Biblical Hebrew Forum

[pastormattfbcrankin <pastormattfbcrankin AT gmail.com>]

Hello Fred,

I'm afraid one of those isn't the best example.

עץ = Tree, AND wood, lumber, sticks, kindling, wooden instruments, spear 
shafts etc, etc.

Did the widow say to Elijah that she was gathering two trees to make a fire?

Did Moses throw an entire tree into the waters at Marah? (I never realized he 
was so strong!)

In Numbers 35:18, is this only applicable to someone who can wield a whole 
tree?

Every language that I know (which isn't very many BTW) runs into the same 
issues.  Words derive meaning from their context.  Words have a range of 
meaning.   I guess what I'm saying is, why try to force the language to do 
something that it isn't intended to do?

I will give you this though....you have stirred up quite a bit of dust on the 
list, as well as luring a lurker or two (like myself) out of the shadows.

Warmest Regards,

--Matthew Williams


On Dec 13, 2010, at 7:00 PM, fred burlingame wrote:

> Hello Karl:
> 
> Thanks for your comments.
> 
> Please forgive my inability to understand you.
> 
> Perhaps the following examples will illuminate the issue confronting me.
> 
> When I see the following two biblical hebrew words; I understand the
> prevailing and generally accepted english meanings of these words as
> follows:
> 
> a. דג = fish;
> 
> b. עץ = tree.
> 
> And
> 
> c. עולם = ?
> 
> Or to say it another way; if "dag" means fish; and "etz" means tree; what
> does "olam" mean?
> 
> It all seems so simple.
> 
> There must be some straightforward meaning attached to the hebrew word עולם
> ; just as a simple meaning attaches to דג and עץ . ?
> 
> What is the meaning of olam in biblical hebrew?
> 
> regards,
> 
> fred burlingame
> 
> On Mon, Dec 13, 2010 at 5:04 PM, K Randolph <kwrandolph AT gmail.com> wrote:
> 
>> Fred:
>> 
>> On Mon, Dec 13, 2010 at 2:42 PM, fred burlingame 
>> <tensorpath AT gmail.com>wrote:
>> 
>>> Hello Karl:
>>> 
>>> Thanks for your comments.
>>> 
>>> Can you point to a specific example in the masoretic text of עולם meaning
>>> infinite action, eternal action ... versus finite and/or temporal action?
>>> 
>> 
>> Again you focus on the form, not the action. The question is not whether or
>> not it is infinite or finite, but whether or not it deals with that which 
>> is
>> unknown. In this case, both the finite and the infinite are unknown at the
>> referent time.
>> 
>>> 
>>> regards,
>>> 
>>> fred burlingame
>>> 
>>> Karl W. Randolph.
>> 
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