B-Hebrew: The Biblical Hebrew Forum

Ken M. Penner wrote:FWIW,

Joüon and Muraoka wrote:Observation. I. The nominal (substantival) predicate is used in Hebrew in a rather broad sense(). As predicate we find:
1) The noun for the material from which something is made: Ez 41.22 הַמִּזְבֵּחַ עֵץ the altar (was of) wood (cf. § 131a, d); Ps 115.4 עֲצַבֵּיהֶם כֶּ֫סֶף וְזָהָב their idols are silver and gold.
2) The thing contained as predicate of the containing object: Jr 24.2 הַדּוּד אֶחָר תְּאֵנִים טֹבוֹת one of the baskets (was full of) good figs.
3) The measure as predicate of the thing measured: Is 6.3 מְלֹא כל־הארץ כְּבוֹדוֹ lit.: his glory (is) the fullness of the entire earth().
4) The noun מִסְפָּר as predicate of the thing numbered: Jr 2.28 כי מִסְפַּר עָרֶ֫יךָ הָיוּ אֱלֹהֶ֫יךָ for your gods were (like) the number of your cities; 1Sm 6.18.
5) The substantive expressing an abstract quality or a concrete particularity: Ps 19.10 מִשְׁפְּטֵי יהוה אֱמֶת the judgements of Y. (are) truth; Gn 11.1 וַיְהִי כל־הארץ שָׂפָה אֶחָ֑ת the whole earth was (of) the same language (lip); Ezr 10.13 הָעֵת גְּשָׁמִים the season is a rainy season. Cf. a phrase of the type Pr 22.21 אֲמָרִים אֱמֶת truthful sayings (§ 131c); Ps 110.3 עַמְּךָ נְדָבֹת your people are willing; Pr 3.17 וכל־נְתִיבֹתֶיהָ שָׁלוֹם all her paths are peaceful; Ps 109.4 ואני תְפִלָּהI am a man of prayer; Jr 10.10 יהוה אלהים אֱמֶת; Ct 1.15 עֵינַ֫יִךְ יוֹנִים; Ez 2.7 מְרִי הֵ֫מָּה they are a rebellious people || vs. 6 בֵּית מרי המה; Jb 28.28 יִרְאַת אֲדֹנָי היא חָכְמָה וְסוּר מֵרָע בִּינָה the fear of the Lord is wisdom and keeping away from the evil is prudence.
6) The explanation as predicate of the thing explained: Gn 41.26 שֶׁ֫בַע הַשִּׁבֳּלִים הַטֹּבֹת שֶׁ֫בַע שָׁנִים הֵ֫נָּה the seven good ears are seven years.
II. A nominal clause can have an optative sense; cf. § 163b. E.g. Gn 9.26 בָּרוּךְ יהוה Blessed be the Lord parallel to the juxtaposed וִיהִי כְנַ֫עַן עֶ֫בֶד לָ֫מוֹ and let Canaan be slave to him, and two further jussives with positive connotation in the following verse. The optative force is especially conspicuous when the predicate is a passive participle and precedes the subject (see § 155l), though the reverse sequence is also attested, as in Gn 27.29 אֹרְרֶ֫יךָ אָרוּר וּמְבָרֲכֶ֫יךָ בָּרוּךְ ().


Paul Joüon and T. Muraoka, A Grammar of Biblical Hebrew (Roma: Pontificio Istituto Biblico, 2006), 529–530.

kwrandolph wrote: This also illustrates what I often notice among grammarians—the tendency to take what is simple and make it complex. Splitting hairs where is makes no difference in action.