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Hebrew Lesson
Letters and their pronunciations biblical style, reading direction.
The reader’s attention will be directed to several very helpful “Biblical” or “classical” Hebrew grammars, whose style should be favored. The most likely failure that one may expect to encounter in some of them will be the attempt to teach the pronunciation of the letter “waw,” the sixth Hebrew letter, as a “v” sound. It is not, but is rather an “o” or a “u” sound. (More information, Appendix 2). Substantiation may be found in Marks and Rodgers Beginners Handbook to Biblical Hebrew, Weingreens, and the Encyclopedia Judaica in articles entitled “Hebrew Language,” “Hebrew Grammar, An Introduction To,” and “Hebrew Grammar;” and “Watchtower Society” publications “Insight on the Scriptures, (Hebrew II),” “New World Translation With References,” etc. It should be noted that Hebrew is normally written from right to left. Progression is from top to the bottom of the page, as in English. Other grammars include “Biblical Hebrew” by Kittel, Hoffer, and Wright, “Davidsons,” etc, and rudimentary information can often be found in “Strongs Concordance,” or “The Analytical Hebrew and Chaldee Lexicon” by Davidson, and many, many others. Most are useful, but it will be profitable to get “waw” right. You can check the Internet too, for free Hebrew lessons! (You might wish to visit www.learn-hebrew.co.il for a start, and www.hebrew4christians.com looks interesting too!)
Diacritical marks, traditional pronunciations and explanations.
Most of the above listed “Biblical” Hebrew grammars, as well as the others, will give adequate direction in pronunciation of the diacritical marks, or “vowel points,” which were added to the ancient written text by the scribes to preserve the (usually) correct pronunciation of the “consonantal” letters aleph to tau. The most notable exception will be the name of “Yahweh,” and other names containing its abbreviations, which are usually marked deceptively. The scribes no doubt had good intentions, but let the reader beware. Look up the topic “Kethiv-Qere,” (it is written—to be read) in your encyclopedia or grammar for a full explanation. The reader should be alerted also to the fact that strict biblical Hebrew is not a living language today, (except in the spiritual realm, of course). Modern Israeli Hebrew was intended to be very similar, but several concessions to cultural expediencies have been made. According to Encyclopedia Judaica, among the least compromised Hebrew language traditions until the establishment of the State of Israel were those of the Jewish communities of Yemen and Babylon. These were considered similar to the pronunciation used in the times of the prophets. Even the prophets, however, record evidence of local variation in their own time. Full explanations of the traditions involved may be found in the excellent article in the Encyclopedia Judaica, “Pronunciations of Hebrew.”
Accents and cantilation marks. Suggestions for practice reading.
Some information on accents will be found in most of the above listed references. There is some information on use of cantilation marks on pages 1045-1048 of The Soncino Press Pentateuch & Haftorahs. Cantilation marks are used to indicate traditional melodies used in singing, or canting the Hebrew text of the sacred scriptures, in addition to merely indicating accent stress location in words. Reading difficulty increases in the normal sequence of the Hebrew bible; in other words, Genesis (B’reshith) is a good place to start (easy), and Chronicles (Divre haYamim) is a good place to conclude. Iyov (Job) was difficult. Poetry is usually, you know, “poetical,” and can be a little difficult to read wherever it is found, for the novice (hang in there, you can do it).
Common prepositions and their use.
The three main Hebrew prepositions used are the three letters; lamedh, caph, and beyth. They are prefixed to words to normally indicate meanings respectively of: lamedh-to, for, or at; caph-like, as, or according to; and beyth (or beth)-in, with, or by. These are typical meanings. There will be some exceptions, of no major importance, which we need not dwell on at this time.
It’s all out there for you to learn. Go for it. Even at a very fundamental level of comprehension (as with myself), you will glean many gems of wisdom and understanding from reading the sacred scriptures in their own language, which the translators may have disregarded. With persistence, of course, proficiency will develop, and bear its good fruit.
Enjoy the Journey!
Advanced studies - Let's Nit-Pick! see Appendix 2 |
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