A thought on Parshas Shmini
"...asher he la'chem...""...which belongs to you..."
The word "he" in the Holy Tongue of Hebrew means "she" or "her", or in the neuter gender "it". The word "hu" means "he" or "him" (or it). The word "he" is spelt hay yud alef, whereas "hu" is spelt hay vav alef. Just look at our verse and you will see that the word "he" is spelt hay yud alef. And that is how it is supposed to be. Right?
The Chezkuni says cryptically "written with a yud." This is puzzling. "Who" does "he" need to tell this to? You'd know it on your own, right? He is spelled with a yud. What is the Chezkuni trying to teach us?The answer seems to lie in Avos D'Rebbi Noson (34:5) and in Mesechta Sofrim (6:4) (also referenced in the Yerushalmi Ta'anis 4:2). We learn there that in reality, there are only eleven times in the Torah where the word he is written with a yud. Every other place where he shows up is written with a vav!
In other words, both the word he (meaning "she") and the word hu (meaning "he") are spelled the same way, with the letters he vov alef. The only way that we can know how those letters are pronounced is by reading it in context. If the subject of the verse is female, or if the "it" in the word is a "feminine gender" word, then we pronounce the word "he", with a grammatical dot (a chirik) beneath the vov. If the context reveals that the subject is male, or "it" of the "masculine gender", then we pronounce it hu with a grammatical dot within the vov (a m'lo'fum.)
So now it turns out that the Chezkuni's tiny comment is quite noteworthy. Anyone who knows the Bible well would likely be astounded upon seeing our verse. Here we have our Chumash containing the word he no fewer than 205 times. It is written with a vov characteristically and yet all of a sudden, here it pops into view with a yud. The astute reader will perk up with a startle! What has happened here? Why is this he different from most other hes? Why is it spelled the way it is supposed to be pronounced? Why isn't spelled like the word hu and pronounced like the word he? This is what the Chezkuni is noting and commenting on.
Which leaves us all with a question to ponder: why do you think the Torah selects the word he to be written hu, as if it were the word hu, and yet it is supposed to be pronounced and read as he which is not how it is written?Let me know what you think. Wishing you a good Shabbos. D Fox
The word "he" in the Holy Tongue of Hebrew means "she" or "her", or in the neuter gender "it". The word "hu" means "he" or "him" (or it). The word "he" is spelt hay yud alef, whereas "hu" is spelt hay vav alef. Just look at our verse and you will see that the word "he" is spelt hay yud alef. And that is how it is supposed to be. Right?
The Chezkuni says cryptically "written with a yud." This is puzzling. "Who" does "he" need to tell this to? You'd know it on your own, right? He is spelled with a yud. What is the Chezkuni trying to teach us?The answer seems to lie in Avos D'Rebbi Noson (34:5) and in Mesechta Sofrim (6:4) (also referenced in the Yerushalmi Ta'anis 4:2). We learn there that in reality, there are only eleven times in the Torah where the word he is written with a yud. Every other place where he shows up is written with a vav!
In other words, both the word he (meaning "she") and the word hu (meaning "he") are spelled the same way, with the letters he vov alef. The only way that we can know how those letters are pronounced is by reading it in context. If the subject of the verse is female, or if the "it" in the word is a "feminine gender" word, then we pronounce the word "he", with a grammatical dot (a chirik) beneath the vov. If the context reveals that the subject is male, or "it" of the "masculine gender", then we pronounce it hu with a grammatical dot within the vov (a m'lo'fum.)
So now it turns out that the Chezkuni's tiny comment is quite noteworthy. Anyone who knows the Bible well would likely be astounded upon seeing our verse. Here we have our Chumash containing the word he no fewer than 205 times. It is written with a vov characteristically and yet all of a sudden, here it pops into view with a yud. The astute reader will perk up with a startle! What has happened here? Why is this he different from most other hes? Why is it spelled the way it is supposed to be pronounced? Why isn't spelled like the word hu and pronounced like the word he? This is what the Chezkuni is noting and commenting on.
Which leaves us all with a question to ponder: why do you think the Torah selects the word he to be written hu, as if it were the word hu, and yet it is supposed to be pronounced and read as he which is not how it is written?Let me know what you think. Wishing you a good Shabbos. D Fox
posted by Rabbi Dr. Fox at 12:51 AM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home