On the syntactical development of בwith infinitive construct in Biblical and Qumran Hebrew 1. Introduction This paper examines the diachronic development of temporal constructions with the infinitive construct governed by the בpreposition (henceforth –בinfinitive) in Standard Biblical Hebrew (SBH), Late Biblical Hebrew (LBH), and Qumran Hebrew (QH).1 Due to space and time restraints, the closely related infinitive construct governed by a כpreposition has been excluded. Moreover, this study will focus on those –ב infinitives that appear before the main clause. While a few studies related to the diachronic development of biblical Hebrew (BH) have examined on the decline of ויהי/ והיהin general and specifically with –ב infinitives,2 little attention has been paid to how the –בinfinitive clause relates to the main Many thanks to Christo van der Merwe, Martin Abegg, and Joshua Matson who have read and critiqued earlier versions of this paper. 1 For these terms, I am following Eduard Y. Kutscher, A History of the Hebrew Language (ed. Raphael Kutscher; Leiden: Brill, 1982), 12. 2 See e.g., Mark F. Rooker, Biblical Hebrew in Transition: The Language of the Book of Ezekiel (JSJSup 90; Sheffield: JSOT Press, 1990), 103–4; Paul Joüon and Takamitsu Muraoka, A Grammar of Biblical Hebrew (SB 27; Rev. ed.; Rome: Gorgias and Biblical Press, 2011), §166q. See also Ian Young et al., Linguistic Dating of Biblical Texts (London: Equinox Publishing, 2008), 162, #2 and the sources cited there. 1 clause. Syntactically, there are two possibilities for –בinfinitives.3 First, they can be fronted in the main clause; thus, they are clause initial but remain within the bounds of the clause itself. Second, they can be syntactically removed from the main clause but within the sentence. A clause boundary marker such as waw is often used to sever the –ב infinitives from the clause. Alternatively, if a resumptive element occurs within the clause, occupying the same argument position as the –בinfinitive, the –בinfinitive phrase is also pushed out of the clause. This is referred to as “left dislocation.”4 I will argue that the –בinfinitive develops structurally along the following lines: (1) although both fronting and left dislocation of –בinfinitives is possible in SBH, left dislocation is prevalent; however, (2) the use of left dislocated –בinfinitives is in sharp decline in LBH and QH, which prefers fronted –בinfinitives. (3) Ezekiel, although showing features that resemble SBH, seems to occupy a medial position in the trajectory of the development of this construction. In my analysis of the data, I will argue two points related to the semantics of –בinfinitives: (1) with fronted –בinfinitives, the use of yiqtol or qatal in the main clause shows little to no development from SBH through QH. Variation between corpora can be explained via genre rather than linguistic development. (2) There is overlap between the functional values of fronted and left dislocated –ב 3 For a general outline of the meaning of –בinfinitives, see e.g., Bruce K. Waltke and M. O’Connor, An Introduction to Biblical Hebrew Syntax (Winona Lake, Ind.: Eisenbrauns, 1990), 36.2.2b; Joüon–Muraoka, A Grammar of Biblical Hebrew, §124l. 4 For a comprehensive evaluation of left dislocation in SBH, see Joshua R. Westbury, Left Dislocation in Biblical Hebrew: A Cognitive Linguistic Account (Ph.D. Diss.; Stellenbosch University, 2014). 2 infinitives from SBH to QH. However, whereas SBH gives preference to left dislocation for certain functional values, LBH and QH show a marked preference for fronting with these values. One note on the corpora treated here is necessary. Along with the majority consensus, I will consider Genesis–2 Kings to be SBH and Esther, Daniel, Ezra– Nehemiah, 1–2 Chronicles as LBH.5 Rooker’s study on Ezekiel finds a number of LBH features and argues that while it manifests 37 features of LBH, “we should be hesitant to classify the book of Ezekiel as LBH.”6 Since is does not show as many late features as 1– 2 Chronicles or Ezra, for example, he argues that “Ezekiel appears to be the best representative of the mediating link between pre-exilic and post-exilic Hebrew.”7 My study here assumes his hypothesis and adds another feature to his list. I will exclude portions considered to be Ancient Biblical Hebrew (ABH)—Gen 49, Exod 15, Num 23– 4, Deut 32, Judges 5, 1 Sam 2, 2 Sam 22–3—from relevant statistics, but they will included in Appendix A. From Qumran, all of the so-called non-biblical texts have been considered. 2. Fronted versus Left Dislocated –בinfinitives 5 See Young et al., Linguistic Dating of Biblical Texts, 1; Ian Young, “Introduction: The Origin of the Problem” (in Biblical Hebrew: Studies in Chronology and Typology [ed. idem; JSOTSup 369; London: T&T Clark, 2003]), 3; see also Angel Sáenz-Badillos, A History of the Hebrew Language (trans. John Elwolde; Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1993), 112–29. On the relation of QH to SBH and LBH, see also Shelomo Morag, “Qumran Hebrew: Some Typological Observations,” VT 38 2 (1988): 148– 164. 