Biblical Hebrew Forum

[Yitzhak Sapir <yitzhaksapir AT gmail.com>]

On Sun, May 16, 2010 at 1:02 AM, James Christian wrote:
> I've got to be honest with you here Yitzhak, you've totally lost me. The
> genealogy is a Horite genealogy not an Edomite one. The girl 10 verses
> earlier is his daughter (Oholibamah) not Anah himself. In the Horite
> genealogy it is mentioned that Anah had a daughter Oholibamah while it is
> usual to only list sons. This is evidently to link Anah in some way related
> to Esau through one of his wives. Anah, as I understand the text, was one of
> Esau's father in laws.
> Anyway, just what you were trying to suggest with your lengthy discussion of
> the Samaritan version is still completely beyond me. You make some vague
> mention of the Nephilim but failed to provide an alternative reading that
> would make sense.
> James Christian

James, I have got no idea how to respond here.  I keep looking at it every 
day,
and I wonder how to respond.  I mean, I was under the understanding that you
had a year's study of college first year Hebrew under Jim Davila, based on
past communication.  Now, here is a verse in pretty simple Hebrew that reads
אהליבמה בת ענה בת צבעון, yet you write, "The girl 10 verses earlier is
his daughter
(Oholibamah) not Anah himself."  Well, the first בת relates to Oholibamah but
the second בת relates to (anah.   This is how it works in Hebrew.  See in
Genesis 24:47 - בת בתואל בן נחור.  So, at least at a very basic reading, Gen
36:14 and Gen 36:2, suggest that (anah was a girl.  I tried to see if
the cantillation
marks provide disambiguation here, but comparing them to Gen 24:47 or 24:15,
it doesn't seem to me that they do.

Then regarding the Horite/Hurrian genealogy, you suggest it has nothing to do
with Edom even though in verse 21 it reads clearly -- "in the land of Edom."  
So
you would like to suggest Edomites would not identify with this because
only Horites would identify with this particular section?  The whole chapter
deals with Edom.  Verse 1 identifies Esau with Edom.   Verse 8-9 again
identify Esau with Edom, as the father of the Edomites, and as Edom
himself, as well as linking him with Se(ir.  This goes on throughout the
chapter, including verse 21 which relates (anah as one of the chiefs,
of Se(ir, in Edom.  So I don't really understand how your statement that this
is a Horite genealogy and not an Edomite one goes along with what I read in
the Hebrew text of my Bible.

As for the lengthy discussion, I find it hard to believe that you read through
the entire mail and failed to see that I was supporting the reading )emim,
rather than yemim of the MT.   I also find it curious that you continue to
note how the Samaritan tradition here is in agreement with this story of
the "bloke who found some hot springs."  I guess you're not one to let
evidence get in the way.

Yitzhak Sapir