{"id":2180,"date":"2022-11-05T03:49:13","date_gmt":"2022-11-05T01:49:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thehebrewcafe.com\/main\/?p=2180"},"modified":"2022-11-05T03:50:28","modified_gmt":"2022-11-05T01:50:28","slug":"reading-ruth-1-1","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thehebrewcafe.com\/main\/2022\/11\/reading-ruth-1-1\/","title":{"rendered":"Reading Ruth 1:1"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Image: Ruth 1:1 (Masoretic Text)<\/em><\/p>\n

Above is the text of Ruth 1:1, as we look at the introduction to this fantastic book of the Hebrew Bible. In Jewish circles, people tend to call it Megillat Rut<\/em> (\u05de\u05b0\u05d2\u05b4\u05dc\u05bc\u05b7\u05ea \u05e8\u05d5\u05bc\u05ea<\/span>), the \u201cscroll of Ruth,\u201d rather than the \u201cbook\u201d of Ruth. This is because Ruth is written on a separate scroll that is publicly read during the holiday of Shavuot (\u05d7\u05b7\u05d2 \u05e9\u05c1\u05b8\u05d1\u05d5\u05bc\u05e2\u05d5\u05b9\u05ea<\/span>), just as Lamentations (\u05d0\u05b5\u05d9\u05db\u05b8\u05d4<\/span>) is read during the night of Tisha Be\u2019Av (\u05d8\u05f3 \u05d1\u05bc\u05b0\u05d0\u05b8\u05d1<\/span>) to commemorate the two-time destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem.<\/p>\n

For those who are interested in a linguistic treatment of the text, you will certainly be challenged by Robert D. Holmstedt\u2019s Ruth: A Handbook on the Hebrew Text<\/em> (Waco, TX: Baylor UP, 2010). I recently purchased a copy, and it has renewed my passion for this book of the Bible.<\/p>\n

The workbook to Karl Kutz and Rebecca Josberger\u2019s Learning Biblical Hebrew: Reading for Comprehension<\/em> (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2019) contains the entire text of the book with vocabulary helps for beginning readers.<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s look at what\u2019s contained in this first verse and break it down. I\u2019d like to start this as a series.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Line 1 \u2014 Setting the Timeframe<\/h2>\n

\u05d5\u05b7\u05d9\u05b0\u05d4\u05b4\u0597\u05d9<\/span> \u2014 Wayyiqtol<\/em> (vav<\/em>-consecutive imperfect) 3ms of \u05d4\u05b8\u05d9\u05b8\u05d4<\/span>. This is often used to simply open a past narrative section of text. Normally glossed as \u201cand it was\u201d or \u201cand it happened,\u201d it doesn\u2019t necessarily need to be translated at all. It is generally represented by the overly repetitive phrase \u03ba\u03b1\u1f76 \u1f10\u03b3\u1f73\u03bd\u03b5\u03c4\u03bf<\/span> in the Septuagint. It is formed by adding the wayyiqtol<\/em> formative (\u05d5\u05b7\u25cc\u05bc<\/span>) to an apocapated form of the imperfect 3ms of this verb. Third-Heh<\/em> roots<\/acronym> tend to lose their heh<\/em> in jussive and wayyiqtol<\/em> forms (the heh<\/em> isn\u2019t originally to these roots, anyway, given that they originally were third-yod<\/em> roots). Anyway, the loss of heh<\/em> normally creates the same pattern as segolate nouns, and that is what happens here, too. The yod ends up at the end of the word, and the syllables are rearranged to break up the unpronounceable combination (\u05d9\u05b4\u05d4\u05b0\u05d9\u05b6\u05d4 \u2190 *\u05d9\u05b4\u05d4\u05b0\u05d9 \u2190 \u05d9\u05b0\u05d4\u05b4\u05d9<\/span>). This is similar to what happens to third-yod<\/em> segolate nouns (cp. \u05db\u05bc\u05b0\u05dc\u05b4\u05d9<\/span> and \u05e4\u05bc\u05b0\u05e8\u05b4\u05d9<\/span>, which become \u05db\u05bc\u05b4\u05dc\u05b0\u05d9\u05d5\u05b9<\/span> \u201chis instrument\u201d and \u05e4\u05bc\u05b4\u05e8\u05b0\u05d9\u05d5\u05b9<\/span> \u201chis fruit\u201d with suffixes). When you add the wayyiqtol<\/em> prefix, you expect to get \u05d5\u05b7\u05d9\u05bc\u05b0\u05d4\u05b4\u05d9<\/span>, but the yod loses dagesh<\/em> because of what is affectionately called skinemlevy<\/em> (the loss of dagesh forte<\/em> in certain letters when followed by sheva<\/em>).<\/p>\n

