Hebrew newbie

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Matthew Longhorn
Posts: 19
Joined: Fri Jun 19, 2020 9:32 am

Hebrew newbie

Post by Matthew Longhorn »

Hi all, essentially a newbie to Hebrew but I started a course with the Bible Mesh Institute for their certificate in biblical languages. I have 4 Greek courses to get through and then 4 Hebrew.

I am getting started on the Hebrew early in my spare time to make it slightly easier on me when I hit those modules. I did a couple of years Hebrew self-study 5-6 years back and got to the point that I could work through Jonah with aids. Since then I have forgotten almost everything, however what I did learn seems to be coming back to me quickly.

At the moment I am active over on b-greek, I am hoping to get stuck in here on the beginners section after a couple of months. Anything earlier than that and I will be asking horrendously basic questions that I should just read my textbooks.
I am going to work through Pratico and Van Pelt's third edition grammar and workbook, also Jutz and jasberger's grammar and workbook, and also Rocine's grammar. Hopefully I can work things out with a combination of those and the regular use of workbook exercises
talmid56
Posts: 295
Joined: Tue Oct 01, 2013 9:02 am
Location: Carlisle, Arkansas, USA

Re: Hebrew newbie

Post by talmid56 »

Hi, Matthew! Welcome to B-Hebrew. I enjoy reading your posts on B-Greek. When you get back to Jonah in Hebrew, I recommend Charles Echols' guide to reading the text in Hebrew, available as a free PDF from Academia.edu. He has helpful notes there on the vocabulary, grammar, syntax, idioms, and some theological insights.

You are in for a treat in studying Hebrew! It's a rich, beautiful language, challenging at times, but full of power and hidden treasures. Feel free to ask questions here as you study!

Dewayne Dulaney (Devenios Dulenios on B-Greek)
Dewayne Dulaney
דואיין דוליני

Blog: https://letancientvoicesspeak.wordpress.com/

כִּ֤י שֶׁ֨מֶשׁ׀ וּמָגֵן֮ יְהוָ֪ה אֱלֹ֫הִ֥ים חֵ֣ן וְ֭כָבוֹד יִתֵּ֣ן יְהוָ֑ה לֹ֥א יִמְנַע־ט֝֗וֹב לַֽהֹלְכִ֥ים בְּתָמִֽים׃
--(E 84:11) 84:12 תהלים
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Jason Hare
Posts: 1920
Joined: Mon Sep 30, 2013 5:07 am
Location: Tel Aviv, Israel
Contact:

Re: Hebrew newbie

Post by Jason Hare »

If you're going through Jonah, I would recommend http://www.animatedhebrew.com/jonah/jonah_01.html to practice hearing the text read aloud. Try the different narrators to see what you like more. It's an amazing resource!
Jason Hare
Tel Aviv, Israel
The Hebrew Café
יוֹדֵ֣עַ צַ֭דִּיק נֶ֣פֶשׁ בְּהֶמְתּ֑וֹ וְֽרַחֲמֵ֥י רְ֝שָׁעִ֗ים אַכְזָרִֽי׃
ספר משלי י״ב, י׳
Matthew Longhorn
Posts: 19
Joined: Fri Jun 19, 2020 9:32 am

Re: Hebrew newbie

Post by Matthew Longhorn »

Thanks Jason. When I get back to that level I will got through the resources you and Dewayne have mentioned.
It is all coming back quite quickly; I thought it would be a painful process. Rediscovering that nouns and adjectives aren't inflected for case makes me very happy! I picked up the grammars again yesterday for the first time in years and the vocab and basic rules have quickly clicked again.
talmid56
Posts: 295
Joined: Tue Oct 01, 2013 9:02 am
Location: Carlisle, Arkansas, USA

Re: Hebrew newbie

Post by talmid56 »

Matthew, you might find it helpful also to use the Anki digital software flashcards. (Site: https://apps.ankiweb.net/)

I have started making my own set for the vocab of Psalms, based on the groups in Osborne and Meek's A Book-by-Book Guide to Biblical Hebrew Vocabulary, Hendrickson Academic, 2020 (print). I am new to Anki, but so far it seems to be helpful. There are also user-contributed card sets on their site you can freely download, for Hebrew, Greek, and other languages. Go to https://ankiweb.net/shared/decks/ to get some.

As for Osborne and Meek’s work, I like the concept of book-by-book lists, as they both arrange them by frequency (in manageable lists of about 20 words each) and focus on a single book at a time. To me, this seems more useful than the works that cover the whole of OT vocab at once, even though by frequency.
Dewayne Dulaney
דואיין דוליני

Blog: https://letancientvoicesspeak.wordpress.com/

כִּ֤י שֶׁ֨מֶשׁ׀ וּמָגֵן֮ יְהוָ֪ה אֱלֹ֫הִ֥ים חֵ֣ן וְ֭כָבוֹד יִתֵּ֣ן יְהוָ֑ה לֹ֥א יִמְנַע־ט֝֗וֹב לַֽהֹלְכִ֥ים בְּתָמִֽים׃
--(E 84:11) 84:12 תהלים
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Jason Hare
Posts: 1920
Joined: Mon Sep 30, 2013 5:07 am
Location: Tel Aviv, Israel
Contact:

Re: Hebrew newbie

Post by Jason Hare »

Matthew Longhorn wrote:Thanks Jason. When I get back to that level I will got through the resources you and Dewayne have mentioned.
It is all coming back quite quickly; I thought it would be a painful process. Rediscovering that nouns and adjectives aren't inflected for case makes me very happy! I picked up the grammars again yesterday for the first time in years and the vocab and basic rules have quickly clicked again.
That's exactly right! Hebrew forms are much easier!
Jason Hare
Tel Aviv, Israel
The Hebrew Café
יוֹדֵ֣עַ צַ֭דִּיק נֶ֣פֶשׁ בְּהֶמְתּ֑וֹ וְֽרַחֲמֵ֥י רְ֝שָׁעִ֗ים אַכְזָרִֽי׃
ספר משלי י״ב, י׳
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