Biblical Hebrew Forum

[kenneth greifer <greifer AT hotmail.com>]

Karl,
 
What is a collapsing context?
 
Kenneth Greifer
 



Date: Wed, 14 Sep 2011 17:25:15 -0700
Subject: Re: [b-hebrew] What is the scholarly consensus about Isaiah 52:14?
From: kwrandolph AT gmail.com
To: greifer AT hotmail.com
CC: b-hebrew AT lists.ibiblio.org

Kenneth:


On Wed, Sep 14, 2011 at 5:41 AM, kenneth greifer <greifer AT hotmail.com> wrote:


University scholars have debated the meaning of Isaiah 52:14 for many years, 
but if you look through all of their books and journals, you will never see 
the correct translation.



Hey, that’s my line on some of the other verses I brought up!    ;-) 

Usually, Isaiah 52:14 is translated as "like multitudes were shocked about 
you (Israel?), so is marred (hophal) from a man his form and from sons of man 
his image, thus he will sprinkle (he will startle) many nations."

I think it could say "like multitudes were shocked about you (Israel?), so is 
a destroyer (one caused to destroy) (hiphil or hophal), from a man his form 
and from sons of man his image, thus he will sprinkle (he will cause to 
sprinkle) many nations."



Problem, here we have an example of a comparative (used in a way that is not 
common in English) where the syntax indicates that the participle indicates 
not an actor, but a state or status of the subject. I recognize this as a 
pual participle, though an argument can be made that this is a hophal 
participle “caused to be ruined”.


As for the “sprinkling”, the only way I can make sense of it is to recognize 
it as a reference to the New Testament instituting of baptism.

Isaiah 63 says that G-d will be shocked that there is no man to help, and in 
the form of a man, He will trample the nations and sprinkle their blood on 
His clothing.



This is collapsing contexts. 

Most scholars say "marred" in Isaiah 52:14 is the hophal, and my translation 
is technically the hophal form of the verb, so this is an example of how 
university scholars have overlooked a possible translation that fits the rest 
of Isaiah with pinpoint accuracy. Jeremiah 22:7 might also be the hiphil 
(without the yud) or hophal form of the verb "destroyers" or "ones caused to 
destroy."

The scholarly consensus is that the verb is hophal, and since my translation 
uses the hophal, my idea must be the scholarly consensus too.



Don’t pull a Jim Stinehart on us.    ;-)

Kenneth Greifer

(I hope you all like my new attempt to imitate a style that gets answers).



Heh heh heh heh as long as you use it only once.


Karl W. Randolph.