Biblical Hebrew Forum

[Lee Moses <john_lee_moses AT yahoo.com>]

Dear Chavoux,

Other texts (e.g., 32:15; Exo. 15:18; I Sam. 8:7; et al.) suggest that "the LORD" must be the subject of  וַיְהִי.  However, I certainly do not see anything in the Hebrew of Deut. 33:5 and its immediate context to demand either.  That may not be much help, but perhaps it somewhat confirms what you have observed.

Sincerely,
Lee Moses

Date: Wed, 21 Nov 2012 19:54:07 +0200
From: Chavoux Luyt <chavoux AT gmail.com>
Subject: [b-hebrew] Deut.33:5 - Who is the king?
To: b-hebrew AT lists.ibiblio.org
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Shalom friends

In Deut.33:5 we have:
???? ?????? ??? ?????? ???? ?? ??? ???? ??????
("and he became king in Yeshurun...")
In the context this verse appears to be ambiguous: it could either refer to
Moses (named in verse 4) or refer back to the LORD (verse 2-3). It appears
that most translations prefer the latter option. Am I correct that the
Hebrew is ambiguous or is their any linguistic (or other) reason to prefer
either meaning?

Thanks
Chavoux Luyt