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Page 16
(81) For these and such-like reasons we may readily conclude that it would
never enter into the mind of anyone to corrupt a language, though the
intention of a writer may often have been falsified by changing his phrases
or interpreting them amiss. (82) As then our method (based on the principle
that the knowledge of Scripture must be sought from itself alone) is the
sole true one, we must evidently renounce any knowledge which it cannot
furnish for the complete understanding of Scripture. (83) I will now point
out its difficulties and shortcomings, which prevent our gaining a complete
and assured knowledge of the Sacred Text.
(84) Its first great difficulty consists in its requiring a thorough
knowledge of the Hebrew language. (85) Where is such knowledge to be
obtained? (86) The men of old who employed the Hebrew tongue have left none
of the principles and bases of their language to posterity; we have from
them absolutely nothing in the way of dictionary, grammar, or rhetoric.
(87) Now the Hebrew nation has lost all its grace and beauty (as one would
expect after the defeats and persecutions it has gone through), and has only
retained certain fragments of its language and of a few books. (88) Nearly
all the names of fruits, birds, and fishes, and many other words have
perished in the wear and tear of time. (89) Further, the meaning of many
nouns and verbs which occur in the Bible are either utterly lost, or are
subjects of dispute. (90) And not only are these gone, but we are lacking in
a knowledge of Hebrew phraseology. (91) The devouring tooth of time has
destroyed turns of expression peculiar to the Hebrews, so that we know them
no more.
(92) Therefore we cannot investigate as we would all the meanings of a
sentence by the uses of the language; and there are many phrases of which
the meaning is most obscure or altogether inexplicable, though the component
words are perfectly plain.
(93) To this impossibility of tracing the history of the Hebrew language
must be added its particular nature and composition: these give rise to so
many ambiguities that it is impossible to find a method which would
enable us to gain a certain knowledge of all the statements in Scripture,
[Endnote 7]. (94) In addition to the sources of ambiguities common to all
languages, there are many peculiar to Hebrew. (95) These, I think, it worth
while to mention.
(96) Firstly, an ambiguity often arises in the Bible from our mistaking one
letter for another similar one. (97) The Hebrews divide the letters of the
alphabet into five classes, according to the five organs of the month
employed in pronouncing them, namely, the lips, the tongue, the teeth, the
palate, and the throat. (98) For instance, Alpha, Ghet, Hgain, He, are
called gutturals, and are barely distinguishable, by any sign that we know,
one from the other. (99) El, which signifies to, is often taken for hgal,
which signifies above, and vice versa. (100) Hence sentences are often
rendered rather ambiguous or meaningless.
(101) A second difficulty arises from the multiplied meaning of conjunctions
and adverbs. (102) For instance, vau serves promiscuously for a particle of
union or of separation, meaning, and, but, because, however, then: ki, has
seven or eight meanings, namely, wherefore, although, if, when, inasmuch as,
because, a burning, &c., and so on with almost all particles.
(103) The third very fertile source of doubt is the fact that Hebrew verbs
in the indicative mood lack the present, the past imperfect, the pluperfect,
the future perfect, and other tenses most frequently employed in other
languages; in the imperative and infinitive moods they are wanting in all
except the present, and a subjunctive mood does not exist. (104) Now,
although all these defects in moods and tenses may be supplied by certain
fundamental rules of the language with ease and even elegance, the ancient
writers evidently neglected such rules altogether, and employed
indifferently future for present and past, and vice versa past for future,
and also indicative for imperative and subjunctive, with the result of
considerable confusion.
(105) Besides these sources of ambiguity there are two others, one very
important. (106) Firstly, there are in Hebrew no vowels; secondly, the
sentences are not separated by any marks elucidating the meaning or
separating the clauses. (107) Though the want of these two has generally
been supplied by points and accents, such substitutes cannot be accepted by
us, inasmuch as they were invented and designed by men of an after age whose
authority should carry no weight. (108) The ancients wrote without points
(that is, without vowels and accents), as is abundantly testified; their
descendants added what was lacking, according to their own ideas of
Scriptural interpretation; wherefore the existing accents and points are
simply current interpretations, and are no more authoritative than any other
commentaries.
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