Readings in Biblical Hebrew: An Intermediate Textbook (review)

Hebrew Studies 36 (1995) 128 Reviews Much more significant, from the perspective of a Hebrew teacher who may consider using Kelley's work as the (main) textbook for his or her first-year Biblical Hebrew, is the fact that students following this book would not be required to read full-scope literary units larger than one verse (see exercises). Students may thus develop a relatively good grasp of the essentials of Hebrew grammar, but would they develop any sense of how Hebrew narratives or poetry "work"? Would they be (good) readers of Biblical Hebrew texts? These questions lead to sometimes controversial issues such as: should first-year biblical Hebrew include or exclude some treatment of parallelism? On a larger scope, these concerns point to the substantial question of whether the main textbook for first-year Biblical Hebrew should remain a traditional Hebrew grammar. In sum, Kelley achieved to a large extent the goals he set to himself when writing this introductory grammar. Still, larger concerns about what and how to teach first-year biblical Hebrew, as well as the specific background and needs of the students in each course, are likely to determine the suitability of this textbook for use in the classroom. Ehud Ben Zvi University ofAlberta Edmonton. Alberta CANADA READINGS IN BIBLICAL HEBREW: AN INTERMEDIATE TEXTBOOK. By Ehud Ben-Zvi, Maxine Hancock, and Richard Beinert. Pp. xiv + 241. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1993. Cloth. $35.00. The text under review is designed as an intermediate textbook for Biblical Hebrew, presupposing that the student has completed a beginning Biblical Hebrew course. It is laid out in a "text-plus-workbook format" and has a dialogic style. It is organized by readings of poetic and narrative passages taken from a variety of literary genres: historical books (1 Sam 1:1-28, 2 Kgs 14:23-29), legal texts (Exod 21:28-36, Lev 5:20-26, Deut 24:14-22), prophetic literature (Jer 22:1-5, Ezek 37:1-14, Isa 49:1-6), wisdom literature (Prov 3:13-26; 10:1; 16:8; 22:22-23; 24:29; 25:28, Qoh 1:111 ), and Psalms (Pss 1, 15, 150). The student is routinely asked to translate specific passages, parse verb forms, and comment on particular grammatical elements. These discussions are always situated with ample reference to Hebrew Studies 36 (1995) 129 Reviews a wide array of introductory textbooks. The introduction of more advanced information is also well referenced. In particular, the authors have made good use of B. K. Waltke and M. O'Connor's Biblical Hebrew Syntax (Winona Lake: Eisenbrauns, 1990). Surprisingly, however, there is very little direct discussion of the tense/aspect system in Biblical Hebrew. One would have expected this to be a primary topic for an intermediate textbook , especially since it is typically glossed over in the introductory grammars. Still, except for this one caveat, the range of grammatical topics covered is quite good. But this textbook has a much wider scope than grammar alone. As the authors themselves state, it is intended "to help the student towards competent reading" of the Hebrew Bible (p. vii). To this end, the authors focus on a broad range of topics relevant for reading the Hebrew Bible, including philological and text critical problems, historical background, structure, genre, and literary devices. Indeed, the discussions of the various passages make for very good introductions to the biblical books sampled. The generous and wide ranging citations of relevant bibliography and the vast amount of cross referencing throughout the book are very impressive. The authors need not apologize for their failure to be exhaustive (p. viii). What they have done is more than sufficient to meet their goal of providing "a selection of entry points for the student." Because of this broad scope, the student gains a very pragmatic understanding of how grammar, literary analysis, and historical reconstruction are inextricably bound together. This is one of the book's chief strengths, making its title, Readings in Biblical Hebrew, entirely appropriate. Given this broad understanding of reading and in particular the central role which translation plays in the student exercises, one would have liked to see some conscious reflection on the nature...