Friday, January 15, 2010

Psalm 119 - Part 6 Grammar

O vav, you that begin all words and belong as first of one only
you that inhabit many words named as consonant and act as vowel
what shall I do with you - how shall I read you!
Now there's a vocative for you.
Here's my translation with W (touched up a bit)
Well come to me your steadfast love יְהוָה
your salvation like your promise
וִיבֹאֻנִי חֲסָדֶךָ יְהוָה
תְּשׁוּעָתְךָ כְּאִמְרָתֶךָ
Wherewith I will answer a word to one reproaching me
for I trust in your word
וְאֶעֱנֶה חֹרְפִי דָבָר
כִּי בָטַחְתִּי בִּדְבָרֶךָ
Word of truth do not remove from my mouth utterly
for I have hoped in your judgments
וְאַל תַּצֵּל מִפִּי דְבַר אֱמֶת עַד מְאֹד
כִּי לְמִשְׁפָּטֶךָ יִחָלְתִּי
Watch over your teaching I will continually
to the age and for ever
וְאֶשְׁמְרָה תוֹרָתְךָ תָמִיד
לְעוֹלָם וָעֶד
Walk in maturity I will
for your precepts I have sought
וְאֶתְהַלְּכָה בָרְחָבָה 
כִּי פִקֻּדֶיךָ דָרָשְׁתִּי
Words of your testimonies before kings I will have
and I will not be ashamed
וַאֲדַבְּרָה בְעֵדֹתֶיךָ נֶגֶד מְלָכִים 
וְלֹא אֵבוֹשׁ
Wherefore my delight will be in your commandments
which I have loved
וְאֶשְׁתַּעֲשַׁע בְּמִצְו‍ֹתֶיךָ
  אֲשֶׁר אָהָבְתִּי
Wave my hands I will to your commandments which I have loved
and I will meditate on your statutes
וְאֶשָּׂא כַפַּי אֶל מִצְו‍ֹתֶיךָ אֲשֶׁר אָהָבְתִּי
וְאָשִׂיחָה בְחֻקֶּיךָ
What about trying a translation with U or V as the first letter? I thought about it and figured it would be too hard for me. Rather than reading the Hebrew dictionary, I would have to read an English dictionary letter by letter. Much as Christian Bok did with his book of poems Eunoia - a book by Bok - where each chapter uses only one vowel. Examples here. If you haven't seen this book do read some excerpts - they are "enfettered yet free. He lets cleverness exceed decent levels." After all, "awkward grammar appalls a craftsman!" and "Writing is inhibiting" and blogs "form cocoons of comfort ... to hold bookworms" "such hubbub, such rumpus, thump, thump, thrum, thrum, " thud.

This poem divides into 4 and 4 - 1 a thesis, 2 a use thereof, 3 a negative command, 4 a promise and then 4 similarly structured outcomes perhaps conditioned on the fulfillment of the negative command and promise. See below for the somewhat similar structures in the last 4 lines.

