Biblical Hebrew Forum

[B Chan <bh-chan AT hotmail.com>]

Thank you, Jim!
 
Your conclusions were very much the same as the ones I had when I first 
wrote. But, to put it bluntly, translations (such as the ones I am dealing 
with) often tend to follow the weight of English authorities. I needed 
something more rigorous than hunches to support any movement away from 
accepted English interpretations.
 
To "preserve the ambiguity of the Hebrew in ... translation" is as you 
correctly say, the the ideal approach. This will not be easy, given the 
target language, but it will be the topmost priority.
 
Besides the "Diselection" book (which I will procure), do you have any other 
discussions or dissertations bearing on the subject? Does anyone on the list 
have anything to add? Anecdotally, there was a lady from Israel who when 
confronted with the dilemma said that the traditional English interpretations 
were "impossible"! That strange incident, of course, is hardly a valid 
argument for the linguistic committee!
 
 
B. Chan