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Cheshvan, Introduction: Genesis 10:21: Cheshvan, Introduction: Genesis 10:21

Cheshvan, Introduction: Genesis 10:21
Cheshvan, Introduction: Genesis 10:21
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CHESHVAN  Genesis 10:21 (Genealogy of Noah’s sons)

וּלְשֵׁ֥ם יֻלַּ֖ד גַּם ה֑וּא אֲבִי֙ כָּל בְּנֵי עֵ֔בֶר אֲחִ֖י יֶ֥פֶת הַגָּדֽוֹל׃

https://www.anticswiss.com/en/fine-art-antiques/the-sacrifice-of-noah-20585

The month of Cheshvan is the first of the rainy winter months in the Land of Israel. Although this month does not have any formal Jewish holidays,[1] there is a special date in this month that holds liturgical significance outside of the land of Israel.  The addition of the words ותן טל ומטר into the Amidah prayer begins in the land of Israel on the 7th of Cheshvan. According to Jewish tradition, the Flood that is described in Genesis 6-9 began on 17 Cheshvan and lasted a year, so that Noah and his family left the ark on the 27th of Cheshvan.The syntactic ambiguity that I’ve selected for the month of Cheshvan is about three of these survivors, Noah’s sons, particularly Shem and Japheth. It is a “scope ambiguity” found in Genesis 10:21, the chapter that reviews the genealogy of Noah’s sons.

וּלְשֵׁ֥ם יֻלַּ֖ד גַּם ה֑וּא אֲבִי֙ כָּל בְּנֵי עֵ֔בֶר אֲחִ֖י יֶ֥פֶת הַגָּדֽוֹל׃

Modern English Translations:

Alhatorah.org: And to Shem, the father of all the sons of Ever,1 the brother of Yefet, the elder,2 were also born sons.3

KJV (biblegateway.com): Unto Shem also, the father of all the children of Eber, the brother of Japheth the elder, even to him were children born.

NRSVUE (biblegateway.com): To Shem also, the father of all the children of Eber, the elder brother of Japheth, children were born.

Fox, Schocken Bible (1995: https://www.sefaria.org)

[Children] were also born to Shem, the father of all the Sons of Ever [and] Yefet’s older brother.

JPS (2006; sefaria.org): Sons were also born to Shem, ancestor of all the descendants of Eber and older brother of Japheth.

A related syntactic ambiguity:  Gen 9:22-25 

וַיַּ֗רְא חָ֚ם אֲבִ֣י כְנַ֔עַן אֵ֖ת עֶרְוַ֣ת אָבִ֑יו  … וַיִּ֥יקֶץ נֹ֖חַ מִיֵּינ֑וֹ וַיֵּ֕דַע אֵ֛ת אֲשֶׁר⁠־עָֽשָׂה⁠־ל֖וֹ בְּנ֥וֹ הַקָּטָֽן׃

“Ham, the father of Canaan, saw his father's nakedness… Noah awoke from his wine, and he knew what his younger/youngest son had done to him.”


[1] Caveat: The Beta Israel holiday of Sigd occurs on 29th Cheshvan. There is a popular belief that the name of the month, “Marcheshvan” incorporates the word mar, “bitter,” as a prefix to the basic name Cheshvan, and that this is related to the lack of holidays, but, in fact mar is original to the name of the month. See  "Putting the Mar Back in Marheshvan" by Shlomo Zuckier, in The Lehrhaus.

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CHESHVAN GENESIS 10:21
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