\u05d1\u05bc\u05b4\u05d9\u05de\u05b5\u05d9\u0599<\/span> \u2014 Preposition \u05d1\u05bc\u05b0\u05be<\/span> with the plural construct form of \u05d9\u05d5\u05b9\u05dd<\/span>. In the plural, \u05d9\u05d5\u05b9\u05dd<\/span> yo\u0302m<\/span> becomes \u05d9\u05b8\u05de\u05b4\u05d9\u05dd<\/span> ya\u0304mi\u0302m<\/span>, and in the construct, the accent shifts to the next word (theoretically), causing the propretonic syllable to reduce to sheva<\/em> (\u05d9\u05b8\u05de\u05b4\u05d9\u05dd \u2190 *\u05d9\u05b8\u05de\u05b5\u05d9 \u2190 \u05d9\u05b0\u05de\u05b5\u05d9\u05be\u25cc\u05ab<\/span>). When the preposition is added, the yod<\/em> with sheva<\/em> combines with the previous sheva<\/em> to form chirik-yod<\/em> (*\u05d1\u05bc\u05b0+\u05d9\u05b0\u05de\u05b5\u05d9\u05be\u25cc\u05ab \u2190 *\u05d1\u05bc\u05b4\u05d9\u05b0\u05de\u05b5\u05d9\u05be\u25cc\u05ab \u2190 \u05d1\u05bc\u05b4\u05d9\u05de\u05b5\u05d9\u05be\u25cc\u05ab<\/span>). Altogether, it means \u201cin the days of,\u201d anticipating a noun phrase (NP) of some kind to follow.<\/p>\n

\u05e9\u05c1\u05b0\u05e4\u05b9\u05a3\u05d8<\/span> \u2014 Infinitive construct of \u05e9\u05c1\u05b8\u05e4\u05b7\u05d8<\/span>. To make a verb function as a noun, you use a gerund<\/em> in English. The gerund ends in -ing<\/em> and occupies any place where a noun would be. For example, I enjoy running<\/span><\/i>. Here running<\/em> serves as the direct object of the verb enjoy<\/em>. You can place any noun or gerund there, such that you can change it to I enjoy pizza<\/em> or I enjoy watching movies<\/em>. Any verb you place there, however, must be suffixed with -ing<\/em>. To place a verb after a preposition in Hebrew, you must use the infinitive construct. Here it is added to the construct noun \u05d9\u05b0\u05de\u05b5\u05d9<\/span> and means \u201cthe days of judging,\u201d which is preceded by the preposition \u05d1\u05bc\u05b0\u05be<\/span>. Notice the specially meaning of the word \u201cjudge\u201d here, as it doesn\u2019t mean \u201cdeciding legal disputes\u201d but rather \u201cruling.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u05d4\u05b7\u05e9\u05bc\u05c1\u05b9\u05bd\u05e4\u05b0\u05d8\u05b4\u0594\u05d9\u05dd<\/span> \u2014 The preceding infinitive construct is joined to this word, which is its subject. Together, the whole phrase means \u201cand it happened in the days of the judging of the judges.\u201d Colloquially, we can drop the \u201cand it happened\u201d and write it as \u201cin the days when the judges were ruling.\u201d Given that we aren\u2019t really talking about judges (those who decide legal cases), Holmstedt suggests that we understand it to mean something like \u201cchieftains.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u05d5\u05b7\u05d9\u05b0\u05d4\u05b4\u0597\u05d9 \u05d1\u05bc\u05b4\u05d9\u05de\u05b5\u05d9\u0599 \u05e9\u05c1\u05b0\u05e4\u05b9\u05a3\u05d8 \u05d4\u05b7\u05e9\u05bc\u05c1\u05b9\u05bd\u05e4\u05b0\u05d8\u05b4\u0594\u05d9\u05dd<\/span> \u2014 This is one whole phrase with the accents. The first word (\u05d5\u05b7\u05d9\u05b0\u05d4\u05b4\u0597\u05d9<\/span>) bears the revi\u2019i<\/em> accent, which is a disjunctive, but it still leads into the next accent phrase. The second three words (\u05d1\u05bc\u05b4\u05d9\u05de\u05b5\u05d9\u0599 \u05e9\u05c1\u05b0\u05e4\u05b9\u05a3\u05d8 \u05d4\u05b7\u05e9\u05bc\u05c1\u05b9\u05bd\u05e4\u05b0\u05d8\u05b4\u0594\u05d9\u05dd<\/span>) are joined in a qaton<\/em> phrase. The accents are pashta<\/em>, munach<\/em>, and zaqef katon<\/em>, which are a single joined string. Together, this phrase establishes the time in which the events in the book are said to have taken place, during the time of the judges (between the time of the Conquest under Joshua and the installation of Israel\u2019s first king, Saul).<\/p>\n