6 Rooker, Biblical Hebrew in Transition, 185, see also 183–6. 7 Ibid., 186. 3 In each example here, I have indicated the –בinfinitive clause with a single underline and the main clause with a double underline. A fronted element appears within its clause but otherwise out of ordinary position and thrown to the front. With the –ב infinitive, this occurs both with ויהי/( והיה#1) and without ויהי/( והיה#2): 1 2 Kgs 4:10 2 Num 11:9 והיה בבאו אלינו יסור שׁמה . . . whenever he comes to us, he may stop there.8 וברדת הטל על המחנה לילה ירד המן עליו When the dew fell on the camp in the night, the manna would fall with it. Left dislocation refers to elements that appear not only before the clause (i.e., to the left) but are syntactically outside of the clause although within the sentence.9 With –ב infinitive, this occurs most frequently when the independent clause is marked with a clause boundary marker, such as ו, as in the following examples.10 It can appear with ויהי/( והיה#3) or without ויהי/( והיה#4): 3 Gen 4:8 ויהי בהיותם בשׂדה ויקם קין אל הבל אחיו And when they were in the field, Cain rose up against his brother Abel. 8 Translation mine; all other translations are from the NRSV unless otherwise indicated. 9 Westbury defines, “LD [=Left Dislocation] is generally identified by the presence of a referential constituent that could function as an argument or adjunct within the predicate-argument structure of the clause but, instead, occurs outside the left-peripheral boundaries of the clause containing the predicate” (Westbury, “Left Dislocation in Biblical Hebrew,” 98). See also Robert D. van Valin and Randy J. Lapolla, Syntax: Structure, Function and Meaning (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1997), 36. 10 According to Westbury, וclause markers are used in left dislocation examples, as well as interrogatives, כי, גם, רק, אך, and “( הנהLeft Dislocation in Biblical Hebrew,” 222–5). With –ב infinitives, see also על כןin 2 Chron 16:7 (cp. with the –בinfinitive construction in 2 Chron 16:8), אזin 2 Sam 5:24; Prov 1:27–28; Job 28:26–27. 4 4 Ezek 23:39 ובשׁחטם את־בניהם לגלוליהם ויבאו אל־מקדשׁי ביום ההוא For when they had slaughtered their children for their idols, on the same day they came into my sanctuary to profane it. 3. Fronted –בinfinitive Fronted –בinfinitives are less common in SBH than left dislocated –בinfinitives (37/96, 39%); in LBH, the situation is just the reverse than LBH, where fronted –ב infinitives are dominant (21/29, 72%). 3.1. SBH In SBH, the fronted –בinfinitive is most frequently followed by a yiqtol form. In 21 of 29 occurrences, this occurs without a ויהי/ והיהform; the remainder (8/29) occur with ויהי/והיה. See examples #5 and #6, respectively. 5 2 Kgs 4:10 6 Josh 6:5 בבאו אלינו יסור שׁמה When he comes to us, he will stay there.11 והיה במשׁך בקרן היובל בשׁמעכם את־קול השׁופר יריעו כל העם When they make a long blast with the ram’s horn, as soon as you hear the sound of the trumpet, then all the people shall shout. The perfect is found in only eight instances in SBH, three introduced by ויהי/והיה12 and the remainder without ויהי/והיה13: 7 1 Sam 23:6 ויהי בברח אביתר בן אחימלך אל דוד קעילה אפוד ירד בידו When Abiathar son of Ahimelech fled to David at Keilah, he came down with an ephod in his hand. 11 Translation mine. 12 Josh 4:18; 1 Sam 23:6; 1 Kgs 16:11. 13 Gen 48:7; Lev 26:44 (negated); 2 Sam 1:23 (poetic); 5:2; 12:18. 5 3.2. LBH Fronted –בinfinitive clauses are more common with a qatal form (19/21, 90%) in the main clause than a yiqtol form in LBH (2/21,14 10%). See examples #8 and #9, respectively. 8 Est 2:7 9 Dan 11:34 ובמות אביה ואמה לקחה מרדכי לו לבת and when her father and her mother died, Mordecai adopted her as his own daughter. ובהכשׁלם יעזרו עזר מעט When they fall victim, they shall receive a little help 4. Left Dislocated –בinfinitive Left dislocated –בinfinitives are more prevalent in SBH than fronted forms (58/96, 61%). In Ezekiel, the situation is reversed and left dislocation is less common: 14/38 (37%). LBH continues in this trajectory: 8/21 (28%). 4.1. Left Dislocated – בinfinitives in SBH 4.1.1. –בinfinitive with ויהי/והיה In SBH, this construction is most common with wayyiqtol forms (#10) but appears with weqatal (#11), and as waw–X–verb (#12). 10 11 12 Gen 4:8 ויהי בהיותם בשׂדה ויקם קין אל־הבל אחיו ויהרגהו And when they were in the field, Cain rose up against his brother Abel, and killed him. 2 Sam 15:5 Exod 13:17 14 והיה בקרב אישׁ להשׁתחות לו ושׁלח את ידו והחזיק לו ונשׁק לו Whenever people came near to do obeisance to him, he would put out his hand and take hold of them, and kiss them. ויהי בשׁלח פרעה את העם ולא נחם אלהים דרך ארץ פלשׁתים When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them by way of See 2 Chron 6:26. See also Isa 64:2. 