Biblical Hebrew Forum

[Isaac Fried <if AT math.bu.edu>]

Notice that there are three instances of BR): (1) 'to create', as in  
Gen 1,1; (2) 'to shred' , as in Ez 23,47; and (3) 'to be large, to be  
great', from which BARI), as in Gen 41,2, is derived.

The root BRH means 'to eat=to devour=to tear and shred food', either  
in the mouth or in the pot. Compare: "to break bread".

The root PRH means 'to bring forth or create offsprings, to spread  
out'. It is related to the roots: PRX, PRQ, PRQ etc.

The root PR( means 'to ruffle, to be unruly, to be disorderly, to be  
fractious, to be wild'.

The root PR) means 'to be wild' or to be in the state PR( .

To my utter chagrin I am intellectually unfit to enter into a deep  
discussion as to what 'create' means, or what it means to turn  
"nothing=no+thing" into "something=some+thing".
Isaac Fried
On Dec 5, 2006, at 11:10 AM, K Randolph wrote:

> When looking at the meanings of the words, as they are actually used
> in Tanakh, that case is hard to sustain.
>
> On 12/4/06, Isaac Fried <if AT math.bu.edu> wrote:
> > Inasmuch as we are dealing with Genesis, it is worth while noticing
> > that ברא, BARA, which is rendered in English: 'create', and which
> > is the first verb (root) of the entire bible, is a variant of פרע
> > PARA, 'disperse'. There is nothing in this verb (root) to indicate
> > that God made "something" out of "nothing".
> >
> > Other relatives of ברא are ברה, פרא, פרה.
> > Isaac Fried
>
> ברא, BR) means to create, set up, though not every time something  
> from
> nothing (the context, e.g. Genesis 1:1–2, gives us the something out
> of nothing).
> ברה, BRH means to be fed, other than similar sound, very  
> different meaning.
> פרא, PR) is a happax whose meaning is uncertain Hosea 8:9, the noun
> refers to a wild donkey that lives in the desert. This could actually
> be the noun referring to the action.
> פרה, PRH to produce fruit, i.e. be fruitful.
> פרע, PR( to loosen, as in to set free from restraint.
>
> Just because words sound similar does not mean that they originally
> came from the same root.
>
> Karl W. Randolph.
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