Biblical Hebrew Forum

[Randall Buth <randallbuth AT gmail.com>]

vayyixtov Justiss
> In Genesis 24:30 we encounter a Qal participle to describe the servant's
> "standing" by the well. In the very next verse Laban asks the servant why
> he is "standing" outside using a Yiqtol form of the same verb. In your
> opinions, what is the functional difference between these two forms
> of the verb in this case?

Several things are happening at the same time.

for one, 'present'-ish questions are typically in yiqtol in BH. This may be
called 'subjunctive' as Karl mentioned, or it may be referred to as a
'polite' structure. It works out the same, either way. A classic example
of this is Gen 37:15 where a man asks Yosef,
ma tevaqqesh? (what [would] you be seeking?)
to which Yosef responds in the 'here and now'
(the participle is the normal BH form for 'actual presents')
et aHay anoxi mevaqqesh (I'm looking for my brothers. [pronoun+participle is
default order])
So the yiqtol is normal and easily accounted for as a polite question.

why the participle at 24.30?
The participle is very common after the particle hinne.
In this story hinne + participle occurs in several spots
24.13 (unambiguous even in consonantal text)
24.15 (unambiguous even in consonantal text)
24.30 (ambiguous in consonantal text. hinne +participle
without 3ms pronoun is also common)
24.43 (unambiguous even in consonantal text)
24.45 (unambiguous even in consonantal text)
24.63 (unambiguous even in consonantal text)

So the participle is a very natural reading in this verse,
it implies/focusses on the continued standing of the slave,
and in addition is unambiguously the MT.
Had the qatal been used/read it would imply,
'the servant had stopped, "had taken a stand", at the well'.

braxot
Randall Buth




-- 
Randall Buth, PhD
www.biblicalulpan.org
randallbuth AT gmail.com
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