Details - there are more questions occurring to me as I write what at first seems obvious - I am reading a fascinating set of essays on the verbless clause in Hebrew. I am thinking nothing of English grammar should be taken for granted in my analysis - subject predicate might turn out to be more like concept and comment. In fact even the retroactive nature of construct I am reconsidering. What if they were all comment like redefinitions - a word, of the truth, each subsequent phoneme redefining but not changing those that are already uttered.
Read this well come as two words not one - though 'well' is not in the Hebrew. As qal imperfect it can be read as future or as jussive - a third person 'imperative'. The verb is singular. Is the noun plural as AV translates? If so we must reconsider the whole for then perhaps it is Hashem, the nearest singular noun who comes and the noun phrases are appositional commentary.
vybo)uny
וִיבֹאֻנִי
Well come to me
xasadeka
חֲסָדֶךָ
your steadfast love
noun (plural?) + second person possessive pronoun
yy
יְהוָה
O LORD
forced English vocative if the proper name is not used in translation - that's why Adonai - my Lord or Hashem is preferable
tshvu`atka
תְּשׁוּעָתְךָ
your salvation
This is one of many verbs forming a noun - as in English Save to salvation of course with the personal pronoun also attached. Is תשועה the equivalent of a gerund? I have not found a rule yet that would let me noun a verb. BDB lists this form with יָשַׁע the verb and יֵשַׁע the noun - deliverance. (You can see that without the pointing, you can't tell the difference between these words) In my Hebrew Latin concordance, the word is listed as a form of the noun - we will find it frequently in this psalm.
k)imrateka
כְּאִמְרָתֶךָ
as your promise
preposition+noun+'construct' ending+pronoun - it seems to me that the nun and taf make the language 'smoother'. There were information processors and designers in those days - and if there weren't grammarians, there was still a sophisticated intuited grammar and linguistics.
v)e`neh
וְאֶעֱנֶה
Wherewith I will answer
conjunction+ first person qal imperfect - note the sequence of gutturals aleph+ayin - this is not smoothed out!
xorpy
חֹרְפִי
one reproaching me
Participle + first person pronoun as object (reproach joins this part with part 5)
dabar
דָבָר
a word
noun - perhaps in construct with the prior word?
ky ba+àxty
כִּי בָטַחְתִּי
for I trust
preposition + first person qal perfect
bidbareka
בִּדְבָרֶךָ
in your word
preposition + noun + possessive pronoun
v)àl tàcél
וְאַל תַּצֵּל
Wherefore do not remove
conjunction+negative particle+hiphil imperative - why hiphil? where's the 'he' - the verb is a I-nun and the nun does strange things to the 'he' in the hiphil!
mipy
מִפִּי
from my mouth
preposition + noun + possessive pronoun
dbàr )emet
דְבַר אֱמֶת
the?a word of truth
Is 'truth' a sufficient end to the construct chain to produce a definite article at the beginning?
`àd m)od
עַד מְאֹד
utterly
adverb - to the max
ky
כִּי
for
conjunction
lmishpa+eka
לְמִשְׁפָּטֶךָ
in your judgments
preposition + plural noun + possessive pronoun
yixalty
יִחָלְתִּי
I have hoped
first person qal perfect
v)eshmrah
וְאֶשְׁמְרָה
Watch over I will
conjunction and first person imperfect
tvoratka
תוֹרָתְךָ
your instruction
noun singular + possessive pronoun
tamyd
תָמִיד
continually
adverb
l`volam
לְעוֹלָם
to the age
preposition + noun used adverbial modifier
va`d
וָעֶד
and for ever
conjunction + adverb
v)ethàlkah
וְאֶתְהַלְּכָה
walk I will
conjunction and first person imperfect
barxabah
בָרְחָבָה
in maturity
preposition + adverb
ky
כִּי
for
conjunction
piqudeyka
פִקֻּדֶיךָ
your precepts
noun + possessive pronoun
darashty
דָרָשְׁתִּי
I have sought
first person qal perfect
và)adàbrah
וַאֲדַבְּרָה
Words I will have
conjunction and first person imperfect
b`édoteyka
בְעֵדֹתֶיךָ
of your testimonies
preposition + noun + possessive pronoun
neged
נֶגֶד
before
preposition
mlakym
מְלָכִים
kings
plural noun
vlo)
וְלֹא
and I will not
conjunction with negative particle
)ébvosh
אֵבוֹשׁ
be ashamed
first person imperfect (breaks the pattern)
v)eshtà`ashà`
וְאֶשְׁתַּעֲשַׁע
Will my delight so be
conjunction and first person imperfect
bmicvoteyka
בְּמִצְו‍ֹתֶיךָ
in your commandments
preposition + noun + possessive pronoun
)asher
אֲשֶׁר
which
relative pronoun
)ahabty
אָהָבְתִּי
I have loved
first person qal perfect
v)esa) kàpày
וְאֶשָּׂא כַפַּי
Wave my hands I will
conjunction and first person imperfect + noun + pronoun - plural
)el micvoteyka
אֶל מִצְו‍ֹתֶיךָ
to your commandments
separate preposition noun + possessive pronoun
)asher
אֲשֶׁר
which
relative pronoun
)ahabty
אָהָבְתִּי
I have loved
first person qal perfect
v)asyxah
וְאָשִׂיחָה
and I will meditate
conjunction and first person imperfect
bxuqeyka
בְחֻקֶּיךָ
on your statutes
preposition + noun + possessive pronoun

2 comments:

Gary said...

I would say that truth, as an abstract quality, would be inherently definite. Or of course, you could take it qualitatively: "genuine speech."

Well done. Keep going!

Oh, and just so you know: most of what I say is intuition. I think I already said it, but I'm still a student, too.

Bob MacDonald said...

Gary - please comment if you find any answers to my questions in these grammatical posts or on the letter series - (here)which I hope you are also reading 'cause it is a fun exercise.