'Orphaned' Converted Tense Forms in Classical Biblical Hebrew Prose

Abstract

From Saussure's distinction between diachronic and synchronic linguistics, it follows that Classical Biblical Hebrew wayyiqtol and wĕqatal are, grammatically speaking, 'converted' tenses. The converted tenses, as such, are not mere verbs, but verb phrases, consisting of a conjunction (conversive waw) and a verb. But verb phrases can be syntactically manipulated: the converted tenses might be realized in alternate forms. In fact, I will analyse numerous anomalous occurrences of both gatal and yiqtol as instances of tense 'conversion', in which conversive waw has been replaced by a syntactic equivalent or displaced by a syntactic insertion, and is thus separated from the converted verb - a phenomenon I refer to as 'orphaned' converted tense forms. Most notably, I will account for 'āz yiqtol in this manner. The adverbial 'āz has replaced waw, so that the converted imperfect appears without the conjunction, but with the same tense value as wayyiqtol.