Biblical Hebrew Forum

["Bryant J. Williams III" <bjwvmw AT com-pair.net>]

Dear Fred,

[Bryant]
I think all the articles are based on how the word is used. I do not see that 
a theological bias is being applied to the word. It is possible, but not 
probable. Another thing is that the article states, "Probably derived from 
'alam I, "to hide," thus pointing to what is hidden in the distant future or 
in the distant past. The Ugaritic cognate is 'lm, "eternity." The reasoning 
for this identification of the root is assuming that the initial letter is 
pronounced, ayin, and not ghayin (see #1629, 'lm, pp. 671-672.) The problem 
is that 'alam, 'almah and 'olam are from the same root. Thus, if the initial 
letter is an ayin then it is the parent of 'olam and means "hidden, 
concealed." Now, the initial letter is ghayin, then it is the parent of 'elem 
and 'almah meaning "young man and young woman, respectively.

[Fred]
"Boosting the meaning of עולם into "eternal" orbit, seems to me a clear case 
of theological license, at least in so far as the leningrad codex uses the 
term."

[Bryant]
Each of the sources are quite consistent with regards the basic of meaning of 
'olam. This does not mean that there has been eisegesis. Each is looking at 
the context that the word is being used. Just because that is what the 
tradition states does not mean that the tradition is inaccurate. It is quite 
clear from the amount of material that the word is found in that a different 
range of meanings are found.

It is the context that determines meaning. Any time one takes a text out of 
context is creating a pretext and, thus, has no text at all. That is 
eisegesis.

Rev. Bryant J. Williams III

  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: fred burlingame 
  To: Bryant J. Williams III 
  Cc: b-hebrew AT lists.ibiblio.org 
  Sent: Saturday, December 11, 2010 10:08 AM
  Subject: Re: [b-hebrew] one-to-one rendering of olam


  Hello Bryant:

  Thanks for taking the time to compile these lexicon excerpts.

  As an evangelical acquaintance of mine observes ... "tradition drives the 
translation."

  To that observation, I would only add: opinions resemble skin; everyone has 
some.

  The hebrew language manifested in the masoretic text uses the little verb 
עלם as "concealing" or "hiding." Witness 2 kings 4:27. The noun derivative 
עולם likewise applies as a "concealed" or "hidden" or "unknown" period of 
time, backwards or forwards. Witness Isaiah 44:7.

  Boosting the meaning of עולם into "eternal" orbit, seems to me a clear case 
of theological license, at least in so far as the leningrad codex uses the 
term. The popularity however, of the lexicons you cite, both with publishers 
and consumers, confirms that tradition rules the day.

  regards,

  fred burlingame


  On Sat, Dec 11, 2010 at 1:30 AM, Bryant J. Williams III 
<bjwvmw AT com-pair.net> wrote:

    Dear List,

    Maybe we should check TWOT, Volume II, "Olam," by Alan A. MacRae, pp. 
672-673,
    #1631a.

       1631a    'olam - foerver, ever, everlasting, evermore, perpetual, old,
    ancient, world, etc. (RSV similar in general, but substitutes "always" 
for "in
    the world: in Ps 73:12 and "eternity" for "world" in Ecc 3:11.) Probably 
derived
    from 'alam I, "to hide," thus pointing to what is hidden in the distant 
future
    or in the distant past. The Ugaritic cognate is 'lm, "eternity."