6 the land of the Philistines 4.1.2. –בinfinitive without ויהי/והיה In SBH, this appears most commonly with weqatal (#13) and wayyiqtol forms (#14), but as waw–X–verb (#15). 13 Lev 26:26 בשׁברי לכם מטה לחם ואפו עשׂר נשׁים לחמכם בתנור אחד When I break your staff of bread, ten women shall bake your bread in a single oven 14 Judg 11:16 כי בעלותם ממצרים וילך ישׂראל במדבר עד ים סוף ויבא קדשׁה but when they came up from Egypt, Israel went through the wilderness to the Red Sea 15 Judg 11:26 בשׁבת ישׂראל בחשׁבון ובבנותיה ובערעור ובבנותיה ובכל הערים אשׁר על ידי ארנון שׁלשׁ מאות שׁנה ומדוע לא הצלתם בעת ההיא While Israel lived in Heshbon and its villages, and in Aroer and its villages, and in all the towns that are along the Arnon, three hundred years, why did you not recover them within that time? 4.2. Left Dislocated – בinfinitives in LBH 4.2.1. –בinfinitive construct with ויהי/והיה In LBH, the majority of uses with ויהי/ והיהappear in left dislocation followed by a wayyiqtol form (#16). 16 Est 2:8 ויהי בהשׁמע דבר המלך ודתו ובהקבץ נערות רבות אל שׁושׁן הבירה אל יד הגי ותלקח אסתר אל בית המלך אל יד הגי שׁמר הנשׁים So when the king’s order and his edict were proclaimed, and when many young women were gathered in the citadel of Susa in custody of Hegai, Esther also was taken into the king’s palace and put in custody of Hegai, who had charge of the women. Given that it is generally agreed that ויהי/ והיהas well as the wayyiqtol form is disappearing in LBH,15 this peculiar construction appears to be a vestige of the common 15 See Young et al., Linguistic Dating of Biblical Texts, 162, #1–2 and the sources cited there. 7 SBH construction reappearing in LBH, or perhaps intentional imitation of SBH language. Moreover, each occurrence appears in narrative, for which LBH usually uses fronting with a qatal form.16 This happens five times: Est 2:8; 3:4; Dan 8:15; 1 Chron 15:26; 2 Chron 25:16.17 Once it matches the analysis waw–X–verb (#17) and once waw–nominal clause (#18). 17 2 Chron 13:15 ויהי בהריע אישׁ יהודה והאלהים נגף את ירבעם וכל ישׂראל לפני אביה ויהודה And when the people of Judah shouted, God defeated Jeroboam and all Israel before Abijah and Judah 18 Dan 8:2 ויהי בראתי ואני בשׁושׁן הבירה And when I was looking, I was in Susa, the capital.18 4.2.2. –בinfinitive without ויהי/והיה As I am arguing, left dislocation of –בinfinitives is disappearing in LBH. Apart from what appears to be a reappearance or imitation of SBH and the other two waw–X– verb or –nominal clause uses (#17–18), there is only one use of left dislocation (#19). 19 1 Chron 21:28 בעת ההיא בראות דויד כי ענהו יהוה בגרן ארנן היבוסי ויזבח שׁם At that time, when David saw that the LORD had answered him at the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite, he made his sacrifices there. 4.3. Summation of Evidence in BH In order to compare SBH and LBH to each other, the following chart presents the totals from each category. 16 See §6 below for substantiation. 17 See 1 Chron 15:56 is roughly parallel with 2 Sam 6:12 and may have been influenced by the ויהי. 2 Chron 25:14–16 is not found in 2 Kgs (see ch. 14). 18 Translation mine. 8 Table 1: Fronted Versus Left Dislocated –בInfinitives SBH Ezekiel LBH Fronted 37, 39% 24, 63% 21, 72% Left Dislocation 58, 61% 14, 37% 8, 28% Total 95 38 29 This table suggests my first two arguments, that (1) left dislocation of –בinfinitives is more prevalent in SBH but that (2) the use of left dislocated –בinfinitives is in sharp decline in LBH, which prefers fronting of –בinfinitives. Left dislocation wanes from 61% in SBH to 28% in LBH; inversely, fronted constructions rise from 39% in SBH to in SBH to 72% in LBH. In both cases, Ezekiel occupies a medial position. Notice, however, that even in SBH, fronting is not infrequent, but used 39% of the time. After we analyze QH, Table 4 will reproduce Table 1 but with the addition of the data from QH. In the following two tables, constructions with fronted –בinfinitives (Table 2) and then left dislocated –בinfinitives (Table 3) are detailed. The constructions presented above are summarized according to number of instances, followed by percentage for easier comparison between the corpora. The column on the left indicates whether or not ויהי/ והיהintroduces the –בinfinitive and the nature of the main clause. The relevant locations for each figure are given in Appendix A. Table 2: Fronted –בinfinitives SBH Ezekiel 8, 22% 0 ויהי/והיה: yiqtol 3, 8% 0 ויהי/והיה: qatal yiqtol 21, 57% 23, 96% qatal 5, 14% 1, 4% Total 37 24 LBH 0 0 2, 10% 19, 90% 21 In SBH, yiqtol follows a fronted –בinfinitive 29/37 or 79% of the time—counting both those uses with and without ויהי/—והיהthis obviously predominates, a usage that 9 Ezekiel follows 96% of the time. However, LBH uses a qatal form 90% of the time. In §6, I will argue that this difference is primarily due to difference in genre and is not due to development of the language. Table 3: Left Dislocated –בinfinitives SBH Ezekiel 26, 45% 1, 7% ויהי/והיה: wayyiqtol 8, 14% 0 ויהי/והיה: weqatal 7, 12% 0 