Biblical Hebrew Forum

[George Athas <George.Athas AT moore.edu.au>]

Ishinan, I suspect the reference to four 'corners' reflects more the English 
idiom than the actual Hebrew phrase. The words used in this kind of 
expression simply refer to the 'edges' or 'extremities' rather than 'corners' 
per se. And the notion of four probably comes from the cardinal directions 
(north, south, east, and west). In any case, even the Hebrew idioms here seem 
to reflect an earth of which one could reach the edge—that is, a flat earth 
of some kind.


GEORGE ATHAS
Dean of Research,
Moore Theological College (moore.edu.au)
Sydney, Australia


From: Ishnian <ishinan AT comcast.net<mailto:ishinan AT comcast.net>>
Date: Thursday, 23 August 2012 5:01 PM
To: B-Hebrew <b-hebrew AT lists.ibiblio.org<mailto:b-hebrew AT lists.ibiblio.org>>
Subject: Re: [b-hebrew] Circle ???

K RANDOLPH wrote : So what I am saying is that we cannot rule out that
"sphere" was meant in

Isaiah 40:22 and Proverbs 8:27. In fact, the Isaiah verse reads better as a
sphere.

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ISHINAN:  Then, how would you explain the phrase: The " FOUR CORNERS" of the
earth  in (Isaiah 11:12)?  The very same idea is expressed in Greek in the
Revelation to Saint John Chapter 7

"1kai meta tauta eidon tessaraV aggelouV estwtaV epi taV tessaraV GWNIA V
thV ghV kratountaV touV tessaraVanemouV thV ghV ina mh pneh anemoV epi thV
ghV mhte epithV qalasshV mhte epi pan dendron"  ( I saw four angels standing
on the FOUR CORNERS of the earth, etc.)  In Greek 'GWNIA' literally means
angles!  The Greek GWNIA is the source of  the Latin  'CUNEUS' and the
French 'COIN' (Literally: a corner)


We all know that a 'SPHERE' does not have angles! (especially four of them
as expressed in the Scriptures)

.
Instead  the idea of an unambiguous term for SPHERE could only by expressed
in Hebrew by using the term 'duwr' (see Strong  # 1754 ): a  ball/sphere;
see Isa 22:18 below:

"He will surely violently turn and toss thee [like] a BALL  into a large
country: there shalt thou die and there the chariots of thy glory [shall be]
the shame of thy lord's house".


Ishinan Ishibashi