       "Though 'olam isl lused more than three hundred times io indicate 
indefinite
    continuance into the very distant future,the meaning of the word is not 
confined
    to the future. There are at least twenty instances where it clearly 
refers to
    the past. Such usages generally point ot something that seems long ago, 
but
    rarely if ever refer to a limitless past. Thus, in Deut 32:7 and Job 
22:15 it
    may refer to the time of one's elders. In Prov 22:28; 23:10; Jer 6:16; 
18:15;
    28:8 it points back somewhat farther. In Isa 58:12; 61:4; Mic 7:14; Mal 
3:4, and
    the Aramaic of Ezr 4:15, 19 it clearly refers to the time just before the 
Exile.
    In I Sam 27:8, in Isa 51:9 and 63:9, 11 and perhaps Ezk 36:2, it refers 
to the
    events of the Exodus from Egypt. In Gen 6:4 it points to the time shortly 
before
    the flood. None of these past references has in it the idea of 
endlessness or
    limitlessness, but each points to a time long before the immediate 
knowledge of
    those living. In Isa 64:3 the KJV translates word "beginning of the 
world." In
    Ps 73:13 and Eccl it is translated "world," suggesting the beginning of a 
usage
    that developed greatly in postbiblical times.

       Jenni holds that its basic meaning "most distant times" can refer to 
either
    the most remote past or to the future or both as due to the fact it does 
not
    occur independently (as subject or as an object) but only in connection 
with
    prepositions indicating direction (min "since," 'ad "until," le "up to") 
or as
    an adverbial accusative of direction or finally as the modifying genitive 
in the
    construct relationship. In the latter instance 'olam can express by 
itself the
    whole range of meanings denoted by the prepositions "since, until, to the 
most
    distant time": i.e. it assumes the meaning; "(unlimited, incalculable)
    continuance, eternity". (THAT II, p. 230) J. Barr (Biblical Words for 
Time) (2
    1969, p. 73) says, " 'We might therefore best state the 'basic meaning' 
as a
    range between 'remotest time' and 'perpetuity' ". But as shown above it is
    sometimes used of a not-so-remote past. For the meaning of the word in its
    attributive use we should note the designation of the LORD as 'el 'olam, 
"The
    Eternal God" (Gen 21:33).

       The LXX generally translates 'olam by AIWN which has essentially the 
same
    range of meaning. That neither the Hebrew not the Greek word in itself 
contains
    the idea of endlessness is shown both by the fact that they sometimes 
refer to
    events or conditions that occurred at a definite point in the past, and 
also by
    the fact that sometimes it is thought desirable to repeat the word, not 
merely
    saying "forever," but "forever and ever."

       Both words came to be used to refer to a long age or period - an idea 
that
    sometimes pressed in English by "world." Postbiblical Jewish writings 
refer to
    the present world of toil as ha'olam hazzeh and to the world to come as 
ha'olam
    habba.

       'ad (q.v.) has substantially the same range of meaning as 'olam 
(usually
    continuance into the future, but  cf. Job 20:4)."

    See also the following:

    A Theological Wordbook of the Bible, Edited by Alan Richardson, "Time, 
Season,"
    by John Marsh, pp. 258-267. New York: The MacMillian Company, 1950.

    Nelson's Expository Dictionary of the Old Testament, Edited by Merrill F. 
Unger
    and William White, Jr., "Ever, Everlasting," pp. 117-118, Nashville: 
Thomas
    Nelsons Publishers, 1980.

    The New International Dictionary of New Testament Theology, Colin Brown: 
General
    Editor,Tanslated, with additions and revisions, from the German 
THEOLOGISCHES
    BEGRIFFSLEXIKON ZUM NEUEN TESTAMENT, Edited by Lothar Coenen, Erich 
Beyreuther
    and Hans Bietenhard. Grand Rapids: The Zondervan Corporation, 1978. "Time,
    Eternity," by H.-C. Hahn, Volume 3, pp. 826-833.

    THEOLOGICAL DICTIONARY OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. Editors:
    GERHARD KITTEL GERHARD FRIEDRICH
    Translator and Editor Geoffrey W. Bromiley, d. litt., d.d.
    Grand Rapids: WM. B. EERDMANS PUBLISHING COMPANY, 1964
    "AIWN, AIWNOS," Volume 1, pp. 197-209.

    The Theological Dictionary of the Old Testament by Kittel and The New
    International Dictionary of the Old Testament by Van Gemeren, I do NOT 
have with
    me at this time. Maybe one of the listers can give the source information.

    Rev. Bryant J. Williams III



     


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