59 The Perfect with Pronominal Suffixes

§ 59. The Perfect with Pronominal Suffixes.

a

1. The endings (afformatives) of the perfect occasionally vary somewhat from the ordinary form, when connected with pronominal suffixes; viz.:—

(a) In the 3^rd sing. fem. the original feminine ending t¤; or t¤' is used for h¤'.

(b) In the 2nd sing. masc. besides T' we find T, to which the connecting vowel is directly attached, but the only clear instances of this are with ynI¤;ñ.¹

(c) In the 2nd sing. fem. yTi, the original form of T., appears; cf. yTia;Ã yTil.j;ñq', § 32 f; § 44 g. This form can be distinguished from the 1st pers. only by the context.

(d) 2nd plur. masc. WT for ~T,. The only examples are Nu 20:5, 21:5, Zc 7:5. The fem. !T,l.j;q. never occurs with suffixes; probably it had the same form as the masculine.

b

We exhibit first the forms of the perfect HiphÇiÖl, as used in conexion with suffixes, since here no further changes take place in the stem itself, except as regards the tone (see c).

	Singular.		Plural.
3. m.	lyjiq.hi	3. c.	Wlyjiq.hi
3. f.	tl;yjiq[hi
2. m.	T'l.j;q.hiÃ Tl.j;q.hi	2. m.	WTl.j;q.hi
2. f.	yTil.j;q.hiÃ Tl.j;q.hi
1. c.	yTil.j;q.hi	1. c.	Wnl.j;q.hi

The beginner should first practise connecting the suffixes with these HiphÇiÖl forms and then go on to unite them to the Perfect Qal (see d).

2.The addition of the suffix generally causes the tone to be thrown forward towards the end of the word, since it would otherwise fall, in some cases, on the ante-penultima; with the heavy suffixes (see e) the tone is even transferred to the suffix itself. Considerations of tone, especially in the Perfect Qal, occasion certain vowel changes: (a) the QamesÌ of the first syllable, no longer standing before the tone, always becomes vocal Sè^ewaÖ; (b) the original PathahÌ of the second syllable, which in the 3^rd sing. fem. and 3^rd plur. had become Sè^ewaÖ, reappears before the suffix, and, in an open syllable before the tone, is lengthened to QamesÌ; similarly original iç (as in the 3^rd sing. masc. without a suffix) is lengthened to eÒ, e. g. ^Wbñhea] 1 S 18:22, Pr 19:7.

d

The forms of the perfect of Qal consequently appear as follows: —

	Singular.		Plural.
3. m.	lj'q.	3. c.	Wlj'q.
3. f.	tl;j'q. (tl'j'q., see g )
2. m.	T'l.j;q. (Tl.j;q., see h )	2. m.	WTl.j;q.
2. f.	yTil.j;q. (Tl.j;q., see h )
I. c.	yTil.j;q.	I. c.	Wnl.j;q.

The connexion of these forms with all the suffixes is shown in Paradigm C. It will be seen there also, how the SÍere in the Perfect PiÇeÒl changes sometimes into S^eghoÖl, and sometimes into vocal Sè^ewaÖ.

e
Rem. 1. The suffixes of the 2nd and 3^rd pers. plur. ~k, and ~h,, since they end in a consonant and also always have the tone, are distinguished as heavy suffixes (suffixa gravia) from the rest, which are called light suffixes. Compare the connexion of these (and of the corresponding feminine forms !k, and !h,) with the noun, § 91. With a perfect ~k, alone occurs, y Ps 118:26. The form lj;q. which is usually given as the connective form of the 3^rd sing. masc. before ~k, and !k, is only formed by analogy, and is without example in the O. T.

f
2. In the 3^rd sing. masc. Whl'ñj'q. (especially in verbs h¾¾l; in the strong verb only in Jer 20:15 in PiÇeÒl) is mostly contracted to Alj'q., according to § 23 k; likewise in the 2nd sing. masc. WhT'ñl.j;q. to ATl.j;q..—As a suffix of the 1st sing. ynI¤'ñ occurs several times with the 3^rd sing. masc. perf. Qal of verbs h¾¾l, not only in pause (as ynIn"ò[' y Ps 118:5; ynIn"ñ]q' Pr 8:22 with D^ehÌi), but even with a conjunctive accent, as ynIrñ'ho Jb 30:19; ynIn"ñ[' 1 S 28:15 (where, however, the reading ynIn:ñ[' is also found). With a sharpened n: yNIn:òD' Gn 30:6, yNIr;ñs.yI y Ps 118:18.

