Ancient Hebrew Poetry

On the distinction between wisdom and intelligence

Do you know someone who is intellectually challenged but gets the things that really matter very right? I know a few people like that.

Some people wonder why there are, for example, people with Down’s Syndrome in this world. Well, I wonder about people who so wonder.

Have they never had a friend with Down’s syndrome? Do they know nothing about Henri Nouwen, and the choices in life he made?

My parish streams with people this afternoon who have come to pay their respects to a person who had all her wits about her, even if she could never have scored high on a SAT or ACT exam. She passed away last week at 36 years of age. Below the fold you will find the eulogy I will pronounce in a few minutes. It’s nothing special, but may remind you of someone you know who is just like the person honored today in my community.

A Literary Translation of Genesis 1

The creation narrative in Genesis 1 begins with these words:

בראשית ברא אלהים

את השמים ואת הארץ

When God began to create

the sky and the land . . .

 The usual translation, ‘the heavens and the earth,’ obscures the concreteness of the terms in context. The point will be obvious, I think, by the end of this post. Anyone who loves Hebrew and the language of the Bible will enjoy the journey below the fold. 

The Human Anatomy in Ancient Hebrew: Advanced Level

At SBL San Diego, a session was dedicated to testing proficiency in ancient Hebrew. One excellent test of vocabulary proficiency involves the slotting of items across semantic continuums. For example, after randomizing the vocabulary items in the basic, intermediate, and advanced lists provided in this series, students might be required to group and sequence them from head-to-toe. An even better test might involve a 3D image of the human body with appropriately placed slots to be filled in with the appropriate terms for the corresponding body parts.

The Human Anatomy in Ancient Hebrew: Intermediate Level

A glossed and vocalized “basic plus” terminology of human anatomy in ancient Hebrew is offered first. Once you have mastered the “basic plus” list, it is time to test your knowledge by working through it in un-glossed, un-vocalized format - also provided. Grad students and Hebrew teachers should start with the un-glossed, un-vocalized list, and check knowledge against the glossed and vocalized equivalents in case of doubt. The basic list corresponds to a level attainable after two semesters of study; the “basic plus” list, after four semesters. An advanced list is presented in a future post.

The Human Anatomy in Ancient Hebrew: An Introduction

There are several collections of biblical Hebrew word lists on the market today. Every one of them is unsatisfactory. The volumes of Landes and Van Pelt-Pratico group words according to frequency of occurrence and include 2,148 and 1,903, respectively, of the some 9,980 vocabulary items found in the Hebrew Bible. But studies show that readers must be able to recognize 98 per cent of the word stock of a corpus to sight read without difficulty. Landes and van Pelt-Pratico do not set the bar high enough.

Psalm 100: A Thanksgiving Psalm

It’s a winter wonderland in Wisconsin. The sun is shining. Brilliant white snow dusts the ground. My church's fellowship hall is filled with the fragrance of turkey and pumpkin pie. A community supper is in preparation for families in need. I will enjoy celebrating the holiday with them. Below the fold, I present the text, a translation, and notes to Psalm 100, a quintessential psalm of thanksgiving.

A merry Thanksgiving to all!

48 Scholars of the Hebrew Bible

Here’s a fun exercise. Name 48 scholars of the Hebrew Bible whose portrait or photograph might be put on a “baseball” card, along with a short biography. With a set of 48, fun games, they tell me (I'm not a card player), are immediately possible. Engemann’s 48 theologians are all deceased; I find this rule, while understandable, too restricting. Here’s my list of 48 – subject to revision and correction of course.

Science and Faith in Harmony: A Book Idea for English-Language Publishers

Anyone who has read widely in the history of church and synagogue knows this: there is a long and glorious tradition of priests, rabbis, and pastors who “moonlighted” as physicians, scientists, and/or naturalists. “Moonlighting,” of course, is hardly an accurate description. The Rambam, Francis Bacon, Galileo, Louis Aggasiz, and John Polkinghorne all see faith, (meta-) physics, and the natural sciences in terms of their unity, not their supposed opposition. Their credentials in the relevant fields are of the highest order.

SBL San Diego: A Book Lover’s Paradise

For a book lover like myself, a highlight of any academic convention is the book exhibition put on by publishers and booksellers from around the world. I never have enough time to explore the offerings.

Funny Episodes from SBL San Diego, and a tip to SBL organizers

David Vanderhooft was giving an excellent paper on “The Contribution of the Hebrew Bible to the Historical Understanding of Nineveh, Asshur, and Babylon to a jam-packed room. For example, he showed in exquisite detail the ways in which the book of Nahum’s description of the fall of Nineveh tallies with the findings of archaeology. All of a sudden, the lights went out in the room, and someone made a wisecrack about this being an act of God. It turned out that Peter Machinist, a master interpreter of the Bible and things assyriological, had inadvertently leaned up against a light switch in the back of the room. When this was pointed out to David, he quipped, “If it was Peter Machinist who did that, that’s about the same as God having done it, in my book.” That is an example of the filial piety which often binds one generation of scholarship to the next.