COURSE DESCRIPTION

This course leads you into the Hebrew Scripture for use in your personal devotional life as well as in a variety of public ministries. You will learn a foundational working vocabulary, an understanding of the patterns of the verb, the uses of the noun, and basic issues in Hebrew syntax. You will be able to translate and interact with narrative prose materials with the aid of a lexicon. 2 hours plus 1 hour lab. (Prerequisite: OTS 511X or consent of instructor)

COURSE PURPOSE

The primary purpose of OTS 511Y is to enable the student to acquire a working knowledge of biblical Hebrew essential to the exegesis of the Old Testament. The process includes mastering the essentials of Biblical Hebrew grammar, being able to translate from the Hebrew Bible with the aid of a lexicon, acquiring a working vocabulary of the more frequently found words in the MT, becoming familiar with the basic categories of biblical Hebrew syntax, and becoming familiar with an approach to Hebrew exegesis.

COURSE OBJECTIVES (measurable competencies)

1. To discuss the basic structure of the Hebrew alphabet, vowel and consonant systems, syllables, verb, noun, adjective, prepositions, infinitive construct, and perfect tense
2. To acquire a working knowledge of the morphology of the Hebrew language essential to parsing and translation of strong and weak verbs
3. To recall a modest vocabulary of the most frequent Hebrew words of the OT
4. To read (translate and study) as much biblical Hebrew as possible from selected biblical passages in an effort to solidify the basic elements of grammar and develop skills in theological interaction
5. To utilize BibleWorks 5.0 / 6.0 or Gramcord in their translation and evaluation of the Hebrew text

REQUIRED TEXTS (Hotlinked to Amazon.com)

1. Pratico, Gary and Miles Van Pelt. Basics of Biblical Hebrew: Grammar. Zondervan, 2003.
2. Pratico, Gary and Miles Van Pelt. Basics of Biblical Hebrew: Workbook. Zondervan, 2003.

RECOMMENDED TEXTS

1. Elliger, K. and W. Randolph, eds. Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia, 3d ed. Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft, 1987, hardcover.

Choose Small edition (5.5"x 7.5"). Hebrew Bible in the Masoretic Text. This may be printed from the American Bible Society.

2. Brown, F., S.R. Driver, and C.A. Briggs. Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament. Hendricksen Press, 1995.

This publisher includes the Strong’s Concordance number for each entry. You may purchase the Oxford Press version (without Strong’ numbers) but it is significantly more expensive. The binding for the Hendricksen edition is more durable.

3. Owens, John. Analytical key to the Old Testament, Vol. 1. Grand Rapids: Baker, 1990.

If you are planning to maintain and use your Hebrew in the future, it is suggested that you purchase the 4 vol. set: approximate cost is $120.

4. You could also purchase the software of Old Testament Hebrew (Masoretic Text) with parsing. Most use BibleWorks 6.0—approx. $300, or Gramcord (for Mac)—approx. $250, depending upon the various tools you want.

COURSE REQUIREMENTS

The work load for the course is 60 hours outside of class time. Twelve of those hours are lab, a third hour added to each class meeting. That brings the ‘homework’ load expectation to 48 hours, or 4 hours per week.

1. Quizzes

Quizzes are a helpful means to learning the material. I give them in order to help students see how much of the crucial material they have mastered and to enable them to see what is of primary importance in the lesson. Quizzes will be administered at the beginning of every class meeting after the first and a maximum of 15 minutes will be allowed. Quizzes will be graded in class immediately. ONE quiz grade may be dropped. The ten highest quiz grades will be used for evaluation. Quizzes may not be made up in OTS 511x unless sufficient reason is provided (e.g. sickness, emergency). Taking quizzes late defeats the purpose of the quiz.

2. Homework

A record is to be kept of the homework completed. The student is expected to do all the assigned exercises before class. Doing the homework in a timely fashion is critical to learning the material. The student will report the completion of their homework at the end of the semester. It is expected that the student do all the exercises noted in the schedule. Should the student fall behind in the homework, it becomes doubly difficult to catch up. The student is encouraged to study some Hebrew each day. A little work each day is more beneficial than attempting to master the material in one evening.

3. Class Recitation

Class recitation will be evaluated as to satisfactory/unsatisfactory effort. For the assigned exercises, each student should be prepared to provide their answers and to elaborate upon the grammatical issues concerning their answer.

4. Attendance

The student will be evaluated as to consistency of attendance. The student is allowed two unexcused absences. Any absence beyond two will decrease the course grade by one full letter grade. The student is responsible for obtaining information, materials, and instructions related to any exams, assignments, and quizzes.

5. Exam

There will be one final exam. The format of the quizzes will provide a model of the kinds of questions included on the final.

COURSE PROCEDURE

Class time is at a premium. The time will be divided between a weekly quiz, review of the lesson and the homework, and introduction to and practice in the new material. Every detail of the homework cannot be covered in class due to the brevity of the time. Students are expected to ask questions over things that give them difficulty, no matter how naïve and embarrassing they may seem (a silent majority of the class will probably be relieved that someone asked). Emphasis will be on parsing, translation, exegetical significance, and devotional impact.

Students generally feel frustrated when the new material is introduced in the class period because a great deal of time is not given to it. It simply is not a good use of time to go into detail over something the student has not looked at first. Thus, all that will be done in advance is to point the student to the areas of importance and to show how to do some of the homework exercises. After he has studied it, then class time will be given to its clarification and review.

COURSE GRADING

The nature of language courses is such that exams are necessarily comprehensive. Therefore the final exam may be the only grade that is counted. All prior grades (i.e., quizzes) can help but will not bring down the semester grade.

COURSE POLICIES

1. Homework:

All required homework is to be completed by the beginning of class. Please record the amount of work completed on time.

2. Attendance:

Attendance will be taken each week. Two Unexcused absences are permitted. Any unexcused absence beyond two will decrease the COURSE GRADE by ONE FULL GRADE. It is the responsibility of each student to obtain from other students any missed handouts or assignment instructions or lecture material.

SCHEDULE

9/9	Syllabus; Chap 1: Alphabet
9/16	Chap 2-3: Vowels; Syllab-Pronunciation
9/23	Chap 4-5: Nouns; Article and Waw Conjunction
9/30	Chap 5-6: Prepositions
10/7	Chap 7-8: Adjectives; Pronouns
10/14	Chap 9: Pronominal Suffixes
10/21	Chap 10-11: Construct; Numbers
10/28	Chap 12: Intro verbs
11/4	Chap 13: Qal Perfect, Strong
11/11	Chap 15: Qal Imperfect, Strong
11/18	NO CLASS
12/2	Chap 14, 16: Qal Perfect and Imperfect, Weak
12/9	Chap 17: Waw Conversive
12/13	Final exam DUE