#*#*#*#*# (C) 2001, RashiYomi Inc. Dr Hendel President #*#*#*#*#
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VERSE: Gn18-27a
RASHIS COVERED: Gn18-27a Ex02-21a Nu12-11a Dt01-05a
================== 3 DIVERSE MEANINGS OF Y-A-L =================
BACKGROUND
----------
Hebrew meaning is determined by 3-letter roots. Each 3 letter
root has a meaning which undergoes changes according to its
conjugation. As a simple example Sh-M-R means to WATCH. But
then ShMRti means I WATCHED while tSHMRi means SHE WILL WATCH
THE TEXTS
---------
- In Nu12-11a the root Yud-Aleph-Lamed means BEHAVE STUPIDLY
- In Job6-9 the root Yud-Aleph-Lamed means CURSE
- In Gn18-27a the root Yud-Aleph-Lamed means REFRESH
THE RASHI
---------
Rashi simply explains that the meaning of Yud-Aleph-Lamed
depends both on the ROOT and the GRAMMATICAL MODE used.
-- In the active mode (KAL) YAL means CURSE
-- In the passive mode (NIFAL) YAL means STUPID (being cursed)
-- In the causative mode (HIFIL) YAL means to REFRESH (to
lay a curse on ones opponents)
THE LIST
--------
The list below presents these 3 meanings, the verses they
occur in the texts of the verses as well as statistics on
how often they occur(the # column indicates how often this
grammatical form of the root occurs) The footnotes show some
exciting events connected with this root. For example
-- Rashi actually contradicts himself in two verses
-- Radack suggests a 4th meaning: TO BEGIN
-- it is possible to argue over which mode this root is
conjugated in
=================================================================
MODE VERSE TEXT # NOTE
===== ========= ==================================== == =======
NIFAL Nu12-11a Dont place on us our STUPIDITIES 4 *1
KAL*2 Job6-9 God will be my CURSOR & destroy me 1 *2
HIFIL Gn18-27a I(Abraham) have REFRESHED my prayers 18 *3
NOTES
-----
*1 Jer05-04 Jer50-36 Isa19-13 Nu12-11a. In these 4 verses
the root Yud-Aleph-Lamed clearly means STUPIDITY.
*2 There are only 2 occurences of Yud-Aleph-Lamed that CLEARLY
mean curse:Job6-9 and 1Sam14-24!!I am reinterpreting 1Sam14-24
to mean refreshed. That leaves only Job6-9. Most grammarians
classify it as a CAUSATIVE MODE but it can be classified as
an ACTIVE mode. See footnote *10 below for details
*3 Most of these 18 examples clearly refer to a
-----------------------------------------
NEW PROJECT ABOUT WHICH ONE IS EXCITED
-----------------------------------------
This contains nuances of both NEWNESS and EXCITATION. The
closest English translation I have found is REFRESHED (though
this is by no means perfect). For a beautiful example of how a
simple translation can resolve an outright controversy in
Rashi as well as for a discussion of 1Sam14-24 see footnotes
*11*12
--------------------- LONGER FOOTNOTES --------------------------
*10 Using Alfred Silbermans Grammatical Form Konkordance we
easily see that Job6-9 with the form VeYoAyL can be
equally classified as ACTIVE (KAL) or CAUSATIVE(HIFIL).
--------------------------------------
VERSE MODE ROOT FORM
-------- ------ ------ --------
Prv23-24 KAL Y-L-D VeYoLayD
Jer44-07 KAL Y-N-K VeYoNayK
Isa51-13 KAL Y-S-D VeYoSayD
2Sm24-03 KAL Y-S-F VeYoSayF
Zac12-01 KAL Y-Tz-R VeYoTzayR
Jos03-10 HIFIL Y-R-Sh VeYoRaySh
Ex36-07 HIFIL Y-T-R VeHoThayR
2K17-27 HIFIL Y-R-H VeYoRayM
Nu17-11 HIFIL H-L-Ch VeHoLayCh
---------------------------------------
In other words the form VeYoAyL could equally be
active or causative.
*11 We review the following contradiction in Rashi
-------------------------------------------------------------
-Gn18-27a Y-A-L means HONORED/PLEASED (I am HONORED to speak)
-Dt01-05a Y-A-L means BEGIN (Moses BEGAN to translate Torah)
-------------------------------------------------------------
Furthermore, on Dt01-05a Rashi actually cites Gn18-27a as
an example where Y-A-L means BEGIN (I have BEGUN to speak)
contradicting his explicit statement that YAL in Gn18-27
means HONORED/PLEASED/EXCITED.
Is this a contradiction in Rashi!? No! Rashi was simply
presenting two shadows of one concept. The concept REFRESH
has nuances of both BEGIN and EXCITEMENT/PLEASING. It is
not the best translation but it does capture all nuances.
Interestingly, the Radack in the book roots only lists the
meaning of EXCITEMENT/PLEASING/HONOR and leaves out ANY
mention of the word BEGINNING.
I call the above method---finding a SINGLE SEMANTIC MODEL
that unifies all nuances of a word (like REFRESH refers to
BEGINNING and EXCITEMENT)---the SEMANTIC MODEL METHOD. It
is the method I advocated in my Tradition 1980 article.
*12 17 of the 18 examples of Yud-Aleph-Lamed in the Hifil, seem
to mean REFRRESH. But one seems to mean SWORE
-----------------------------------------------------
1Sam14-24 & Saul SWORE the nation: CURSED be who eats
till I have avenged myself of my enemies
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The Radack brings this verse in his book roots.
But I would suggest the equally plausible translation
--------------------------------------------------------
1Sam14-24 & Saul REFRESHED his war-weary nations spirits
by stating: CURSE be who eats any food till my enemies are
conquered--and no one ate anything
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Such an approach only affects one verse but then allows
a beautiful unified theory on the root Yud-Aleph-Lamed
-----------------------------------------------------------
--- In Kal(Active) it means to CURSE (Like aleph-Lamed-Hey)
--- In Nifal(Passive) it means STUPID (being cursed!)
--- In Hifil it means REFRESHED (to cause ones enemies who
intefer with the new project to be cursed)
-----------------------------------------------------------
Thus this one re-translation enables the diverse meanings
of Yud-Aleph-Lamed to follow meaning according to the
grammatical mode as indicated in the table below
=================================================================
RASHI RULE USED: ROOT+PREPOSITION
---------------------------------------------------
WARNING: The following additional references may be too wordy
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Volume 11 Number 24
#*#*#*#*# (C) 2001, RashiYomi Inc. Dr Hendel President #*#*#*#*#
Volume 11 Number 24