No Hebrew Present Tense? Leithart Barfield MetaArgument

 No Hebrew Present Tense Barfield Leithart MetaArgument

 

1—There is no  present tense in Hebrew. Barfield p. 150 ‘Saving the Appearances’

2—Sometimes the absence of something emphasizes it. Leithart, Festschrift for Jordan (‘Glory of Kings’ essay on forbidden sexual relations

3—Thus, that there is no present tense in Hebrew emphasizes that the Author of that language is ‘outside’/’other’—not part of The Creation, not part of Time. It is like unto the First/Second Word(s).

 

Objections:

a.       ‘I AM THAT I AM’ ‘I AM has sent you.

b.       Greek has 256 tenses (Pastor Toensing) and is part of the Bible.

c.       Seven ‘I AM’s in John

 

Further considerations: Chinese, even with pin yin’ is a different language, emphasizing SPO pitch snf tone.

Some LCMS preachers do so in a ‘sing-song’ tone so as to emphasize the Word, not the sermonizer’s speech/meaning.

On the other hand, some churches have layperson do Bible reading in the worship service, and others forbid such because it is up to the trained called and ordained to do such reading with emphasis, which has much to do with the meaning of the passage read.

 

Barfield:  ‘’…a  peculiar sense of the significance and  shape of time is also reflected in the Hebrew language. Not only, for example does the Hebrew verb posses no present tense, as we understand it in the Aryan languages; the past being used for every moment up to the present, and the future for every moment from the future on. Not only is this the case, but the past and future are interchangeable in ways it is difficult for us to  understand, More than one Hebrew grammarian, for instance, hasw declared that the past tense was used for prophecy and the future for history.

 

SUMMARY, CONCLUSION, WHAT TO DO.

 

SUMMARY: The absence of something emphasizes it.

CONCLUSION: This is important

WHAT TO DO: Translation and teaching should  reflect this. More linguistic work should be done with other languages. Such as Chinese.

 

Notes: Someone should have told me about this! I could be very wrong, though it might be an advantage that I am ‘ignorant’.