Description
This study uses modern linguistic theory to analyze a frequently recurring syntactic phenomenon in the Hebrew Bible that has thus far resisted explanation: כי אם.
The combination of the two particles כי and אם produces a construction that is notoriously difficult to describe, analyze syntactically, and translate. Dictionaries of Biblical Hebrew offer a dizzying variety of translations for this construction, including "that if," "except," "unless," "but," "but only," and "surely," among other possibilities. In this book, Grace J. Park provides a new approach that strives for greater precision and consistency in translation. Park argues that כי אם is used in three patterns: the "full focus" pattern, the "reduced focus" pattern, and the less common "non-focus" pattern. Her syntactic analysis of all 156 occurrences of the כי אם construction in the Bible lends greater clarity to the contested passages.
Drawing on recent linguistic research into the typology of clausal nominalization as well as previous work on contrastive focus, this innovative project provides important new insight into the syntax of Biblical Hebrew. It will be especially valuable for scholars seeking to translate כי אם more consistently and accurately.
Author: Grace J. Park
Publisher: Eisenbrauns
Published: 11/07/2023
Pages: 300
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 1.35lbs
Size: 9.00h x 6.00w x 0.81d
ISBN13: 9781646022465
ISBN10: 1646022467
BISAC Categories:
- Foreign Language Study | Hebrew
- Religion | Biblical Criticism & Interpretation | Old Testament
- Language Arts & Disciplines | Linguistics | Syntax