ויהי/והיה: waw–X–qatal 0 0 ויהי/והיה: waw–nominal clause wayyiqtol 6, 10% 4, 29% weqatal 8, 14% 6, 43% waw–X–verb 0 3, 21% Other 3, 5% 0 Total 58 14 LBH 5,19 63% 0 1, 13% 1, 13% 1, 13% 0 0 0 8 In SBH, although a –בinfinitive introduced by ויהי/ והיהand followed by wayyiqtol is most prevalent in left dislocation examples (45%), other constructions account for more than half of the left dislocation examples. Uses with ויהי/ והיהdo account for 71%, however. Ezekiel shows a marked decline in uses with ויהי/( והיה1/14),20 but does use left dislocation with a wayyiqtol or weqatal form 10 times. Left dislocation of –בinfinitives is attested fewer times in LBH than in Ezekiel alone (8 versus 14). However 6 of these in LBH (75%) are used with ויהי/והיה. There are two plausible explanations: (1) the writers of LBH were intentionally mimicking SBH or (2) the form was still possible but less frequent in LBH, or perhaps a mixture of both. 19 Contra Rooker, “Every occurrence of כבוא/ בwith a preceding ויהיor והיהoccurs exclusively in [SBH] texts” (Biblical Hebrew in Transition, 104). 20 See also Rooker, Biblical Hebrew in Transition, 103–4. 10 5. –בinfinitives in Qumran Hebrew In the non-biblical scrolls, I have identified a total of 72 clause- or sentence-initial uses of the –בinfinitive. If the particular instance was too fragmentary to determine with confidence the relationship between the –בinfinitive and main clause, it was excluded from consideration.21 5.1. Fronted – בinfinitive Fronted –בinfinitives vastly predominate in the non-biblical Scrolls (59/72). The most common construction in QH is the –בinfinitive followed by a yiqtol form (#20–22). I have identified 49 occurrences.22 20 CD 11:22– 2323 ובהרע חצוצרות הקהל יתקדם או יתאחר ולא ישביתו את העבׄ וׄדהׄ כולה When the trumpets for assembly are blown, let him go earlier or later so that they need not stop the whole service.24 21 1QM 9:3 ובהנגפם לפניהם יתקעו הכוהנים בחצוצרות המקרא and when they have been defeated before them, the priests shall blow the trumpets of assembly 21 E.g., at 11QHa 18:22–23, the main clause is lost to a lacuna. Additionally, I have perforce excluded Aramaic examples (e.g., 11Q 35:2) since my focus is on Qumran Hebrew. 22 In the major manuscripts, CD: 1x; 1QS: 10x; 1Q28a: 3x; 1QM: 15x; 1QHa: 6x. See Appendix A for details. Incidentally, Qimron counts only 35 (Hebrew of the Dead Sea Scrolls, 73). The difference can probably be attributed to the fact that he did not have access to the Qumran manuscripts that we have available today. 23 This is the only occurrence in CD. 24 All translations of Qumran materials are from Michael Wise, Martin Abegg, and Edward Cook, “Qumran Non-biblical English” in Accordance, version 3.0 (2009), unless otherwise noted. 11 There are only three occurrences of a –בinfinitive introduced by ויהי/ והיהin the entirety of the non-biblical Scrolls: 1QS 2:12–13, CD 7:20–21 (#29), and 11Q19 56:20 (#29). Each of these is a quotation from biblical texts. Although both follow a left dislocation analysis in the MT, 1QS 2:12–13 transforms the syntax to follow the dominant pattern at Qumran—fronting with a yiqtol form. 22 1QS 2:12–13 Deut 29:18 והיה בשומעו את דברי הברית הזות יתברך בלבבו לאמור שלום יהי לי It shall come to pass, when he hears the words of this Covenant, that he shall bless himself in his heart, saying ‘Peace be with me’ והיה בשׁמעו את דברי האלה הזאת והתברך בלבבו לאמר שׁלום יהיה לי All who hear the words of this oath and bless themselves, thinking in their hearts, “We are safe” Notice, however, that although the והיהis retained, left dislocation is not; והתברךof the MT now reads יתברך. Curiously, it seems this represents a mixture of idiomatic usage (yiqtol form) and non-idiomatic interference from SBH ()והיה. Compare with CD 7:20–21 and 11Q19 56:20–21 (#29) below. The remaining eleven uses of a fronted –בinfinitive are broken down as follows: qatal is found five times with a fronted –בinfinitive (#23). Additionally, a nominal phrase appears in the main clause three times (#24), a participle clause twice (#25), and an imperative once (#26). 23 CD 1:4–5 ובזכרו ברית ראשנים השאיר שאירית לישראל ולא נתנם לכלה But when he called to mind the covenant He made with their forefathers, he left a remnant for Israel and did not allow them to be exterminated. 24 CD 4:10–11 ובשלים הקץ למספר השנים האלה אין עוד להשתפח לבית יהודה When the total years of this present age are complete, there will be no further need to be connected to the house of Judah 25 1QS 8:4–5 בהיות אלה בישראל נכונה העצת היחד When such men as these come to be in Israel, then shall the party 12 of the Yahad truly be established. 26 4Q416 2 III, 21 בהתחברכה יחד התהלך עם עזר בשרכה When you are united, live together with your fleshly helper. 