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Biblical Hebrew Companion for Bible Software Users
Grammatical Terms Explained for Exegesis
By Michael Williams ZONDERVAN
Copyright © 2015 Michael Williams
All rights reserved.
ISBN: 978-0-310-52130-3
CHAPTER 1
ABSOLUTE
What It Looks Like
The absolute form of a noun is best described by what it is not. It is the form of the noun when the noun is not in the construct form. In other words, it is the normal form of the noun, whether it is masculine or feminine singular, plural, or dual.
You can recognize that a noun is in its absolute form (or state) simply by looking for its normal endings and vowel patterns. (For these, see Noun later in this resource.) For example, here is the same masculine plural noun in both its absolute form and its construct form:
[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]
The noun on the left has the normal [TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] ending of the masculine plural. This has changed to a [TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] for the noun on the right. Because the noun on the left has the normal ending, it is the absolute form.
What It Does
As described later in this resource, the translation of the construct form of a noun will be followed by the word "of "; the absolute form of a noun will not. This will obviously have great significance for the relation- ship of nouns that occur together in a sentence. If the nouns are in the construct form, they will all be connected by the word "of." If the nouns are in the absolute form, they are simply describing the same thing with different terms. For example, consider the sentence:
"The daughter, the doctor, worked in the hospital."
In Hebrew, "the daughter" and "the doctor" would be two nouns in the absolute form describing the same person. Now consider the sentence:
"The daughter of the doctor worked in the hospital."
This sentence, though similar to the first, says something quite different. Now "the daughter" and "the doctor" are two different people. In Hebrew, "the daughter" would be in the construct form (because it is followed by "of ") and "the doctor" would be in the absolute form.
An Exegetical Insight
The difference between an absolute noun and a construct noun can be seen by an examination of Numbers 25:2 in both the Hebrew and the English Bible. There we read that the Moabite women invited the Israelite men to "the sacrifices to their gods." In this verse we have two nouns, "the sacrifices" and "their gods." The important question we have to consider is how we are to understand the relationship of these two nouns to one another. If the two nouns were both in the absolute form, that would mean "the sacrifices" and "their gods" would be describing the same thing. In other words, the verse would be saying that the Moabites were making their gods their sacrifices; that is, their sacrifices consisted of their gods. This is a use of the word "of" in English that we find in such sentences as, "He ate a supper of grains of rice." But we notice in the Hebrew that the first noun is in the construct form, not the absolute. This enables us to see that the sacrifices the Moabites were making did not consist of their gods, but rather were those "of," or what they thought "belonged to," their gods. Such a critical difference rides on this single grammatical feature! In this case, the absolute form of the nouns would have signified a praiseworthy action (the destruction of their idols), while the construct form of the first noun unfortunately indicates exactly the opposite (condemnable idolatry). Too bad both nouns weren't in the absolute form!
CHAPTER 2
ADJECTIVE
What It Looks Like
Hebrew adjectives can be difficult to recognize because they have the same endings as nouns. More specifically, adjectives have exactly the same endings as the nouns they are describing. The only exception to this is that adjectives have no dual ending like nouns do. Adjectives have only singular or plural endings. So, when an adjective is describing a dual noun, the adjective will have a plural ending.
If the adjective comes after the noun it is describing and agrees with the noun it is describing in gender, number, and definiteness/indefinite- ness, then it is an attributive adjective (described more fully below).
If the adjective comes before or after the noun it is describing, does not have the definite article, but does agree with the noun it is describing in gender and number, then it is a predicative adjective (described more fully below).
If the adjective does not come before or after a noun, it is a substantive adjective (described more fully below).
What It Does
Adjectives describe things. In Hebrew they accomplish this in the same three ways they do in English:
• They can describe a noun without forming a sentence to do so. This kind of adjective is called an attributive adjective. For example, the word "free" in "the free people" describes (indicates an attribute of ) the people but doesn't form a sentence in doing so. So, "free" in this case is an attribute adjective.
