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      3. RASHI METHOD: GRAMMAR
      BRIEF EXPLANATION: Rashi explains verses using grammar principles, that is, rules which relate reproducable word form to word meaning. Grammatical rules neatly fall into 3 categories
      • (a) the rules governing conjugation of individual words,Biblical roots,
      • (b) the rules governing collections of words,clauses, sentences
      • (c) miscellaneous grammatical, or form-meaning, rules.
      This examples applies to Rashis Lv13-55a
      URL Reference: (c) http://www.Rashiyomi.com/w21n17.htm
      Brief Summary: Hoo-Ka-BayS is the PASSIVE CAUSATIVE mode and therefore means AFTER IT WAS WASHED.

Most people are aware that Hebrew verbs come from three-letter roots. Each root is conjugated in the 7 dimensions of person, gender,plurality, tense, activity, modality, and direct-object. For example the root Shin Mem Resh means to watch. The conjugations Shin-Mem-Resh-Tauv-Yud and Nun-Shin-Mem-Resh-Nun-Vav mean I watched and we were watched respectively.

The rules for Hebrew grammar are carefully described in many modern books and are well known. Rashi will sometimes comment when a verse is using a rare conjugation of an odd grammatical form.

When presenting grammatical Rashis my favorite reference is the appendix in volume 5 of the Ibn Shoshan dictionary. This very short appendix lists most conjugations.

Verse Lv13-55a states ###### The underlined phrase corresponds to the translation of the Hebrew word Hoo-Ka-BaYS which Rashi identifies as the passive infinitive mode of the root Kuph-Beth-Samech. This conjugation is extremely rare. Modern grammarians consider this to be an abnormal reflexive or passive causative. Rashi's approach - the passive infinitive - is at least as defensible as the positions of modern scholars. Furthermore Rashi's classification as passive infinitive is fully consistent with all English translations. It is therefore the grammatical form that is most consistent with the data. 


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