Hebrew Reading B (AL9503C)

Content

This unit is designed to enable students with a background in biblical Hebrew to advance their Hebrew skills through the guided reading of selected Hebrew texts. Passages are chosen from both prose and poetic texts. Attention is given to a detailed morphological and syntactical explanation of the texts as well as text-critical problems, including both modern textual criticism and the masorah. Building on previous study, students will revise and deepen their knowledge of the phonetics, morphology, and syntax of biblical Hebrew. They will approach texts in a more critical manner, evaluating textual variants, their implication for the text tradition, and their applicability to the exegesis of biblical passages. They will also consolidate their linguistic skills through exercises in intermediate Hebrew prose composition. (Cross-listed with BA9503C.)

Learning outcomes

Unit sequence

AL8101C and AL9102C or equivalent

Pedagogy

Classes consist of reading and analysing texts, discussing philological problems, revising vocabulary and grammar, as well as interactive lectures, discussions, and seminars (in each case, presented in modes appropriate for face-to-face or online learning contexts).

Indicative Bibliography

• Clines, David J. A. The Dictionary of Classical Hebrew. 9 vols. Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1993–2016.
• Elliger, Karl, et al., eds. Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia. 5th rev. ed. Stuttgart: Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft, 2007.
• Gesenius, Wilhelm. Gesenius’ Hebrew Grammar. Edited by Emil Kautzsch and Arthur E. Cowley. 2nd ed. 1910. Reprint, Mineola: Dover: 2006. (EBook available.)
• Joüon, Paul. A Grammar of Biblical Hebrew. Translated and revised by Takamitsu Muraoka. 2nd ed. with corrections. Rome: Gregorian and Biblical Press, 2016.
• Kelley, Page H., Daniel S. Mynatt, and Timothy G. Crawford. The Masorah of Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia: Introduction and Annotated Glossary. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1998.
• Schenker, Adrian, et al., eds. Biblia Hebraica quinta. Stuttgart: Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft, 2004–.
• Tov, Emanuel. Textual Criticism of the Hebrew Bible. Minneapolis: Fortress, 2001.
• Van der Merwe, Christo H. J., Jacobus A. Naudé, and Jan H. Kroeze. A Biblical Hebrew Reference Grammar. 2nd ed. London: Bloomsbury T&T Clark, 2017.
• Waltke, Bruce K., and Michael P. O’Connor. An Introduction to Biblical Hebrew Syntax. Winona Lake: Eisenbrauns, 1990.
• Wonneberger, Reinhard. Understanding BHS: A Manual for the Users of Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia. 2nd rev. ed. Rome: Pontifical Biblical Institute, 1990.

Assessment