Line 2 \u2014 Impetus for Yeridah<\/em><\/h2>\n

The city of Jerusalem is built on hills. Whenever the priests would make their way to and up Mount Zion to offer services in the Temple, they would sing songs of ascent. Immigrating into Israel is referred to as \u201cascending\u201d or \u201cgoing up\u201d (\u05e2\u05b2\u05dc\u05b4\u05d9\u05bc\u05b8\u05d4<\/span>), whereas leaving Israel is consider the opposite: \u201cdescending\u201d or \u201cgoing down\u201d (\u05d9\u05b0\u05e8\u05b4\u05d9\u05d3\u05b8\u05d4<\/span>). This took on spiritual meaning for Jews throughout the generations, since it is preferable to live in the Holy Land where all of the commandments of the Torah were intended to be kept. Since the Babylonian Exile and the diaspora caused by the war with Rome, it has been the aspiration of the Jewish people to go up to the land (\u05dc\u05b7\u05e2\u05b2\u05dc\u05d5\u05b9\u05ea \u05d0\u05b6\u05dc\u05be\u05d4\u05b8\u05d0\u05b8\u05ab\u05e8\u05b6\u05e5<\/span>). The tragedy of famine in the land, however, causes people throughout the biblical story to need to leave the land in search of metaphorical and literal greener pastures, as we have happen here with Elimelech and his family. We can refer to this as Elimelech\u2019s yeridah<\/em> from the land of Israel.<\/p>\n

\u05d5\u05b7\u05d9\u05b0\u05d4\u05b4\u0597\u05d9<\/span> \u2014 The following phrase (\u05e8\u05b8\u05e2\u05b8\u05d1 \u05d1\u05bc\u05b8\u05d0\u05b8\u05ab\u05e8\u05b6\u05e5<\/span>) could be a verbless sentence (\u201cnull copula\u201d), so the \u05d5\u05b7\u05d9\u05b0\u05d4\u05b4\u05d9<\/span> here is functioning as a real verb and not like the one in the first line. It recalls the events that led up to the Exodus, where we are told that Joseph\u2019s brothers were forced to leave Canaan and go to Egypt in order to purchase food as a result of famine in the land of Canaan (\u05db\u05bc\u05b4\u05d9\u05be\u05db\u05b8\u05d1\u05b5\u05d3 \u05d4\u05b8\u05bd\u05e8\u05b8\u05e2\u05b8\u05d1 \u05d1\u05bc\u05b0\u05d0\u05b6\u05ab\u05e8\u05b6\u05e5 \u05db\u05bc\u05b0\u05e0\u05b8\u05ab\u05e2\u05b7\u05df<\/span> [Gen 47:4]). The verb here means \u201cthere was.\u201d It is masculine singular in agreement with the gender and number of \u05e8\u05b8\u05e2\u05b8\u05d1<\/span>. The word order (wa<\/em> + verb + subject) is inversion caused by the wa<\/em>– element of the wayyiqtol<\/em>, which is always joined to the verb.<\/p>\n

\u05e8\u05b8\u05e2\u05b8\u0596\u05d1<\/span> \u2014 Masculine singular noun, subject of \u05d5\u05b7\u05d9\u05b0\u05d4\u05b4\u05d9<\/span>. It\u2019s related to the adjective \u05e8\u05b8\u05e2\u05b5\u05d1<\/span>, \u05e8\u05b0\u05e2\u05b5\u05d1\u05b8\u05d4<\/span> \u201chungry.\u201d The noun can be used to mean either \u201chunger\u201d in a general sense or \u201cfamine,\u201d the extreme side of hunger caused by the lack of available food.<\/p>\n

