there be light," and there was light.


HH: The real question with the traditional reading ("In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth") is the absence of a definite article with "in" followed by "beginning": BR)$YT. It is not so much the use of the perfect verb that follows. However, there seems to be a good parallel for R)$YT being definite with a prefixed anarthrous (having no article) preposition in Isa 46:10, although the preposition is "from" rather than "in." Let me give the a couple of translations and then a transliteration of the first part of the verse, followed by a more literal rendering of that part:

NIV Is. 46:10 I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come. I say: My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please.

KJV Is. 46:10 Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure:

Isa 46:10a MGYD MR)$YT )XRYT WMQDM )$R L)-N(&W

Isa 46:10a Declaring from (the) beginning (the) end and from ancient time what has not happened.

HH: The Hebrew seems to be able to understand a certain definiteness to R)$YT with a prefixed, anarthrous preposition. Couldn't this be applicable to Genesis 1:1 and the use of BR)$YT there?

Yours,
Harold Holmyard




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