5.2. Left Dislocated –בinfinitive I have identified a total of thirteen uses of left dislocation in the non-biblical scrolls, including quotations from the Hebrew Bible, which account for three of these (#29–30). In two instances—although only one if you count 4Q266 2 I, 2:18–19 (a CD manuscript) and CD 1:14–15 as one—the main clause is begun by wayyiqtol forms (#27).25 27 CD 1:14–15 בעמוד איש הלצון אשר הטיף לישראל מימי כזב ויתעם בתוהו לא דרך When the Man of Mockery appeared, who sprayed on Israel lying waters, he led them to wander in the trackless wasteland. Weqatal forms account for another four occurrences (#28). However, three of these are quotations from the Hebrew Bible. 11Q19 (Temple Scrolla) 56:20–21 quotes Deut 17:18 (#29) and CD 7:20–21 quotes Num 24:17, preserving both the introductory והיהformula and left dislocation (cp. 1QS 2:12–13 [#22]). 1QM 10:2 quotes Deut 20:2 (#31). 28 1QS 6:15–16 25 ואחר בבואו לעמוד לפני הרבים ונשאלו הכול על דבריו Subsequently when he comes to stand before the general membership, they shall interrogate him concerning his words.26 See CD 1:14–15 // 4Q266 2 I 18–19. Depending on the way in which the syntax is divided, 1QHa 11:16 could also be included. As it is tagged in Abegg and Holmstedt’s Accordance syntax module (2010), this is a dependent temporal phrase attached to the preceding clause, כול חכמתם בהמות ימים כי תתבלע, and so should be excluded here. 26 Translation mine. 13 29 11Q19 56:20– 21 Deut 17:18 30 והיה בשבתו על כסא ממלכתו וכתבו לו את התורה הזואת על ספר מלפני הכוהנים When he first takes the throne of his kingdom, this law must be written out for him in a book while the priests look on . . . והיה כשׁבתו על כסא ממלכתו וכתב לו את משנה התורה הזאת על ספר מלפני הכהנים הלוים When he has taken the throne of his kingdom, he shall have a copy of this law written for him in the presence of the levitical priests. CD 7:20–21 ובעמדו וקרקר את כל בני שת when he appears, “he will shatter all the sons of Seth.” Num 24:17 וקרקר כל בני שת and destroy all the children of Seth Additionally, note that the MT reads a –כinfinitive rather than a –בinfinitive.27 31 1QM 10:2 וילמדנו מאז לדורותינו לאמור בקרבכם למלחמה ועמד הכוהן ודבר אל העם He taught us from of old through all our generations, saying, “When you approach the battle, the priest shall stand and speak unto the people . . . והיה כקרבכם אל־המלחמה ונגשׁ הכהן ודבר אל־העם Deut 20:2 Before you engage in battle, the priest shall come forward and speak to the troops Notice that in 1QM 10:2 the introductory והיהis dropped whereas it is not in #29. In three instances in 1QHa, there are preserved a rare weyiqtol form. 32 1QHa 11:27 27 בהפתח כל פחי שחת ויפרשו כול מצודות רשעה ומכמרת חלכאים על פני מים When all the traps of the pit open, then all the wicked snares and the net of the wretched ones will be spread out on the water. Only Tg. Onq. of the Targumim also preserves a כat Deut 17:18. 14 Finally, there remain four instances—although one is quite fragmentary (#33): a waw–nominal clause follows the –בinfinitive once (#33) and waw–X–verb three times (#34). 33 4Q158 1 II, 16–1728 [ ללכתׄ ע֯ בׄ ׄדים והנה המה שלושי]ם ] ׄיהוה לי לאמור בהוציאכה את The LORD [has spoken] to me, saying, ‘When you have brought the [people] out [of Egypt …’] to go as slaves, and consider, they number thir[ty . . .] 34 1QM 16:11 ובהתאזר ]בליעל[ לׄע ֯זרׄת בני חׄ וׄשך וחללי הבינים יחלו לנפול ברזי אל When [Belial] prepares himself to assist the Sons of Darkness, and the slain among the infantry begin to fall by God’s mysteries 5.3. Summation of Evidence in QH In the tables below, biblical quotations are excluded from the count and two manuscripts that preserve the passage (e.g., 4Q266 2 I, 18–19 and CD 1:14–15) are counted as one. Accordingly, I have arrived at a total of 58 instances of fronting and 9 instances of left dislocation in QH. Table 4 contains the Qumran data in addition to the information presented on BH above (Table 1). Again, the relevant locations are presented in Appendix A. Table 4: Fronting versus Left Dislocation in BH and QH SBH Ezekiel LBH QH Fronted 37, 39% 24, 63% 21, 72% 58, 87% Left Dislocation 58, 61 % 14, 37% 8, 28% 9, 13% Totals 95 38 29 67 28 4Q158 1 II, 16–17 is too fragmentary to tell, but it appears to be a loosely based on Exod 3:12. Exod 3:12 and 1 Kings 8:53 are the only places where הוציאךבappears followed by the direct object marker את. Exod 3:12 also has תעבדוןfollowing, which seems to match with in לעבדin 4Q158 1 II, 117, which makes it the more likely option. 