----- Original Message -----
From: "Harold R. Holmyard III" <hholmyard AT ont.com>
To: "b-hebrew" <b-hebrew AT lists.ibiblio.org>
Sent: Sunday, June 20, 2004 8:39 PM
Subject: Re: [b-hebrew] Ps. 104:12 - (P)YM
> Dear Yigal,
>
> >(P)YM - 'pha'im - in Ps. 104:12, is usually translated "branches".
> >While this seems to fit the context, the word looks to me more like
> >a plural of (oph, "bird". Any comments?
>
>
> HH: I don't think that oph, "bird," has a plural, at least in the OT.
> It is a collective word and already means "birds" in the singular.
>
> Yours,
> Harold Holmyard
>
You're right. Later Hebrew has (ophot, but not the Bible.
So (oph)aiym, "branches" is Aramaic. What does that say (if anything) about
the origin and date of Ps. 104?