§ 45. The Infinitive.

F. Prätorius, 'Ueber den sog. Inf. absol. des Hebr.,' in ZDMG. 1902, p. 546 ff.

a

1. The Infinitive is represented in Hebrew by two forms, a shorter and a longer; both are, however, strictly speaking, independent nouns (verbal substantives). The shorter form, the Infinitive construct (in Qal ljoq.,1 sometimes incorrectly lAjq.), is used in very various ways, sometimes in connexion with pronominal suffixes, or governing a substantive in the genitive, or with an accusative of the object (§ 115), sometimes in connexion with prepositions (ljoq.li to kill, § 114 f), and sometimes in dependence upon substantives as genitive, or upon verbs as accusative of the object. On the other hand, the use of the longer form, the Infinitive absolute (in Qal lAjq', sometimes also ljoq', obscured from original qaçtÌaÖl), is restricted to those cases in which it emphasizes the abstract verbal idea, without regard to the subject or object of the action. It stands most frequently as an adverbial accusative with a finite verb of the same stem (§ 113 h–s).2

b

The flexibility and versatility of the Infin. constr. and the rigidity and inflexibility of the Infin. absol. are reflected in their vocalization. The latter has unchangeable vowels, while the oÒ of the Infin. constr. may be lost. For ljoq., according to § 84a e, goes back to the ground-form quçtÌuçl.

c

Other forms of the Infin. constr. Qal of the strong verb are —
(a) lj;q., e. g. bk;v. to lie, Gn 34:7; lp;v. to sink, Ec 12:4; especially with verbs which have aç in the second syllable of the Imperf.: hence sometimes also with those, whose second or third radical is a guttural (frequently besides the ordinary form). All the examples (except bk;v., see above) occur in the closest connexion with the following word, or with suffixes (see § 61 c). In Ez 21:33 the Masora seems to treat xb;j,ñl. (verse 20, in pause xb;j'l.) as an Infinitive = x;Boj.li; probably xb;J,ñl; should be read.

d

(b) hl'j.q; and, attenuated from it, hl'j.qi È hl'j.q' and hl'j.qu (which are feminine forms3 of lj;q. and ljoq., mostly from intransitive verbs, and sometimes found along with forms having no feminine ending in use), e. g. hm'v.a;l. to be guilty, Lv 5:26, hb'h]a†; to love, ha'n>fi to hate; ha'r>yIl., often in Dt., to fear; hn"q.zI to be old; ha'r>qi to meet (in tar;q.li § 19 k); h['b.rIl. to lie down, Lv 20:16; hx'v.m'l. to anoint, Ex 29:29; hc'x.r'l. to wash, Ex 30:18, &c.; ha'm.j'l. (also a subst. = uncleanness, like ha'm.ju) to be unclean, Lv 15:32; hb'r>q'l. to approach, Ex 36:2, &c.; cf. Lv 12:4, 5, Dt 11:22, Is 30:19, Ez 21:16, Hag 1:6; also hq'x\r†' to be far off, Ez 8:6; hl'm.xu to pity, Ez 16:5; cf. Ho 7:4. On the other hand in hl'm.x, Gn 19:16, the original aç has been modified to eç; cf. hq'z>x, Is 8:11, &c.

e

(c) In the Aramaic manner (lj;q.mi but cf. also Arab. maqtal) there occur as Infin. Qal: x;Alv.mi to send, Est 9:19; ar'q.mi to call and [S;m; to depart, Nu 10:2 (Dt 10:11); xQ;mi to take, 2 Ch 19:7, &c.; aF'm; to carry, Nu 4:24, &c. (cf. even tAaf.m;l. Ez 17:9); also with a feminine ending hl'[]m†; to go up, Ezr 7:9, &c.; cf. for these forms (almost all very late) Ryssel, De Elohistae Pentateuchici sermone, p. 50, and Strack on Nu 4:24.
(d) tl,joñq. in tv,bñy> Gn 8:7; tl,koñy> Nu 14:16; probably also tv,rñx] Ex 31:5, 35:33.

f

2. A kind of Gerund is formed by the Infin. constr. with the preposition l.; as ljoq.li ad interficiendum, lPon>li ad cadendum (see § 28 a).

g

The blending of the l. with the Infin. constr. into a single grammatical form seems to be indicated by the firmly closed syllable, cf. bK;v.li Gn 34:7; lPon>li y Ps 118:13, with Dagesë lene in the p = lin poÒl,; hence, also liq-tÌoÒl, &c.; but lPon>Bi binephoÒl, Jb 4:13; lpon>Ki 2 S 3:34. Exceptions aobc.li Nu 4:23, 8:24; #Atn>liw> vAtn>li Jer 1:10, 18:7, 31:28; dAdv.li Jer 47:4; x;Abm.li Jer 11:19, &c., y Ps 37:14; qAdb.li 2 Ch 34:10; according to some also bbos.li Nu 21:4 and vbk.li 2 Ch 28:10 (Baer vBk.li); on the other hand !Kov.Bi Gn 35:22; rKoz>Ki Jer 17:2. For the meaningless vAyr>d;l. Ezr 10:16 read vrd>li.

Footnotes:

1[1] Cf. the analogous forms of the noun, § 93 t.

2[1] The terms absolute and construct are of course not to be understood as implying that the Infin. constr. ljoq. forms the construct state (see § 89) of the Infin. absol. (lAjq' ground-form qaçtÌaÖl). In the Paradigms the Inf. constr., as the principal form, is placed before the other, under the name of Infinitive simply.

3[2] According to the remark of Elias Levita on QimhÌi’s Mikhlol, ed. Rittenb., 14 a, these feminine forms occur almost exclusively in connexion with the preposition l..