Users Guide: Grammar

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Grammar

Our grammar layer is the most foundational layer of analysis, where we create a visual illustration of how every single word relates to every other word. The tool we use to create this visual is called a grammatical diagram. For those who are not familiar with grammatical diagrams, this guide is designed to explain the basics. Many who have never used diagrams end up finding them very helpful. For example, one user shared:

I personally find grammatical diagrams very helpful as a Bible Translation consultant. Knowing how the different parts of a sentence relate to one another is very important. Having the text visually represented helps the consultant see where modern translations are coming from, giving him the raw material from where he can do his personal study and proposals to a team.

The explanations in this guide will build on each other in the following order:

The Core: Subject + Verb
Subject + Verb + Object
Subject + Complement (Verbless Clause)
Modifiers (e.g. adjectives, adverbs, prepositional phrases)
Legend
Alternatives

Basic Concepts

The Core: Subject + Verb

The starting point for grammatical diagrams is the combination of subject and verb to create a clause.

See for example the words from Ps 34:18:

Hebrew	v.	Close-but-Clear
יהוָ֣ה שָׁמֵ֑עַ	18	YHWH heard

We have here a subject (YHWH) and a verb (heard). This is represented in the diagram as:

SimpleGrammar
      Fragment
        Clause
          Subject
            noun: יהוָה YHWH
          Predicate
            verb: שָׁמֵעַ heard

We can see here a horizontal line represents a clause, with a dividing line between the subject (on the right) and the verb (on the left).

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Subject + Verb + Object

Let’s continue with the simple addition of an object, as in Ps 7:9:

Hebrew	v.	Close-but-Clear
יְהוָה֮ יָדִ֪ין עַ֫מִּ֥ים	9	YHWH judges the peoples

In this clause we have a subject (YHWH), a verb (judges), and an object (the peoples). This is represented in the diagram as:

SimpleGrammar
      Fragment
        Clause
          Subject
            noun: יְהוָה YHWH
          Predicate
            verb: יָדִין judges
            Object
              noun: עַמִּים peoples

To represent the object, the horizontal line stretches out further and another line is added. However, in contrast to the verb|subject line, the object|verb line does not cross the horizontal line.

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Subject + Complement (Verbless Clause)

Another important construction in Biblical Hebrew is that of a verbless clause (or nominal clause), where Hebrew does not require a verb, though English needs the copula/verb "to be". See for example the first part of Ps 10:16:

Hebrew	v.	Close-but-Clear
יְהוָ֣ה מֶ֭לֶךְ	16	YHWH is king

SimpleGrammar
      Fragment
        Clause
          Subject
            noun: יְהוָֹה YHWH
          Predicate
            verb: is
            Complement
              noun: מֶלֶךְ king

In this diagram, the subject is YHWH, on the right, the verb “to be” is supplied (is) in the middle, and on the left with a slanted line we have the noun “king” as the complement, what is said about the subjectIn this case the complement is a noun and we have an equative sentence saying the YHWH is king. It is important to note that English handles all verbless clauses with the verb "to be", but other languages may use different ways to render these Hebrew verbless clauses..

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Modifiers

(e.g. adjectives, adverbs, prepositional phrases)

Modifiers are added with a slanted line beneath the main clause line. See for example Ps 98:1:

Hebrew	v.	Close-but-Clear
שִׁ֤ירוּ לַֽיהוָ֨ה ׀ שִׁ֣יר חָ֭דָשׁ	1	Sing to YHWH a new song

SimpleGrammar
      Fragment
        Clause
          Predicate
            verb: שִׁירוּ sing
            Object
              noun: שִׁיר song
              adjective: חָדָשׁ new
            Adverbial
              PrepositionalPhrase
                Preposition
                  preposition: לַ to
                Object
                  noun: יהוָה YHWH

First, note that here the subject slot is empty, as no subject is explicitly identified in the clause.

Adjectives: The verb is an imperative calling the audience to sing a new song. Here the noun song (שִׁיר) is in the object position, but it is modified by the adjective חָדָשׁ, which is added beneath the noun with a slanted line.

