TIP OF THE DAY 157: Multi-part lexical unit part 2: why care?
I am adding these posts to the previous tip list L/V 10 Tip of the Day (when it doesn't time out)
POST ISSUE: Idioms of time and the Hebrew nose
This post continues the discussion of idioms from the last post by providing examples of idioms related to time. It then looks at what is lost when idioms are hidden from the user.
QUESTION: List some Biblical idioms/multi-part lexical units related to time.
SOFTWARE: Logos is not designed to search for a time term in the original language text and a linguistic term in a commentary. However, it is possible in a two step process. Step 1: search the Bible for the time terms in which you are interested and convert the results to a passage list, an option in the panel menu. Step 2: search your commentaries for the linguistic term with the reference option set to your passage list.
ANSWER: My list makes no attempt to be exhaustive, it is simply representative. Your results should differ:
Idiom | English translation | Meaning | Biblical references |
|---|---|---|---|
ἡ ἔσχατη ὥρα (hē eschatē hōra) | "The last hour" | The final period before an eschatological event, often the end times | 1 John 2:18 |
πλήρωμα τοῦ χρόνου (plērōma tou chronou) | "Fullness of time" | The appointed or divinely determined time for an event. | Galatians 4:4 |
καιροὶ καὶ χρόνοι (kairoi kai chronoi) | "Times and seasons" | Specific periods or epochs in God's plan. | Acts 1:7, 1 Thessalonians 5:1 |
ἡμέρα κυρίου (hēmera Kyriou) | "Day of the Lord" | A time of divine judgment and intervention. | Joel 2:31, 1 Thessalonians 5:2 |
ἀπὸ καταβολῆς κόσμου (apo katabolēs kosmou) | "From the foundation of the world" | Since creation, indicating an ancient or predestined event. | Matthew 25:34, Ephesians 1:4 |
ὡς χίλια ἔτη (hōs chilia etē) | "As a thousand years" | A metaphor for God’s perception of time, indicating divine timelessness. | Psalm 90:4, 2 Peter 3:8 |
ὥρα αὐτοῦ (hōra autou) | "His hour" | The appointed time for a key event, often related to Jesus' mission. | John 2:4, John 12:23 |
ἀπὸ πρωῒ ἕως ὀψὲ (apo prōi heōs opse) | "From morning until evening" | A full day, used figuratively for continuous activity. | Exodus 18:13 |
εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα (eis ton aiōna) | "Forever" or "unto the age" | A phrase indicating eternal duration. | John 6:51, Hebrews 1:8 |
ἡμέρας ἀρχαίας (hēmeras archaias) | "Ancient days" | A reference to past eras, often with divine connotations. | Micah 7:14, Deuteronomy 32:7 |
ἡμέραν καὶ νύκτα (hēmeran kai nykta) | "Day and night" | Continuous or unceasing activity. | Psalm 1:2, Revelation 4:8 |
ὥρα τοῦ πειρασμοῦ (hōra tou peirasmou) | "The hour of trial" | A time of testing or tribulation. | Revelation 3:10 |
ἐπ’ ἐσχάτου τῶν ἡμερῶν (ep’ eschatou tōn hēmerōn) | "In the last days" | The period preceding the fulfillment of divine judgment. | Acts 2:17, 2 Timothy 3:1 |
בֵּיןהָעַרְבַּיִם (bēyn hā‘arbayim) | "Between the evenings" | The time between sunset and complete darkness, relevant for sacrifices. | Exodus 12:6, Exodus 29:39 |
לְמוֹעֵד (lemô‘ēd) | "At the appointed time" | A designated or preordained time for an event. | Genesis 18:14, Daniel 8:19 |
יָמִיםרַבִּים (yāmîm rabbîm) | "Many days" | A long, indefinite period of time. | Joshua 24:7, Hosea 3:4 |
וַיְהִילְעֵת עֶרֶב (wayhî lə‘ēt ‘erev) | "And it came to pass at evening time" | A formulaic phrase marking a key event happening at a specific time. | Judges 19:16, 2 Samuel 11:2 |
עֵתלָשׂוּם (‘ēt lāsûm) | "A time to plant" | A set season for action, reflecting divine order. | Ecclesiastes 3:2 |
עֵתלַחֲבוֹק (‘ēt laḥăbōq) | "A time to embrace" | The right occasion for intimacy or reconciliation. | Ecclesiastes 3:5 |
שִׁבְעִיםשָׁנָה (shiv‘im shanah) | "Seventy years" | A full period of judgment, exile, or completion. | Jeremiah 25:11, Daniel 9:2 |
חַד מִן־שָׁבְעִין (ḥad min-shav‘in) | "One of seventy" | A period within a prophetic cycle, often weeks of years. | Daniel 9:27 |
יְמֵינְעוּרִים (yəmē ne‘urîm) | "The days of youth" | A metaphor for the early, formative period of life. | Ecclesiastes 12:1, Isaiah 54:6 |
סוֹף הַיָּמִים (sôf hayyāmîm) | "The end of days" | The final era before eschatological fulfillment. | Daniel 12:13, Genesis 49:1 |
מִיָּמִיםיָמִימָה (mîyāmîm yāmîmāh) | "Year by year" | A repetitive or cyclical occurrence. | Exodus 13:10, 1 Samuel 1:7 |
בְּעֵתקֵץ (bə‘ēt qēṣ) | "At the time of the end" | The moment of final judgment or culmination. | Daniel 8:17, Daniel 11:35 |
QUESTION: List some Hebrew common idioms relating to nose.
SOFTWARE: A smart all search showed a number of idioms related to body parts which showed more about my library than about the Hebrew language. Using my own notes brought me to examples. From the examples, I could go to commentaries and find the information I needed.
ANSWER:
"Burning Nose" (וַיִּחַר אַף, vayichar aph)
Literal Meaning: "His nose burned."
Idiom Meaning: To be angry or enraged.
Example: “Then the Lord’s anger burned against Moses” (Exodus 4:14).
"Long Nose" (אֶרֶךְ אַפַּיִם, erekh appayim)
Literal Meaning: "Long of nose."
Idiom Meaning: Patience or being slow to anger.
Example: “The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger” (Exodus 34:6).
Explanation: A "long nose" takes longer to turn red with anger, symbolizing patience.
The first point is that anger that shows physically in a red or flaring nose implies that the Hebrew “anger” is a stronger emotion that what “anger” normally implies to me.
Looking at the interlinear, I see repetition in the 2nd and 3rd lines that was hidden in the translation … as well as in the interlinear which translates the idiom rather than the individual term without giving me notice.
QUESTION: Why care about compositionality in MWLU’s?
SOFTWARE: Somewhere in Logos some book on grammar, syntax, exegesis, or hermeneutics probably has this answer but I didn’t try to find it.
ANSWER: Compositionality:
Literal/Compositional: Meaning derived from individual words (e.g., Red Sea).
Non-compositional: Meaning not deducible from parts (e.g., bucket list).
For multi-word lexical units that are non-compositional, intermediate language students must learn them just as they would learn individual words – think vocabulary lists or cards. For multi-word lexical units that are compositional, their use helps define an author’s style, identify continuity in textual traditions over time, etc.
QUESTION: IS MWLU a standard acronym?
ANSWER: Yes, but unfortunately it is used for two separate concepts in linguistics:
Minimal Well-formed Linguistic Unit
Multiple-Word Lexical Unit
Orthodox Bishop Alfeyev: "To be a theologian means to have experience of a personal encounter with God through prayer and worship."; Orthodox proverb: "We know where the Church is, we do not know where it is not."