Ch. 26 Supplements

Requirements

Others

Infinitive Construct with Suffix

• When an infinitive construct takes a pronominal suffix, the suffix could be either the subject or the object of the verb.
• When the preposition is ל, the suffix is usually the direct object of the verbal action.
• When it is another preposition, the suffix is usually the subject of the verbal action.
• See p. 188 of the textbook for more details.
• An infinitive construct often has a preposition attached to it.
• And, when a verb has a preposition, it is almost always an infinitive construct.

Q & A

• I see this verb אֲכָלְךָ (workbook ch. 26, Q3.4, p. 134, or Q4.4, p. 136) and I do see how in context it is Inf-C with a 2msx suffix. However is it not spelled exactly as a Qal Qatal with 2msx would be? I see the verb עֲזָבְךָ (textbook, Table 25.3, p. 180) as the example in the prior chapter . . . [is there] actually a way to tell the two forms apart other than context.
• Answer: The vowel under כ is Qamets Hatuph, which is shorted from the original Holem.
• If it were a Qal Qatal with 2msx, the vowel would be Qamets, and, ideally, there would be a metheg to mark it. For instance, see
• כִּֽי־יִמָּכֵ֨ר לְךָ֜ אָחִ֣יךָ הָֽעִבְרִ֗י א֚וֹ הָֽעִבְרִיָּ֔ה וַעֲבָֽדְךָ֖ שֵׁ֣שׁ שָׁנִ֑ים וּבַשָּׁנָה֙ הַשְּׁבִיעִ֔ת תְּשַׁלְּחֶ֥נּוּ חָפְשִׁ֖י מֵעִמָּֽךְ׃ (Deut 15:12)
• “If your brother, a Hebrew man or a Hebrew woman, is sold to you, he shall serve you six years, and in the seventh year you shall let him go free from you.
• Notice that the metheg is present to mark the Qamets.
• In other places, however, the metheg might not be there. So they may end up being identical. For instance,
• וְהָיָ֗ה אִם־שָׁמ֤וֹעַ תִּשְׁמַע֙ בְּקוֹל֙ יְהוָ֣ה אֱלֹהֶ֔יךָ לִשְׁמֹ֤ר לַעֲשׂוֹת֙ אֶת־כָּל־מִצְוֹתָ֔יו אֲשֶׁ֛ר אָנֹכִ֥י מְצַוְּךָ֖ הַיּ֑וֹם וּנְתָ֨נְךָ֜ יְהוָ֤ה אֱלֹהֶ֙יךָ֙ עֶלְי֔וֹן עַ֖ל כָּל־גּוֹיֵ֥י הָאָֽרֶץ׃ (Deut 28:1)
• “And if you faithfully obey the voice of the Lord your God, being careful to do all his commandments that I command you today, the Lord your God will set you high above all the nations of the earth.
• Notice that the metheg is NOT present.
• When the metheg is not present, we have to rely on the context.
• You probably have noticed that the MS imperative is spelled the same as the infinitive construct in many cases (See textbook, Applendix Table 8.4, and compare the MS imperative and the infinitive construct).
• Syntactically, infinitive construct and other finite verbs are very different. Therefore, it is very easy to tell it is an infinitive construct or other finite verbs.