§ 139. Expression of Pronominal Ideas by all means of Substantives.

b

1. vyaiàhV'ai man, woman, are used to express —

(a) The idea of each, every (in the sense of each severally) with reference to persons,¹ and even animals (Gn 15:10), e. g. Gn 10:5, feminine Ex 3:22; vyai is the object, e. g. in Jer 12:15. On vyai—vyai cf. § 123 c.

c

In a few passages vyai in the above sense is placed for the sake of emphasis before the governing noun (always a substantive with a suffix), thus vyai dY:mi wykxia' Gn 9:5, according to the usual explanation, stands for vyai yxia] dY:mi at the hand of the brother of every man. But although the explanation seems to be supported by Gn 42:25 and Nu 17:17, it is inconceivable that such an inversion of nomen regens and rectum should occur. It is more likely, either that the second substantive is in apposition to vyai (thus Gn 9:5 at the hand of every man, his brother, [unless it is a combination of the two readings vyai dY:mi and ~d'a'h†' dY:mi]; similarly 15:10 and he laid each or, more exactly, one piece of it, &c., and so probably also Nu 17:17 every one, sc. his name), or vyai precedes as a kind of casus pendens, and only receives its nearer definition from the following substantive with suffix; thus Gn 41:12, 42:25 (according to the context = to every one in his sack); 42:35, where AQf;B. APs.K;-rArc. is virtually the predicate of vyai; Ex 12:4, 28:21, Nu 5:10, 26:54, 2 K 23:35, and especially Zc 7:10.²

d

(b) Anyone, some one, e. g. Gn 13:16, Ct 8:7, with a negative no one;³ so after -la; Ex 16:19, 29; before aol Gn 23:6 and frequently.—Instead of vyai we sometimes find in a similar sense ~d'a' man, homo, e. g. Lv 1:2 (cf. ~d'a'h†' dx;a;K. as any one else, Ju 16:7, 11), vP,n<ò (soul) person, Lv 2:1, 5:1, &c., and in a neuter sense rb'D' (prop. word, thing) for anything, Gn 18:14, or rb'D'-lK' Lv 5:2, Nu 31:23. With a negative rb'D' means nothing; thus after -la; Gn 19:8; after aol Ec 8:5.—Cf. finally, dx;a;m†e anyone, Dt 15:7; anything, Ez 18:10 (but in Lv 4:2, 5:13 tx;a;m†e) and the expressions noticed in § 144 e. The latter include also instances like Ez 18:32 I have no pleasure tMeh; tAmoB. in the death of him that dieth, i. e. of any man.

e

(c) In connexion with wyxia' his brother or Wh[eñre his neighbour, vyai one, masc. (as hV'ai one, fem., in connexion with Ht'Axa] her sister or Ht'W[r> her neighbour) is used to represent the ideas of alter—alter, the one—the other⁴ (in reference to persons, animals, or things without life; see the Lexicon) or the idea of one another, e. g. Gn 13:11 and they separated themselves wyxia' l[;me vyai the one from the other; Ex 26:3 five curtains (t[oyrIy> fem.) shall be coupled together Ht'xoa]-la, hV'ai one to another.

f

2. vP,n<ò soul, person expresses the idea of self,⁵ both in the singular, Pr 19:8, 16, 29:24, Jb 18:4 (in all cases Avp.n: equivalent to himself) and in the plural, Jer 37:9, &c. Similar to this is the use of HB'r>qiB. Gn 18:12 (prop. in her inward part) in the sense of within herself.⁶

g

3. ~c,[,ñ bone (then metaphorically for substance) expresses the idea of self, selfsame, very same, in reference to things (as vp,n<ò to persons, e. g. hZ<h; ~AYh; ~c,[,ñB. in the selfsame day, Gn 7:13, cf. Jos 10:27, Ez 24:2; rh;mol' ~yIm;ñV'h; ~c,[,ñK. as it were the very heaven for clearness, Ex 24:10; AMTu ~c,[,ñB. in the very fullness of his strength (= in the midst of his full strength), Jb 21:23.

h

4. The simple plural of words denoting time sometimes includes also the idea of a few, some;⁷ thus ~ymiy" a few days, Gn 24:55, 40:4 (here even of a longer period, = for some time); Is 65:20, Dn 8:27 (on the other hand, Gn 27:44 29:20 ~ydIx'a] ~ymiy"; see § 96 under dx'a,); ~ynIv' some years, Dn 11:6, 8.

Footnotes:

¹[1] As a rule vyai is used in the particularizing sense of each man, with the plural of the verb, e. g. Gn 44:11; sometimes, however, as subject to a verb in the singular, e. g. Gn 44:13.

²[1] Cf. on the whole question the thorough discussion by Budde, Die bibl. Urgeschichte, p. 283 ff.: according to him, the words in Gn 9:5 are to be rendered at the hand of one another (from men mutually) will I require it. [In support of this view, Budde points to Zc 7:10 Wbv.x.T;-la; wyxia' vyai t[;r'w> ~k,b.b;l.Bi, which in the light of 8:17, ~k,b.b;l.Bi Wbv.x.T;-la; Wh[ere t[;r'-ta, vyaiw>, can only, he observes, be rendered 'and devise not the hurt of one another in your heart'. So also König, Syntax, § 33.]

³[2] Cf. also vyai-!yae Gn 39:11. On the expression of the idea of no one by means of !yae with a following participle, see the Negative Sentences, § 152 l

⁴[3] Elsewhere hz< … hz< are used in a similar sense, Ex 14:20, Is 6:3; also dx'a,h†' … dx'a,h†' 2 S 14:6; or the substantive is repeated, e. g. Gn 47:21 (from one end … to the other end).

⁵[4] On the representation of this idea by pronouns, separate and suffixed, see § 135 a, i and k.

⁶[5] In a similar way the idea of self in Arabic, as in Sanskrit (aÖtman), is paraphrased by soul, spirit; in Arabic also by eye; in Rabbinic by @WG body, ~r,G<ò or ~c,[,ñ bone, in Ethiopic and Amharic by head, in Egyptian by mouth, hand, &c.; cf. also the Middle High German miÖn liÖp, diÖn liÖp, for ich, du. However, vp,n<ò in such cases is never (not even in Is 46:2 ~v'p.n: they themselves) a merely otiose periphrasis for the personal pronoun, but always involves a reference to the mental personality, as affected by the senses, desires, &c.

⁷[1] Some in reference to persons in Ex 16:20 is expressed by ~yvin"a], and in Neh 5:2–4 by rv,a] vyE sunt qui, with a participle following.