15 Although left dislocation with –בinfinitives predominates in SBH (61%), it declines steadily through Ezekiel (37%) and LBH (28%) to QH (13%). In terms of absolute quantity (and leaving aside corpus size), LBH and QH attest 8 and 9, respectively. Since there are only two syntactical options for the clause or sentence initial –בinfinitive, the alternative to left dislocation—fronting—grows steadily from 39% in SBH to 87% in QH. Table 5: Distribution of Fronted –בinfinitives, QH 2% With והיה/ויהי: yiqtol 1 47 yiqtol 81% 6 qatal 10% 2 Nominal Clause 3% 2 Participle 4% 58 Total Elisha Qimron makes some claims about –בinfinitives that are instructive to examine here. He states, “The syntax of temporal clauses with בקטלוdeviates in yet another way from BH. In DSS Hebrew, ובקטלוis practically always followed by a simple imperfect . . . By contrast, in BH the verb בקטלו/ וכcan occur either in a simple [=fronted] or a conversive tense-form [=left dislocated].”29 It should be observed that QH does in fact use qatal after the –בinfinitive six times; thus, Qimron’s figure is not quite accurate. Moreover, I will argue below (see §6) that with fronted –בinfinitives, there has been no variation in the use of yiqtol and qatal forms between SBH and QH (although he is 29 Qimron, Hebrew of the Dead Sea Scrolls (HSS 29; Atlanta: Scholars Press, 1986) 73. It should also be noted that Qimron did not have access to all the scrolls available to us today at the time of publication, which may also influence his data. 16 correct that –בinfinitives are most frequent with yiqtol forms). Rather, the differences in the various corpora can be explained through functional value and genre. Table 6: Distribution of Left Dislocated –בinfinitives, QH wayyiqtol 1 11% weqatal 1 11% weyiqtol 3 33% waw–X–verb 3 33% waw–nominal clause 1 11% 9 Total It is now apparent, moreover, that Qimron is incorrect concerning the use of the waw-consecutive (or lack thereof) with –בinfinitives in QH. I have identified one use with a wayyiqtol form (CD 1:14–15) and one with a weqatal form (1QS 6:15–16). Therefore, it is more accurate to say that left dislocation is waning in QH, a process that we have already seen in LBH. However, Qimron’s comments confirm what I am arguing is the trajectory of the –בinfinitive construction from SBH to LBH: preference for the fronted –בinfinitive before simple verb forms and the associated decline of left dislocation. 6. Analysis As I have presented above, there is a neat trajectory in the development of the –ב infinitive constructions from SBH through QH30—except for the use of the yiqtol or qatal forms after a fronted –בinfinitive. The following table summarizes my findings: 30 This should not be taken to mean that the development of the language itself was had a neat trajectory (see Jacobus A. Naudé, “The Transitions of Biblical Hebrew in the Perspective of Language Change and Diffusion,” in Biblical Hebrew: Studies in Chronology and Typology [ed. Ian Young; JSOTSup 369; London: T&T Clark, 2003], 189. 17 Table 7: Fronting with yiqtol versus fronting with qatal SBH Ezekiel LBH 29, 78% 23, 96% 2, 10% 8, 22% 1, 4% 19, 90% 37 24 21 yiqtol qatal Totals QH 47, 89% 6, 11% 53 I propose that yiqtol and qatal forms with fronted ב-infinitive clauses are used in the same manner from SBH through QH. The variation is due mainly to genre considerations: –בinfinitive + yiqtol is frequently used in instructional/legal and prophetic genres whereas –בinfinitive + qatal is used in narrative. The choice of yiqtol versus qatal is influenced by the temporal relationship between the main and –בinfinitive clause. Here I offer some suggestions as to when a yiqtol form is used.31 Representative texts from each corpus are given in footnotes. (a) the –בinfinitive clause expresses the time frame when a certain action should be completed. This frequently occurs in legal contexts (e.g., Exodus–Deuteronomy) or instructional texts (e.g., 1QS, 1QM).32 E.g., when x, he should etc. (b) the –בinfinitive clause expresses a the time frame in which an iterative or habitual event will occur.33 E.g., when x, he would etc. 31 These are fairly comprehensive and are able to account for most uses. Closer examination may show that further functions should be added to this taxonomy. 32 SBH: Exod 19:13; 30:8, 20; Lev 23:22 (negated); Num 1:51; Deut 25:19; Josh 6:5; 2 Sam 5:24. Ezekiel 46:9. QH: CD 11:22–23; 1QS 1:18; 1QHa 12:23, inter alia. Not found in LBH. 33 SBH: Exod 34:34; Num 9:22; 11:9 Judg 2:19; Ezek: 1:17. QH: possibly 1QHa 12:23; 16:23–24. Not found in LBH. 18 (c) the –בinfinitive clause expresses a the time when an event will take place. This is frequent in prophetic contexts (and to a lesser extent, discourse).34 E.g., when x, he will etc. In other words, uses of yiqtol (a)–(b) do not view the events as completed. In contradistinction, a qatal form is used when, (d) the –בinfinitive clause expresses the time or time frame when an action occurred. This is frequently in narrative (e.g., Josh 4:18) but also happens in dialogue (e.g., Gen 48:7; 2 Sam 12:18).35 E.g., when x, he did etc. In brief, SBH and QH use the yiqtol form frequently due to the high volume of legal material and in Ezekiel, due to the prophetic content. LBH primarily uses qatal forms since a majority of the corpus is narrative. There is the obvious question that is raised by this explanation: SBH also includes a lot of narrative, why are there not more uses of the fronted –בinfinitive followed by qatal? In order to answer that question, we need to look at the semantic value of the left dislocated –בinfinitive followed by wayyiqtol. In a narrative, the –בinfinitive sets the time of the action and the action of the main clause happens concurrently. In SBH, left dislocation with a wayyiqtol is used predominantly in this narrative sense (#35) whereas LBH predominantly uses fronting with a qatal form to fulfill this function (#36). 