Jim, didn't you read my whole post? I specifically wrote that I thought that at least the context demands "in the 13th year". In my opinion, this is more important than the grammar. Let's remember that the text was written by humans (or dictated by God "bilshon benei adam"), and human language often takes "literary license". However, this works both ways. So I don't think that the grammar "proves" anything, and I still think that your theory is wrong.
Yigal Levin From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] Sent: Thursday, August 25, 2011 2:36 PM To: [email protected]; [email protected] Subject: Re: [b-hebrew] Year 13 Hebrew Grammar Prof. Yigal Levin: You wrote (in part): “…they served 12 years, they rebelled 13 years, on the 14 year Chedorlaomer arrived. Some (not all) of the rabbinic sources actually understand it that way, and Seder-Olam Rabbah (the post-Talmudic tract that calculates the chronology of the world, from which the Jewish calendar gets 5771 A.M. for the present year) actually counts this as 26 years.” Thank you so much for that invaluable information about the Seder-Olan Rabbah interpretation of Genesis 14: 4-5. Much appreciated. However, could you please comment specifically as to whether or not, based on Hebrew grammar, Genesis 14: 4 could legitimately be interpreted to say and mean: “…and Year 13 they rebelled”? If that is not possible in Hebrew grammar, could you explain why? (Thanks again for the Seder-Olam Rabbah info.) Jim Stinehart Evanston, Illinois _______________________________________________ b-hebrew mailing list [email protected] http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/b-hebrew