Prepositional Phrases: A prepositional phrase is the combination of a preposition (e.g. לְ, בְּ, עַל, עִם…) with one or more other words. In this case the preposition modifying the verb “sing” is to (לְ), followed by the recipient YHWH. In the diagram the preposition is provided on a slanted line and any words dependent on the preposition follow on a horizontal line.

Adverbs/Adverbials: Adverbials are indicated by a dashed diagonal line, as in example Ps 22:2 (below), “I cry out by day”:

SimpleGrammar
      Fragment
        Clause
          Predicate
            verb: אֶקְרָא I cry out
            Adverbial
              noun: יוֹמָם by day

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Legend

For a detailed list of grammatical constructions and how they appear in the diagrams, see our Grammatical Legend (press the button below to expand). This legend appears at the top of every grammar page in our resources.

Grammatical Diagram Legend

Visualization	Description
	The clause is represented by a horizontal line with a vertical line crossing through it, separating the subject and the verb.
	The object is indicated by a vertical line that does not cross the horizontal line of the clause. Infinitives and participles may also have objects. If the direct object marker (d.o.m.) is present in the text, it appears in the diagram immediately before the object. If the grammar includes a secondary object, the secondary object will appear after the object, separated by another vertical line that does not cross the horizontal line of the clause.
	The subject complement follows the verb (often omitted in Hebrew) separated with a line leaning toward the right. It can be a noun, a whole prepositional phrase or an adjective. The later two appear modifying the complement slot.
	When a noun further describes or renames the object, it is an object complement. The object complement follows the object separated by a line leaning toward the right.
	In a construct chain, the noun in the absolute form modifies the noun in the construct form.
	Participles are indicated in whatever position in the clause they are in with a curved line before the participle. Participles can occur as nominal, where they take the place of a noun, predicate, where they take the place of a verb, or attributive, where they modify a noun or a verb similar to adjectives or adverbs.
	Infinitives are indicated by two parallel lines before the infinitive that cross the horizontal line. Infinitive constructs can appear as the verb in an embedded clause. Infinitive absolutes typically appear as an adverbial.
	The subject of the infinitive often appears in construct to it. In this situation, the infinitive and subject are diagrammed as a construct chain.
	The object of the infinitive is indicated by a vertical line that does not cross the horizontal line of the infinitival clause.
	Modifiers are represented by a solid diagonal line from the word they modify. They can attach to verbs, adjectives, or nouns. If modifying a verb or adjective, it is an adverb, but if modifying a noun, it is an adjective, a quantifier, or a definite article. If an adverb is modifying a modifier, it is connected to the modifier by a small dashed horizontal line.
	Adverbials are indicated by a dashed diagonal line extending to a horizontal line. These are nouns or infinitives that function adverbially (modifying either a verb or a participle), but are not connected by a preposition.
	Prepositional phrases are indicated by a solid diagonal line extending to a horizontal line. The preposition is to the left of the diagonal line and the dependent of the preposition is on the horizontal line. They can modify verbs (adverbial) or nouns (adjectival).
	Embedded clauses are indicated by a "stand" that looks like an upside-down Y. The stand rests in the grammatical position that the clause fulfills. Extending from the top of the stand is a horizontal line for the clause. If introduced by a complementizer, for example כִּי, the complementizer appears before the stand. Embedded clauses can stand in the place of any noun.
	When clauses are joined by a conjunction, they are compound clauses. These clauses are connected by a vertical dotted line. The conjunction is placed next to the dotted line.
	Within a clause, if two or more parts of speech are compound, these are represented by angled lines reaching to the two compound elements connected by a solid vertical line. If a conjunction is used, the conjunction appears to the left of the vertical line. Almost all parts of speech can be compound.
	Subordinate clauses are indicated by a dashed line coming from the line dividing the subject from the predicate in the independent clause and leading to the horizontal line of the subordinate clause. The subordinating conjunction appears next to the dashed line.
	Relative clauses also have a dashed line, but the line connects the antecedent to the horizontal line of the relative clause. The relative particle appears next to the dashed line.
	Sentence fragments are represented by a horizontal line with no vertical lines. They are most frequently used in superscriptions to psalms. They are visually similar to discourse particles and vocatives, but most often consist of a noun phrase (that does not refer to a person or people group) or a prepositional phrase.
	In the body of the psalm, a horizontal line by itself (with no modifiers or vertical lines) can indicate either a discourse particle or a vocative (if the word is a noun referring to a person or people group). A discourse particle is a conjunction or particle that functions at the discourse level, not at the grammatical level. Vocatives can appear either before or after the clause addressed to them, depending on the word order of the Hebrew.
	Apposition is indicated by an equal sign equating the two noun phrases. This can occur with a noun in any function in a sentence.