• They can describe a noun and form a sentence in doing so. This kind of adjective is called a predicative adjective because it forms a predication (or, a sentence). For example, the word "free" in "the people are free" describes the people and forms a sentence in doing so. So, "free" in this case is a predicative adjective. Notice how the adjective and the noun it is describing are separated by a form of the verb "to be" (in this case, "are"). This will always be the case with predicative adjectives.
• They can describe a noun by standing in place of the noun. This kind of adjective is called a substantive adjective because it acts like a noun (or substantive). For example, the word "free" in "the land of the free" is standing in place of "free people." So, "free" in this case is a substantive adjective.
An Exegetical Insight
Understanding what kind of adjective one is encountering in the text and the word it is describing can be very significant exegetically. For example, Psalm 19:9 in the English Bible (19:10 in Hebrew) says, "The fear of the Lord is pure, enduring forever" ([TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII]). How do we know whether the adjective "pure" ([TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII]) is describing "fear" ([TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII]) or "the Lord" ([TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII])? In other words, is the verse asserting that the fear of the Lord is pure, or that the Lord himself is pure? Understanding how adjectives work can bring greater clarity here.
This psalm describes God's revelation in both creation (vv. 1 – 6) and in his word (vv. 7 – 11). This verse falls into the second section, which encourages believers to take confidence in the trustworthiness of God's revealed word. Of course God himself is pure and endures forever. But these adjectives can also describe his word, noted here as the "fear of the Lord" (that is, the means by which God has instructed his people in how to live with appropriate reverence, or fear, in his presence). The "Lord" is grammatically masculine. But the adjective "pure" has a feminine ending, as does the word "fear." Because of this agreement, we can see that the psalmist is describing here the perfect character, or purity, of God's word (the "fear of the Lord") — another reason for us to trust it completely.
CHAPTER 3
ADVERB
What It Looks Like
A Hebrew adverb has no distinguishing features that enable us to differentiate it from other kinds of words. It has no markers for person, gender, or number. One must either learn adverbs individually or depend on Bible software or other Hebrew language resources for their identification. The number of pure adverbs in Hebrew is limited. Hebrew often communicates an adverbial sense through other means. These include:
• Co-opted nouns, such as [TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] "together"
• Co-opted adjectives (especially in the feminine form), such as [TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] "formerly" ([TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] is an adjective meaning "first.")
• Co-opted Infinitive Absolutes (especially in the Hiphil stem), such as [TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] "much"
• Co-opted pronouns, such as [TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] "here" (As a pronoun [TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] means "this.")
• Co-opted numbers, such as [TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] "once" (As a number [TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] means "one.")
• Preposition s attached to nouns, such as [TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] "very" ([TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] means "strength.")
• Certain suffixes attached to nouns or adjectives, such as [TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] "by day" ([TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] means "day.")
What It Does
A Hebrew adverb performs the same functions as an English adverb; that is, it may modify a verb, adjective, or another adverb. An adverb can tell us "how" (He studied eagerly), "when" (He studied daily), "where" (He studied here), or "how much" (He studied inadequately).
An Exegetical Insight
As with other kinds of Hebrew words, there is often more than one possible meaning for an adverb. The context must dictate which meaning the author intends. There are times, however, when more than one possible meaning would fit the context. Such a situation makes things difficult for a translator, who must choose only one meaning for the English translation. But the person who can access the Hebrew text can be made aware of the other possibilities, and these other possibilities can yield a deeper understanding of what is being communicated.
One instance of an adverb that may be translated in two possible ways is found in Psalm 37:8. The second half of this verse is usually translated: "do not fret — it leads only to evil" ([TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII]). The next-to-last word ([TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII]) is an adverb that has two meanings that may apply in this context. It can have a restrictive sense, meaning "nothing but." This meaning is captured in the English translation above as "only." But "only" in English has multiple possible meanings. In addition to "nothing but," it could also mean, for example, "especially" (I only did this for you), "merely" (It's only a scratch), or several other possibilities.