35 Gen 11:2 34 ויהי בנסעם מקדם וימצאו בקעה בארץ שׁנער וישׁבו שׁם And as they migrated from the east, they came upon a plain in the land of Shinar and settled there. SBH: Judg 8:9; 1 Kings 8:35. Ezekiel: 3:20, 27; 29:7 (2x). LBH: 2 Chron 6:26; Dan 11:34. QH: 1QS 10:10–11, 17; 1QHa 8:24; 4Q169 3–4 III, 4–5; 11Q5 IXX, 12–13. 35 SBH: Josh 4:18; 1 Sam 23:6. Ezekiel 27:33; LBH: Est 1:5; Dan 8:17; 10:11; Ezra 2:68; 1 Chron 12:21 [ET 12:20]; 16:19–21 (poetic). QH: CD 1:4; 1QM 14:10. 19 36 Est 2:7 ובמות אביה ואמה לקחה מרדכי לו לבת and when her father and her mother died, Mordecai adopted her as his own daughter. Quantitatively, SBH uses –בinfinitive followed by wayyiqtol (= left dislocation) 26 times in narrative36 and –בinfinitive + qatal only three times (Josh 4:18; 1 Sam 23:6; 1 Kgs 16:11).37 In contradistinction, LBH attests four occurrences of the –בinfinitive + wayyiqtol in narrative (Est 2:8; 3:4; 1 Chron 21:28; 2 Chron 25:1638) and sixteen occurrences of –בinfinitive + qatal.39 In QH, the situation is—like the manuscripts themselves—fragmentary. The Hodayot, which have three instances of left dislocation with weyiqtol forms,40 seem to parrot the biblical idiom poorly by adding a וbefore the yiqtol, but using the yiqtol form as is usually used in QH with a fronted –בinfinitive. That is, the Hodayot uses a rare weyiqtol—i.e., not wayyiqtol—form in future referring contexts (cp. also examples #40– 43 below). 37 1QHa 11:27 36 בהפתח כל פחי שחת ויפרשו כול מצודות רשעה ומכמרת חלכאים על פני מים Gen 4:8; 11:2; 19:29; 34:25; 35:17, 18, 22; 38:28; Num 7:89; 17:7 (ET 16:42); Josh 5:13; 15:18; Judg 1:14; 3:27; 13:20; 1 Sam 16:6; 17:24; 18:6; 25:37; 2 Sam 1:2; 4:4 2º; 11:16; 1 Kgs 11:15; 18:4, 36; 2 Kings 2:1. 37 The other five instances of a fronted –בinfinitive + qatal in SBH do not appear in narrative: Gen 48:7; Lev 26:44; 2 Sam 1:23; 5:2; 12:18. 38 I have excluded 1 Chron 15:26, which is influenced by 2 Sam 6:13. 39 Est 1:5; 2:7, 15; 9:25; Dan 8:17, 18; 10:11, 15; Ezra 2:68; 1 Chron 12:21 [ET 12:20]; 2 Chron 12:7, 12; 20:20; 22:7; 24:25; 34:14. 40 1QHa 10:30; 11:27, 28. 20 When all the traps of the pit open, then all the wicked snares and the net of the wretched ones will be spread out on the water. In CD 1:14–15 (also attested in 4Q266 2 I, 18–19), there is one usage that reflects the SBH idiom of a narrative wayyiqtol after a –בinfinitive. 38 CD 1:14–15 בעמוד איש הלצון אשר הטיף לישראל מימי כזב ויתעם בתוהו לא דרך When the Man of Mockery appeared, who sprayed on Israel lying waters, he led them to wander in the trackless wasteland. In contradistinction, there are five instances of the fronted –בinfinitive followed by qatal (#39), reflecting the LBH idiom.41 39 CD 1:4–5 ובזכרו ברית ראשנים השאיר שאירית לישראל But when He called to mind the covenant He made with their forefathers, He left a remnant for Israel In sum, there seems to be only one positive use of the left-dislocated –בinfinitive + wayyiqtol used in a similar manner to that commonly found in SBH and five of –ב infinitive + qatal, commonly found in LBH. This, along with the data presented from SBH and LBH, suggests that the narrative function of dislocated –בinfinitive + wayyiqtol is overtaken is overtaken by –בinfinitive + qatal in LBH and QH. Finally, SBH uses weqatal following a –בinfinitive in two ways that LBH uses a simple yiqtol form. First, weqatal appears for the volitive in SBH (#39) where LBH and QH predominantly uses fronting with yiqtol (#40). Additionally, SBH uses weqatal for future reference (#41), for which LBH and QH prefer to use a yiqtol (#42).42 Note that 41 See CD 1:4, CD 2:17; 1QM 14:10; 1QHa 12:36–37; 4Q390 1, 10–11. 42 Perhaps also 2 Chron 6:26. 21 LBH never uses a weqatal form after a –בinfinitive and in QH, this happens only once (#28),43 which is similar to #42. 40 Deut 23:14 והיה בשׁבתך חוץ וחפרתה בה ושׁבת וכסית את צאתך when you relieve yourself outside, you shall dig a hole with it and then cover up your excrement. 41 1QS 3:16 ובקורבו לעצת היחד לוא יגע בטהרת הרבים עד If he does proceed in joining the party of the Yahad, he must not touch the pure food of the general membership. 