The Evolution of Biblical Hebrew

How did Biblical Hebrew change over time?

Biblical Archaeology Society Staff 09/04/2016 (09/04/2016T23:22)

Was the Bible written from beginning to end in an

unchanging language called Biblical Hebrew, or did
this language evolve over time? In How Biblical
Hebrew Changed in the September/October 2016
issue of Biblical Archaeology Review, Professor Avi
Hurvitz argues there are three distinct forms of
Biblical Hebrew, each one corresponding to certain
parts of the Bible and other ancient texts.

According to Hurvitz, Biblical Hebrew can be divided

into three historical categories:

1. Archaic Biblical Hebrew is documented in

the Bible, particularly in the poetic parts of the
Pentateuch and in the Early Prophets (e.g., the
well-known Song of the Sea [Exodus 15] and Song
of Deborah [Judges 5]), as well as in hymns from
the Book of Psalms.
2. Standard (or Classical) Biblical Hebrew is
found in the prose sections of the Pentateuch and
the Early Prophets like Isaiah and Jeremiah and in
the Classical prophecies of the Later Prophets like
Hosea, Amos and Micah.
The Temple Scroll (11Q19) was likely
discovered in 1956 in Cave 11. The
manuscript is written in the square Herodian
Hebrew script of the late Second Temple
period. Measuring about 27 feet long, the
scroll is written on very thin animal skin (no
thicker than one-tenth of a millimeter),
making it the thinnest of the Dead Sea Scrolls.
The work claims to provide the details of Gods
instructions regarding the construction and
operation of a temple that was never built,
along with extensive regulations about
sacrifices and temple practices. Photo: The
Shrine of the Book, the Israel Museum,
Jerusalem/ The Israel Museum/by Ardon Bar
Hama.

3. Late (or post-Classical) Biblical Hebrew is

found primarily in the late compositions included in the third section of the Hebrew Bible
known as the Writingsin such books as Esther, Daniel, Ezra, Nehemiah and Chronicles.

While many linguists and philologists accept these divisions, they debate the dates to which the
categories are assignedespecially the dates of Archaic Biblical Hebrew. It is more generally
accepted that Standard Biblical Hebrew and Late Biblical Hebrew correspond to the First and
Second Temple periods, respectively.

The religion section of most bookstores includes an amazing array of Bibles. In our free eBook
The Holy Bible: A Buyers Guide, prominent Biblical scholars Leonard Greenspoon and
Harvey Minkoff expertly guide you through 21 different Bible translations (or versions) and
address their content, text, style and religious orientation.
Hurvitz notes that it is important to examine extra-Biblical texts in studying the evolution of
Biblical Hebrew due to the limited size and scope of the Hebrew Bible. For example, writings
from Ugarit in Syria, which date to the mid-second millennium B.C.E., provide an invaluable
comparison for understanding archaic Biblical poetry.

Documents and texts in Aramaic and Hebrew from the Dead Sea Scrolls and rabbinic literature,
dating from the second half of the first century B.C.E. until the first centuries C.E., enable us to
identify the linguistic features of the Bibles post-Classical stratum, explains Hurvitz.

Explore the evolution of Biblical Hebrew throughout the Biblical period by reading the full article
How Biblical Hebrew Changed by Avi Hurvitz in the September/October 2016 issue of
Biblical Archaeology Review.

BAS Library Members: Read the full article How Biblical Hebrew Changed by Avi
Hurvitz in the September/October 2016 issue of Biblical Archaeology Review.

Not a BAS Library member yet? Join the BAS Library today.

Related reading in Bible History Daily:

How Was the Bible Written During and After the Exile?

What Is the Oldest Hebrew Bible?

Errors in the Masoretes Original Hebrew Manuscripts of the Bible?

Comparing Ancient Biblical Manuscripts

Permalink: http://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/biblical-topics/hebrew-bible/the-evolution-of-biblical-hebrew/