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b-hebrew - Re: [b-hebrew] Ecclesiastes 3:11

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  • From: Martin Shields <enkidu AT bigpond.net.au>
  • To: Yitzhak Sapir <yitzhaksapir AT gmail.com>
  • Cc: b-hebrew Hebrew <b-hebrew AT lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [b-hebrew] Ecclesiastes 3:11
  • Date: Sat, 17 Nov 2007 08:52:59 +1100

Yitzhak,

Is it possible that the author of Qohelet is here trying to write in Hebrew
a phrase using a specific word structure that is more natural in an Indo-
European language, such as Greek (the phrase being something of the
sort of "without which a man will not find")?

I think this is what the text means (see my other posts), but I don't think understanding it this way is necessarily dependent upon Indo- European influence. I think it is probably the simplest understanding of the Hebrew anyway. OTOH, there's a long tradition of seeing Greek influence in Qohelet, and if that's to be seen in any way in this verse I suspect it is more likely related to העלם (αιων in the LXX which is a term loaded with rather more baggage than עולם in biblical Hebrew).

I'm not convinced that there is Greek influence in Qohelet, but I wouldn't rule it out as a possibility.

Regards,

Martin Shields,
Sydney, Australia.



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