Biblical Hebrew Forum

[Yigal Levin <leviny1 AT mail.biu.ac.il>]

Shoshanna,

Even assuming the divine origin of the text of the Torah (and let me remind
you that this list is NOT a forum for discussing or arguing personal
religious beliefs), please consider the following:

1. God HAS a "personal" Name - YHWH. It is the only one of the many epithets
that the Bible uses for God, that is not also a title or description. Ex.
6:3 actually say that God was known to the Patriarchs as "El Shaddai" and
that He did not make His Name YHWH known to them (and yes, this is a problem
since the Patriarchs use YHWH all the time, but let's leave that aside).

2. Neither the Bible nor later Jewish tradition ever use "Ehyeh" as a proper
name for God. So Ex. 3:15 was never taken literally. 

3. "Ehyeh" IS a verb. It may be used in Ex. 3:15 as a noun, but in form it's
a verb. You argue that it's in the future tense. This argument would be
senseless if you didn't think of Ehyeh as a verb.

4. As I'm sure that you know, "tenses" in biblical Hebrew don't work like
tenses do in modern English (or in modern Hebrew, for that matter). Many
linguists in fact argue that BH has no real tenses, but rather "aspects".
Your insistence that understanding BH tenses as if they were modern English
is the only "real" way to understand them is just stubbornness (to refrain
from using a stronger word). Look at Ramban or Sforno on Ex. 3:14 and see
how they do not insist on interpreting it as future tense. 

5. Look at my last sentence, in which I wrote of two commentators who died
centuries ago in the present tense. You had no problem with that sentence,
because you understood the context. You did not for a moment think that I
meant that Ramban or Sforno are still alive. So why insist on a literal
interpretation of "Ehyeh"? The Torah is divine, but it's written in human
language (Dibrah Torah bilshon benei adam). You do not have the only
possible interpretation, nor is there only one possible interpretation.
Shiv'im panim latorah. 


Yigal Levin




-----Original Message-----
From: b-hebrew-bounces AT lists.ibiblio.org
[mailto:b-hebrew-bounces AT lists.ibiblio.org] On Behalf Of Shoshanna Walker


Except that G-d, who originated the Torah, Transmitted this 
particular Name to us in the future tense.  And as He is the Creator 
of the Universe, and of you and me, and of the Torah, He is the final 
authority.  And if He meant this Name to be "translated" in the 
present tense, He would have Said it that way.  And what man has the 
credentials/audacity to second guess G-d and say that He was wrong 
the way He transmitted His Name?

You attribute to this phrase the meaning  "I am the Eternal".

I can just as easily attribute the same meaning as yours to this 
phrase, by using the future tense as G-d transmitted it thus:  "I 
will [continue to] be that which I will be [and have always been - 
implied]" - ie; eternal - without changing the future tense as G-d 
transmitted this Name, to present tense, which people, other than all 
of our Rabbinical Commentaries, seem to have the need to do, to show 
that they "know better" than G-d, the Owner and Originator of this 
Name, in the first place.

Shoshanna Walker