42 1 Sam 10:2 בלכתך היום מעמדי ומצאת שׁני אנשׁים עם קברת רחל בגבול בנימן בצלצח When you depart from me today you will meet two men by Rachel’s tomb in the territory of Benjamin at Zelzah 43 Dan 11:34 ובהכשׁלם יעזרו עזר מעט When they fall victim, they shall receive a little help Therefore, the functions that left dislocated –בinfinitive construction—with both wayyiqtol and weqatal forms—are predominantly fulfilled by the simpler fronted –ב infinitive and a simple verb form. This is most clearly seen with the predominance of the left dislocated –בinfinitive + wayyiqtol in narrative material in SBH and the fronted –ב infinitive + qatal in LBH and QH. 7. Conclusion Structurally, I have demonstrated that fronting of the –בinfinitive clause is preferred in LBH as well as QH, although left dislocation is preferred over fronting in SBH. As has been shown in the analysis section (§6), certain functional values that are constructed with left-dislocation in SBH are predominantly constructed with a fronted –ב infinitive clause with a simple verb form in LBH and QH. Whereas in SBH, fronted and 43 Technically there are four, but three are quotations (see §5.2). 22 left dislocated –בinfinitive clauses have overlapping functions,44 LBH and QH prefer a fronted construction for these same values. Nevertheless, the presence of left dislocated –בinfinitive clauses in LBH and QH suggests that this construction is still grammatical, although likely only as a residue of the more archaic construction.45 44 I.e., a –בinfinitive followed by a wayyiqtol and a –בinfinitive followed by qatal are both used to indicate concurrent actions in narrative. 45 See Morag, “Qumran Hebrew,” 161. 23 Appendix A Standard Biblical Hebrew Fronted –בinfinitives Num 15:18–19; Deut 25:19; 27:4; 29:18–19; Josh 6:5; Judg 2:19; ויהי/והיה: yiqtol 2 Sam 5:24; 2 Kgs 4:10; Josh 4:18; 1 Sam 23:6; 1 Kgs 16:11; Exod 19:13; 30:8, 20; 34:34; 40:32, 36; Lev 12:6; 19:9 (negated); 23:22 (prohibition), 39; Num 1:51; 9:22 2x; 10:36 (poetic); 11:9; 28:26; 35:19; Deut 31:11; Judg 8:9; 1 Kgs 8:35; 2 Kgs 5:18; in ABH, see Deut 32:8. Josh 4:18; 1 Sam 23:6; 1 Kgs 16:11 ויהי/והיה: qatal yiqtol Exod 19:13; 30:8, 20; 34:34; 40:32, 36; Lev 12:6; 19:9 (negated); 23:22 (prohibition), 39; Num 1:51; 9:22 2x; 10:36 (poetic); 11:9; 28:26; 35:19; Deut 31:11; Judg 8:9; 1 Kgs 8:35; 2 Kgs 5:18; in ABH, see Deut 32:8. qatal Gen 48:7; Lev 26:44 (negated); 2 Sam 1:23 (poetic); 5:2; 12:18; in ABH, see Judg 5:4. Left Dislocated –בinfinitives Gen 4:8, 11:2, 19:29, 34:25, 35:17, 18, 22; 38:28; Num 10:35; ויהי/והיה: 17:7; Josh 5:13; 15:18; Judg 1:14; 3:27; 13:20; 1 Sam 16:6; 18:6; wayyiqtol 25:37; 30:1; 2 Sam 1:2; 4:4 2º; 11:16; 1 Kgs 11:15; 18:4, 36; 2 Kgs 2:1 ויהי/והיה: weqatal Gen 9:14; Exod 33:22; Num 9:19; Deut 23:14; Josh 2:14; 1 Sam 16:16, 23; 2 Sam 15:5 Exod 13:17; 34:29; Josh 3:14; 10:11; 1 Sam 24:12; 2 Sam 3:6; 1 ויהי/והיה: waw– Kgs 8:10 X–qatal wayyiqtol Num 7:89; Deut 9:9, 23; Judg 11:16; 1 Sam 17:24 (note the casus pendens); 1 Kings 10:9 weqatal Lev 26:26; Num 18:30; Josh 23:16 (note change of subject); Judg 8:7 (note change of subject); 1 Sam 10:2;1 Kgs 8:33; 14:12; 2 Kgs 10:2–3; 2 Sam 14:26 is dubious and not included in the count above. Other Exod 1:16; Judg 11:26; 2 Sam 5:24 Ezekiel Fronted –בinfinitives yiqtol 1:17, 19, 21; 3:20, 27; 10:11, 16 1º, 16 2º (negated), 17 (2x); 15:5 (negated); 18:27; 29:7 (2x); 33:8, 13, 19; 38:14; 43:23; 44:19; 46:8, 9, 10. Ezek 33:14–15 is tentatively placed here but excluded from the count above since it is dubious. qatal 27:33 (poetic). Left Dislocated –בinfinitives 10:6 ויהי/והיה: wayyiqtol wayyiqtol 23:39; 24:24; 32:15; 47:3. 24 weqatal waw–X–verb 18:26 (1º); 26:19–20; 28:25; 33:18; 39:27; 43:8. 5:16; 18:24; 42:14; Ps 142:4. Late Biblical Hebrew Fronted –בinfinitives yiqtol Dan 11:34; 2 Chron 6:26 qatal Est 1:5; 2:7, 15; 9:25; Dan 8:17, 18; 10:11, 15; Ezra 2:68; 1 Chron 12:21 [ET 12:20]; 16:19–21 (poetic); 2 Chron 2:10 [ET 2:11]; 12:7, 12; 16:8; 20:20; 22:7; 24:25; 34:14. None of the passages in 1–2 Chron that have parallels in Sam–Kings. Left Dislocated –בinfinitives Est 2:8; 3:4; Dan 8:15; 1 Chron 15:26; 2 Chron 25:16; see also ויהי/והיה: Ruth 3:4. 1 Chron 15:56 is roughly parallel with 2 Sam 6:12–13 wayyiqtol and may have been influenced by the ויהי. 2 Chron 25:14–16 is not found in 2 Kgs (see ch. 14). ויהי/והיה: waw–X– 2 Chron 13:15 qatal Dan 8:2 ויהי/והיה: waw– nominal clause wayyiqtol 1 Chron 21:28 Qumran Hebrew Fronted –בinfinitives yiqtol CD 11:22–23; 1QS 1:18; 2:12–13 (w. ;)היהו3:16; 6:16, 18, 21; 7:20; 8:10–11, 8:12–13; 10:10–12, 17; 1Q28a (1QSa) 1:4, 12, 19; 1QM 4:6, 7, 8, 9, 11, 13; 5:3, 16; 7:13–14; 8:6–7; 9:3, 7; 16:6; 17:11–12; 1QHa 8:24; 11:17; 12:23; 14:38; 16:23–24; 28:8; 4Q169 3–4 III, 4–5; 4Q258 IX 10; 4Q271 III, 15; 4Q317 II, 28; 4Q365 XXIII, 4–5; 4Q405 20–22 II, 9, 12–13; 4Q493 I, 8, 10, 11; 4Q503 1–6 III, 1; 11Q5 IXX, 12 qatal CD 1:4–5; 2:17; 1QHa 12:36–37; 1QM 14:10 (partially reconstructed from 4Q491); 4Q270 6 IV, 18. Potentially 4Q390 1 I, 10–11 could also be included here; however, it is too fragmentary to say with confidence. nominal phrase CD 4:10–11; 1QS 9:3–4; 10:4 // 4Q258 IX, 1. participle 1QS 8:4–5; 4Q264 7, 7–8. imperative 4Q416 2 III, 21 Left Dislocated –בinfinitives wayyiqtol CD 1:14–15 // 4Q266 2 I, 18–19 weqatal CD 7:20–21; 1QM 10:2; 1QS 6:15–16; 11Q19 56:20–21 weyiqtol 1QHa 10:30; 11:27, 28 waw–X–verb 1QHa 8:28; 11:28–30; 1QM 16:11 waw–nominal 4Q158 1 II 16–17 clause 25
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