\u05d1\u05bc\u05b8\u05d0\u05b8\u0591\u05e8\u05b6\u05e5<\/span> \u2014 Adverbial preposition, telling us where the famine was taking place. When \u05d4\u05b8\u05d0\u05b8\u05ab\u05e8\u05b6\u05e5<\/span> appears without any modifier, it either refers to the earth (as in Gen 1:1) or to the land of Israel. In this case, it is Israel. This is composed of \u05d1\u05bc\u05b0\u05be<\/span> \u201cin\u201d and \u05d4\u05b8\u05d0\u05b8\u05ab\u05e8\u05b6\u05e5<\/span> \u201cthe land,\u201d which is definite. Notice that the article is subsumed below the preposition (*\u05d1\u05bc\u05b0+\u05d4\u05b8+\u05d0\u05b6\u05ab\u05e8\u05b6\u05e5 \u2190 *\u05d1\u05bc\u05b0+\u05d4\u05b8\u05d0\u05b8\u05ab\u05e8\u05b6\u05e5 \u2190 *\u05d1\u05bc\u05b0\u05d4\u05b8\u05d0\u05b8\u05ab\u05e8\u05b6\u05e5 \u2190 \u05d1\u05bc\u05b8\u05d0\u05b8\u05ab\u05e8\u05b6\u05e5<\/span>).<\/p>\n

\u05d5\u05b7\u05d9\u05b0\u05d4\u05b4\u05a5\u05d9 \u05e8\u05b8\u05e2\u05b8\u0596\u05d1 \u05d1\u05bc\u05b8\u05d0\u05b8\u0591\u05e8\u05b6\u05e5<\/span> \u2014 The trope for this sentence is called an etnachta<\/em> phrase. It is composed of mercha<\/em>, tipcha<\/em>, and etnachta<\/em>. Altogether, it means \u201cand there was famine in the land.\u201d<\/p>\n

Line 3 \u2014 The Yeridah<\/em><\/h2>\n

\u05d5\u05b7\u05d9\u05bc\u05b5\u05a8\u05dc\u05b6\u05da\u05b0<\/span> \u2014 Wayyiqtol<\/em> 3ms of \u05d4\u05b8\u05dc\u05b7\u05da\u05b0<\/span>. We must remember that this root behaves like a first-yod<\/em> verb in the imperfect and infinitive in the qal<\/em>. It drops the first radical and forms all of its parts with only lamed<\/em> and kaf<\/em>. To see that the heh<\/em> is missing, we should think of the 2ms imperfect forms. \u05ea\u05bc\u05b5\u05dc\u05b5\u05da\u05b0<\/span> is \u201cyou will\/should go,\u201d which looks exactly like words like \u05ea\u05bc\u05b5\u05e9\u05c1\u05b5\u05d1<\/span> \u201cyou will\/should dwell\u201d (from \u05d9\u05b8\u05e9\u05c1\u05b7\u05d1<\/span>) and \u05ea\u05bc\u05b5\u05e6\u05b5\u05d0<\/span> \u201cyou will\/should go out\u201d (from \u05d9\u05b8\u05e6\u05b8\u05d0<\/span>). The infinitive adds tav<\/em> and takes the form of a segolate (\u05dc\u05b8\u05dc\u05b6\u05ab\u05db\u05b6\u05ea<\/span> \u201cto go,\u201d \u05dc\u05b8\u05e9\u05c1\u05b6\u05ab\u05d1\u05b6\u05ea<\/span> \u201cto dwell,\u201d and \u05dc\u05b8\u05e6\u05b5\u05d0\u05ea<\/span> \u201cto go out\u201d [from a hypothetical *\u05dc\u05b8\u05e6\u05b6\u05ab\u05d0\u05b6\u05ea<\/span>]). This verb is normally given prepositional phrases to tell where you go to or from. It can also be followed by a locative form (such as \u05d4\u05b8\u05e2\u05b4\u05ab\u05d9\u05e8\u05b8\u05d4<\/span> \u201cto the city\u201d).<\/p>\n

\u05d0\u05b4\u059c\u05d9\u05e9\u05c1<\/span> \u2014 Masculine singular noun. In the plural, \u05d0\u05b2\u05e0\u05b8\u05e9\u05c1\u05b4\u05d9\u05dd<\/span> means \u201cpeople\u201d generally, including women. In this case, it should be understood as a \u201cman,\u201d since we will immediately run into the phrase \u05d0\u05b4\u05e9\u05c1\u05b0\u05ea\u05bc\u05d5\u05b9<\/span> \u201chis wife\u201d (in line 5). Sometimes you will see it in phrases like \u05d0\u05b4\u05d9\u05e9\u05c1 \u05dc\u05b9\u05d0 \u05d9\u05b8\u05d3\u05b7\u05e2<\/span> for \u201cno one knew\u201d (lit., \u201ca man did not know\u201d) and \u05d4\u05d5\u05bc\u05d0 \u05dc\u05b9\u05d0 \u05e1\u05b4\u05e4\u05bc\u05b5\u05e8 \u05dc\u05b0\u05d0\u05b4\u05d9\u05e9\u05c1<\/span> \u201che told no one\u201d (lit., \u201che did not tell to a man\u201d) to refer to anyone at all, in which case gender is not specifically implied. It could refer to any person, whether male or female.<\/p>\n