g
3. The 3:rd sing. fem. tl;j'q. (= hl'j.q†') has the twofold peculiarity that (a) the ending ath always takes the tone,² and consequently is joined to those suffixes which form syllable of themselves (ynIÃ ^Ã WhÃ h'Ã Wn), without a connecting vowel, contrary to the general rule, § 58 f; (b) before the other suffixes the connecting vowel is indeed employed, but the tone is drawn back to the penultima, so that they are pronounced with shortened vowels, viz. %¤,¤ñÃ ~¤;¤ñ, e. g. %t,b'ñhea] she loves thee, Ru 4:15, cf. Is 47:10; ~t;b'ñn"G> she has stolen them, Gn 31:32; ~t;p'ñr'f. it burns them, Is 47:14, Jos 2:6, Ho 2:14, y Ps 48:7. For ynIt.¤;ñÃ ^t.¤;ñ &c., in pause ynIt.¤†' is found, Jer 8:21, y Ps 69:10, and ^t.¤†' Ct 8:5; and also without the pause for the sake of the assonance ^t.l†'B.xi, she was in travail with thee, ibid. The form WTl;ñj'q. (e. g. Ru 4:15) has arisen, through the loss of the h and the consequent sharpening of the t (as in WN¤,ñ and hN"¤,ñ for Whn>¤,ñ and h'n>¤,ñ, cf. § 58 i), from the form Wht.l;ñj'q., which is also found even pause (Wht.b† ;hea] 1 S 18:28; elsewhere it takes in pause the form Wht.k†'m's. Is 59:16); so hT'l;ñj'q. from h't.l;ñj'qe; cf. 1 S 1:6, Is 34:17, Jer 49:24, Ru 3:6; in pause Ez 14:15, always, on the authority of QimhÌi, without MappiÖq in the h, which is consequently always a mere vowel-letter.

h
4. In the 2nd sing. masc. the form T'l.j;q. is mostly used, and the suffixes have, therefore, no connecting vowel, e. g. WnT+c.r;p. WnT'ñx.n:z> thou hast cast us off, thou hast broken us down, y Ps 60:3; but with the suff. of the 1st sing. the form ynIT;ñl.j;q. is used, e. g. ynIT;ñr>q;x] y Ps 139:1; in pause, however, with QamesÌ, e. g. ynIT+'b.z:[] y Ps 22:2; Ju 1:15 (with Zaqeph qatÌon); but cf. also ynIT'ñp.r;c., y Ps 17:3 with Mer^ekha.—In the 2nd sing. fem. yTi— is also written defectively, ynItiñyMirI 1 S 19:17, Ju 11:35, Jer 15:10, Ct 4:9. Occasionally the suffix is appended to the ordinary, form T¤., viz. wnT'ñ[.B;V.hi thou (fem.) dost adjure us, Ct 5:9, Jos 2:17, 20; cf. Jer 2:27, and, quite abnormally, with SÍere WnTeñd>r;Ah thou (fem.) didst let us down, Jos 2:18, where WnTiñd>r;Ah would be expected. In Is 8:11 ynIreñS.yIw> is probably intended as imperfect.

i
5. In verbs middle eÒ the eÒ remains even before suffixes (see above, c), e. g. ^ñb.h†ea] Dt 15:16, Wht.b;ñhea] 1 S 18:28, cf. 18:22; WhWañrey> Jb 37:24. From a verb middle oÒ there occurs wyTil.k'y> I have prerailed against him, y Ps 13:5, from lkoy" with oç instead of oÒ in a syllable which has lost the tone (§ 44 e).

Footnotes:

¹[2] On the aç as an original element of the verbal form, see § 58 f, note.

²[1] ^ät.l†'B.xi Ct 8:5 is an exception. ~k, would probably even here have the tone (see e); but no example of the kind occurs in the O. T. In Is 51:2 the imperfect is used instead of the perfect with a suffix.