An Introduction to Biblical Hebrew Syntax

It is not rare, however, for the preposition not to be repeated; such a construction
is called a preposition override. 123
ְ ֶ ֵ֫ ַ
ִ ְ
[Page תוֹלֹעבּ הוהי ַל ץפחה Does YHWH delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices?
223]
2.
םיח ָבזוּ 1 Sam 15:22
b In adjacent lines of poetry a preposition may govern an object in one line and by
extension in the next; we can say that a single preposition does double duty or that the
second occurrence of the preposition has been removed by gapping. 124
3. לבֶ ָב ְבּ וֹצ ְפ ח ֶ ה ֶשׂ ֲעַי
׃םידִּ ְשׂ ַכּ וֹעֹרזוּ ְ
He will carry out his purpose against Babylon; his arm
will be against the Chaldeans.
Isa 48:14
11.4.3 Supposed Ambiguity and Ellipsis
a Each of the prepositions of Hebrew has a variety of meanings and uses, as the review
of many of the simple prepositions in 11.2 makes clear. It is methodologically
unsound to rely on a dictionary to find a small set of translational equivalents to be
“plugged into” a Hebrew text. In some cases English requires no preposition in a
construction otherwise similar in Hebrew. 125 Further, some prepositions overlap in
sense. Some uses of לע are similar to some uses of לא (11.2.13b), while others are
similar to some uses of ל (11.2.13g); but this does not mean that לע, לא, and ל are
equivalent or synonymous as relational terms. 126
b A methodological error similar to these failures involves supposed ambiguity. The
idea that a linguistic unit can have more than one meaning is straightforward, but
various kinds of ambiguity can be associated with linguistic units. Grammatical
ambiguity arises from certain aspects of the ways in which phrases and clauses are
constructed. Because adjectives and substantives are not ordinarily strictly
distinguished, some phrases of the shape noun + noun can be ambiguous; in קידִּ ַצ
ידִּ בְ ַע (Isa 53:11), for example, the “adjective” קידִּ ַצ can be construed as a modifier
of ידִּ בְ ַע or as a substantive, that is, ‘the Righteous One, (who is) my servant’ or ‘my
123
See O’Connor, Hebrew Verse Structure, 310–11; UT §10.10 n. 2.
124
The term “double-duty” preposition is favored by, e.g., M. Dahood; see Dahood
and T. Penar, “The Grammar of the Psalter,” in M. Dahood, Psalms III (Anchor Bible
17A; Garden City, New York: Doubleday, 1970) 361–456, at 435–37. For “gapping,”
see O’Connor, Hebrew Verse Structure, 122–27, 405, 422. For the example cited, see
GKC §119hh / p. 384.
125
On the pseudo-problems created by a failure to understand both the difference
between philology and translation and the translational task. see, e.g., Pardee, UF 7:
335–36; 8:281–82, 289, 320.
126
It is arguable that ˒l and l have some etymological relation (note that Ugaritic lacks
˒l), but that possible historical circumstance has little relevance to actual Hebrew
usage; see Pardee, UF 8: 290, 314.