\u05de\u05b4\u05d1\u05bc\u05b5\u05a7\u05d9\u05ea \u05dc\u05b6\u05a3\u05d7\u05b6\u05dd<\/span> \u2014 This is a combination of the preposition \u05de\u05b4\u05df<\/span> \u201cfrom\u201d attached to a word by assimilation of the nun<\/em> (\u05de\u05b4\u05df\u05be\u05d1\u05bc\u05b5\u05d9\u05ea \u05dc\u05b6\u05ab\u05d7\u05b6\u05dd \u2190 *\u05de\u05b4\u05e0\u05b0\u05d1\u05bc\u05b5\u05d9\u05ea \u05dc\u05b6\u05ab\u05d7\u05b6\u05dd \u2190 *\u05de\u05b4\u05d1\u05bc\u05b0\u05d1\u05bc\u05b5\u05d9\u05ea \u05dc\u05b6\u05ab\u05d7\u05b6\u05dd \u2190 \u05de\u05b4\u05d1\u05bc\u05b5\u05d9\u05ea \u05dc\u05b6\u05ab\u05d7\u05b6\u05dd<\/span>). The word \u05d1\u05bc\u05b5\u05d9\u05ea \u05dc\u05b6\u05ab\u05d7\u05b6\u05dd<\/span> is the name of a city not far from Jerusalem. It is the city in which King David lived and grew, and it is claimed to be the place of Jesus\u2019s birth. Literally, it means \u201chouse of bread,\u201d but it is just a place name (toponym<\/dfn>).<\/p>\n

\u05d9\u05b0\u05d4\u05d5\u05bc\u05d3\u05b8\u0597\u05d4<\/span> \u2014 Judah is the tribal region in which Bethlehem is found (as well as Jerusalem). It is from Judah that David came, and through him all the regal line of ancient Israel.<\/p>\n

\u05d5\u05b7\u05d9\u05bc\u05b5\u05a8\u05dc\u05b6\u05da\u05b0 \u05d0\u05b4\u059c\u05d9\u05e9\u05c1 \u05de\u05b4\u05d1\u05bc\u05b5\u05a7\u05d9\u05ea \u05dc\u05b6\u05a3\u05d7\u05b6\u05dd \u05d9\u05b0\u05d4\u05d5\u05bc\u05d3\u05b8\u0597\u05d4<\/span> \u2014 The first two words are joined together in the trope with kadmah<\/em> and azlah<\/em> (\u05d5\u05b7\u05d9\u05bc\u05b5\u05a8\u05dc\u05b6\u05da\u05b0 \u05d0\u05b4\u059c\u05d9\u05e9\u05c1<\/span>) as a subject-verb pair. Again, the word order is caused by inversion because of the joining of the wa<\/em>– to the verb, not allowing for the subject to appear first. The last three words are joined in a revi\u2019i<\/em> clause that includes darga<\/em> and munach<\/em> accents. Holmstedt remarks that the inclusion of Judah is to indicate which Bethlehem is in question, supposing that there may have been (an)other Bethlehem(s) in the awareness of the readers. He also rightly concludes that it is telling where the man is from (\u201ca man from Bethlehem of Judah\u201d) rather than where he went from (\u201che went… from Bethlehem of Judah\u201d). It\u2019s about identifying the man as a Bethlehemite rather than about saying that he was specifically in that city when he left for Moab.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Image: Ruth 1:1 (Masoretic Text) Above is the text of Ruth 1:1, as we look at the introduction to this fantastic book of the Hebrew Bible. In Jewish circles, people tend to call it Megillat Rut (\u05de\u05b0\u05d2\u05b4\u05dc\u05bc\u05b7\u05ea \u05e8\u05d5\u05bc\u05ea), the \u201cscroll of Ruth,\u201d rather than the \u201cbook\u201d of Ruth. This is because Ruth is written on […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"bgseo_title":"","bgseo_description":"","bgseo_robots_index":"","bgseo_robots_follow":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[42,11,29,44],"class_list":["post-2180","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-categories","tag-advanced","tag-biblical","tag-grammar","tag-read-hebrew"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thehebrewcafe.com\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2180","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thehebrewcafe.com\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thehebrewcafe.com\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thehebrewcafe.com\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thehebrewcafe.com\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2180"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/www.thehebrewcafe.com\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2180\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2327,"href":"https:\/\/www.thehebrewcafe.com\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2180\/revisions\/2327"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thehebrewcafe.com\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2180"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thehebrewcafe.com\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2180"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thehebrewcafe.com\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2180"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}