Biblical Hebrew Forum

["K Randolph" <kwrandolph AT gmail.com>]

Dave:

On 11/10/07, dwashbur AT nyx.net <dwashbur AT nyx.net> wrote:
> Karl,
>
> On 10 Nov 2007 at 5:35, K Randolph wrote:
>
> > > > Here I think you overemphasize the importance of the definite 
> > > > article. I think its position here is more to fulfill the 
> > > > expectations of grammar than to change meaning.
> > >
>
> Dave Washburn
> As a French hippie might say, "Je ne creuse pas!"

In the June discussion, we noted that Hebrew often uses the definite
article where in English we use the indefinite. The example that I
remember off the top of my head was that of "the" escapee from Sodom
who went and reported to Abram that his nephew Lot was taken captive.
While he was a particular one, he was not named or otherwise
identified, so in English we would use an indefinite article.

It is the same syntactical pattern in this story, so we expect to find
a definite article in connection with "place", so literally, "In the
place..."

Karl W. Randolph.