V. In General.
[hh] 17. In Aramaic the imperfect and participle of all the conjugations terminate in ־ֵא or ־ֵי. The Hebrew infinitives, imperatives, and imperfects in ־ֵה, less frequently ־ֵא or ־ֵי, may be due to imitation of these forms. On the infinitive construct Piʿēl חַכֵּי, see above, aa; imperative Qal הֱוֵא Jb 37 (in the sense of fall); imperfect יֵרֵא let him look out, Gn 41 (but see above, p); יַֽעֲשֵׂה he will do, Is 64; אַל־תִּֽהְיֵה Jer 17; אַל־תֹּבֵא consent thou not, Pr 1; אַל־תַּֽעֲשֵׂה do thou not, 2 S 13 (the same form in Gn 26, Jos 7, Jer 40 Qerê); אֶֽהְיֵה (so Baer and Ginsburg, after cod. Hillel, &c.) I will be, Jer 31; וַנַּֽעֲשֵׂה Jos 9; תִּרְאֵה Dn 1. Cf. also in Niphʿal יִמָּצֵה Lv 5; תִּבָּנֵה (according to Qimḥi) Nu 21; in Piʿēl תְּגַלֵּה Lv 18, 20, in each case לֹא תְגַלֵּה֑, beside תְּגַלֶּה with a minor distinctive; יֲנַקֵּ֑ה (Baer יְנַפֶּה) Na 1; אֱזָרֵה Ez 5 (with Zaqeph; Baer אֱזָרֶה). The fact, however, that a great number of these forms occur in pause and represent at the same time a jussive or voluntative (Jos 7), suggests the view that the Ṣere is used merely to increase the emphasis of the pausal form, and at the same time to make a distinction in sound between the jussive or voluntative and the ordinary imperfect.[1] Elsewhere (Gn 26, Lv 5, Jer 40, Dn 1; according to Baer also Mi 7, Zc 9) the pronunciation with ê is probably intended to soften the hiatus caused by a following א or ע; cf. the analogous cases above, § 74 l.
[ii] The ending ־ִי appears to stand for ־ֶה in the imperfect Qal in וַתִּזְנִי־שָׁם and there hath she played the harlot, Jer 3; perhaps, however, the 2nd sing. fem. is intended, or it may have been introduced into the text of Jeremiah from Ez 16, &c. Still more strange is it in the imperfect Hiphʿîl אַל־תֶּ֑מְחִי Jer 18; but the Mil‛ēl-tone probably points to תֶּ֫מַח as the correct reading (cf. Neh 13). The ־ִי stands for ־ָה in the perfect Hiphʿîl הֶֽחֱלִי he made sick, Is 53, which is probably for החליא from חלא, a secondary form of חלה; see rr. The plur. הִמְסִיו (Baer הִמְסִיוְ) they made to melt, Jos 14, is a purely Aramaic form.
[kk] 18. In two verbs the rare conjugation Pa‛lēl or its reflexive (§ 55 d) occurs: מְטַֽחֲוֵי archers, Gn 21 (from טָחָה); but most frequently in שָׁחָה to bend, Pa‛lēl שַֽׁחֲוָה not in use, whence reflexive הִשְׁתַּֽחֲוָה to bow oneself, to prostrate oneself, 2nd pers. in ־ִ֫ יתָ and 1st pers. in ־ֵ֫ יתִי, imperfect יִשְׁתַּֽחֲוֶה, consecutive 3rd sing. masc. וַיִּשְׁתַּ֫חוּ for wayyištaḥw (analogous to the noun-forms, like שָׂ֫חוּ for saḥw); 3rd plur. יִשְׁתַּֽחֲווּ.—Instead of the aramaizing infinitive with suffix בְּהִשְׁתַּֽחֲיָיָֽתִי 2 K 5 read with König בְּהִשְׁתַּֽחֲווֹתִי; in Ez 8 מִשְׁתַּֽחֲוִיתֶם is still more certainly a scribal error for מִשְׁתַּֽחֲוִים.
[ll] 19. Before suffixes in all forms ending in ה, a connecting vowel is employed instead of the ה and the connecting vowel which precedes it (§ 58 f), e.g. נָחַ֫נִי Gn 24; in pause עָנָ֫נִי 1 K 2, &c., even with lesser disjunctives, ψ 118, Pr 8, or with a conjunctive accent, 1 S 28 (but Baer עָנַ֫נִי), Jb 30; cf. § 59 h; עָֽנְךָ֫, in pause עָנָךְ, Is 30 (and even when not in pause Jer 23) or like קָנֶ֫ךָ Dt 32; וְיַרְבֶּ֑ךָ, וְיַפְרְךָ Gn 28; cf. also עָנָ֫הוּ, עָנָם, imperfect יַֽעֲנֵ֫הוּ, יַֽעַנְךָ֫ Hiphʿîl הִכַּ֫נִי, הָֽעֶלְךָ֫, הִכֶּ֫הוּ.
[mm] Only very seldom does the imperat. or impf. end in ־ֵי before suffixes, e.g.
- ↑ Possibly these examples (like the eases of Seghôl in pause, see n) represent the view of a particular Masoretic school, which was intended to be consistently carried out.
