Reading Genesis 1-2 in Hebrew - Bibal.Net

Reading Genesis 1–2 in Hebrew
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����•��—transliteration: way-kaµl 'È-lO-hÓµm Bay-yYYÙµm
haH-H¸-bÓ-vÓµ m¸-la'k-TÙµ '·-Heµr vA-WAµh, “and Elohim finished in the seventh day his work which he
made.” The opening verb is Piel shortened imperfect 3 rd sg. masc. with wau-conversive from the
root hlk (“be complete, at an end”) with Elohim as subject. The masc. noun £Ùy (“day”) has the
preposition b (“in”) as its prefix, in which the vowel takes that of the definite article it displaces.
The seventh (yivyibL¸Hah) day is different from the six “working days” of Genesis 1. The fem. noun
hAk'Al¸m (“work”) refers to what G-d did or made (hAWAv). The fact that it is finished “in the seventh
day” suggests an added dimension to G-d’s creation that moves beyond the sequence of events
in Genesis 1. G-d’s purpose in creation is on-going.
A case can be made, however, to emend the text with the Samaritan Pentateuch, LXX and
Syriac to read the “sixth” day here on the basis of the logoprosodic analysis. The three
successive dyads here scan 23 || 27 || 25 morae in the MT. Emending haHH¸bÓvÓ (“seventh”) to
read haHHiHÓ (“sixth”) improves the balance to scan 23 || 25 || 25 morae (see p. 58, n. 2:2 h
below).
In a symbolic sense, Jonah was invited to participate in G-d’s creation by letting go of his anger,
which had become a “great evil” that would destroy him (see Reading Jonah in Hebrew).
Potentially all time that follows the six “working days” constitutes G-d’s “seventh day” of
Creation—the ideal “Shabbat.”
���������������œ����������œ•�—transliteration:
way-yiH-BOµt Bay-yÙµm haH-H¸-bÓ-vÓµ, “and he ceased in the
seventh day.” The verb here is Qal imperfect 3 rd sg. masc. from the root tbH (“cease, desist,
rest”). The Hebrew word tA–baH (“Sabbath”), which does not appear here, is derived from this root.
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������„��������‘��ƒ��—transliteration: miK-Kol-m¸-la'k-TÙµ '·-Heµr vA-WAµh, “from all his work
that he had done.” For the most part this is a repetition of words that appear earlier in this verse.
The preposition §im (“from”) is prefixed to the lOk (“all”) and assimilation of the n˚n, which
explains the doubling of the following letter. The vowel is shortened because of the maqqEp that
connects the two words here.
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����•��—transliteration: way-bAµ-rek 'È-lO-hÓµm 'et-yÙµm haH-H¸-bÓ-vÓµ, “and
Elohim blessed the seventh day.” The verb here is Piel imperfect 3 rd sg. masc from the root ¢rb