The intended sense of "only" in Psalm 37:8 is clarified when we consider another possible meaning of the word. Biblical language software informs us that the Hebrew adverb [TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] can also have an emphasizing sense, meaning "surely." A possible translation of the second half of Psalm 37:8 with this sense would be: "do not fret — it surely leads to evil." This other possible translation clarifies the sense of "only" in the English translation. The sense of "only" in this context is communicating certainty. If fretting leads to nothing but trouble, then fretting surely results in trouble. Being able to access the meanings of this Hebrew adverb did not result in a different understanding than that provided by the English translation, but it did result in a clarified understanding.
CHAPTER 4
APOCOPATED
What It Looks Like
An apocopated verb looks like an Imperfect verb that has been shortened. In fact, the verb "apocopate" simply means "to cut off." So, an apocopated verb is one that has been "cut off" or "shortened." The only kind of verb that is susceptible to this shortening is one whose third root consonant is a [TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII]. The shortening (or apocopation) occurs for only two reasons: (1) when a Waw Consecutive is attached to the front of the verb; or (2) when the verb is a Jussive. The shortening will result in the loss of the [TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] of the root (that is, the verb's last root consonant). Usually there is some resulting change in the remaining vowel s as well, but the exact pattern varies.
For example, consider the verb [TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] "to build":
[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]
You can see that the ending of the normal Imperfect verb ([TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII]) has been cut off (apocopated) for the Imperfect with a Waw Consecutive and for the Jussive. The shortening for these two forms is exactly the same. The only difference, of course, is that the Imperfect with a Waw Consecutive has the Waw Consecutive attached to the front of the verb. Another difference that may sometimes occur is that the Jussive form may be followed by the particle [TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] (which is not translated).
What It Does
The apocopated, or shortened, form simply lets you know that you have encountered either an Imperfect with a Waw Consecutive or a Jussive of a three-consonant verb whose third consonant is a [TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII]. For the appearance and function of the Imperfect, the Waw Consecutive, and the Jussive, see the appropriate entries in this resource.
An Exegetical Insight
Because apocopation signals only one of two options (a Jussive or an Imperfect with a Waw Consecutive attached), the presence or absence of a Waw Consecutive will enable one to determine which option is correct in a given context.
Consider, for example, Genesis 1:3. There we encounter the Bible's first apocopated form: [TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII]. This is apocopated from the normal Imperfect form [TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] (from the three-consonant root [TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] "to be"). If one didn't recognize that this verb form is apocopated, one would translate this verb with its normal Imperfect sense: "And God said, 'There will be light.'" But this translation presents God as no more than an informed onlooker. He appears as one who knows what will happen but has no role in bringing it about. However, once we recognize that [TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] is an apocopated form, we still need to determine whether it is a Jussive or an Imperfect with a Waw Consecutive attached. Since there is no Waw Consecutive attached to the front of this verb, it must be a Jussive — a command form. So we should translate this sentence as "And God said, 'Let there be light!'"
Simply recognizing the apocopated form has resulted in a profound change in how one perceives God in this verse. Rather than being a detached, uninvolved onlooker who merely reports what will happen, he is instead revealed as the very one who is commanding light to come into existence. Even apocopated forms can bring glory to God!
CHAPTER 5
COHORTATIVE
What It Looks Like
A Cohorative verb can be recognized by the simultaneous presence of two distinctive features:
• It will have either an Alef ([TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII]) or a Nun ([TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII]) coming before the three-consonant root of the verb.
• It will usually have a Qamets He ([TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII]) coming after the three-consonant root of the verb.
Note the presence of these two features in the following example of a Cohortative form of the root [TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII]:
[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]
(Continues...)
Excerpted from Biblical Hebrew Companion for Bible Software Users by Michael Williams. Copyright © 2015 Michael Williams. Excerpted by permission of ZONDERVAN.
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