Hebrew text colors
Default preferred text	The default preferred reading is represented by a black line. The text of the MT is represented in bold black text.
Dispreferred reading	The dispreferred reading is an alternative interpretation of the grammar, represented by a pink line. The text of the MT is represented in bold pink text, while emendations and revocalizations retain their corresponding colors (see below).
Emended text	Emended text, text in which the consonants differ from the consonants of the Masoretic text, is represented by bold blue text, whether that reading is preferred or dispreferred.
Revocalized text	Revocalized text, text in which only the vowels differ from the vowels of the Masoretic text, is represented by bold purple text, whether that reading is preferred or dispreferred.
(Supplied elided element)	Any element that is elided in the Hebrew text is represented by bold gray text in parentheses.
( )	The position of a non-supplied elided element is represented by empty black parentheses. For example, this would be used in the place of the noun when an adjective functions substantivally or in the place of the antecedent when a relative clause has an implied antecedent.

Gloss text colors
Gloss used in the CBC	The gloss used in the Close-but-Clear translation is represented by bold blue text.
Literal gloss >> derived meaning	A gloss that shows the more literal meaning as well as the derived figurative meaning is represented in blue text with arrows pointing towards the more figurative meaning. The gloss used in the CBC will be bolded.
Supplied elided element	The gloss for a supplied elided element is represented in bold gray text.

Alternatives

When modern translations differ from each other in the same verse, this can often be very confusing. See for example Ps 2:12:

ESV: Kiss the Son…

NET: Give sincere homage…

These are two completely different translations, with different meanings, from two respected modern translations. Using our grammatical diagrams you will be able to see exactly how each translation relates to the original text.

Alternative readings can come in three different ways:

Grammatical Alternative
Textual Revocalization
Textual Emendation

Grammatical Alternative

A grammatical alternative occurs when the Masoretic Text is preserved, but there is a different way to understand the way the words are combined (i.e. the syntax/grammar).

Consider for example the two translations of Ps 2:12 above. Both read the same Hebrew text, נשׁקוּ בר, but the ESV (“kiss the son”) reads בר as the Aramaic word ‘son’ and the object of the clause. Meanwhile, the NET reads בר as an adjective meaning “pure”, functioning adverbially meaning “Kiss purely/sincerely”, i.e. “give sincere homage”.

These two alternatives are represented as follows:

SimpleGrammar
    DiscourseUnit [Ps 2:12]
      Fragment
        Clause
          Predicate
            verb: נַשְּׁקוּ kiss
            Adverbial <status="alternative">
              Nominal
                adjective: בַר pure <status="alternative">
            Object
              noun: בַר son

Our preferred reading is displayed in black (in this case “kiss the son”), and the dispreferred alternative in pink.

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Revocalization + Emendation

The vowels and exact pronunciation of Biblical Hebrew was written down at a much later stage in history. The earlier versions of the texts had only consonants. This means that sometimes a word can be revocalized with different vowels, giving different meanings. Revocalizations are represented in purple in the diagram.

Other times, scholars disagree about what the original consonants of the text were. Consonantal emendation is usually a more weighty decision than that of revocalization, and requires careful consideration. Emendations are represented in light blue in the diagram.

Consider the following example from Ps 23:6, which has both a revocalization option and an emendation option (you can read our detailed exegetical issue for this issue here).

SimpleGrammar
    DiscourseUnit [Ps 23:6]
      Clause <status="alternative"> 
        Subject
        Predicate
          verb: שַׁבְתִּי I will return <prefix="וְ">
          Adverbial
            PrepositionalPhrase <gloss="to YHWH's house">
              Preposition
                preposition: בְּ 
              Object
                ConstructChain
                  noun: בֵית
                  noun: יְהוָה
          Adverbial
            PrepositionalPhrase <gloss="for as long as I live">
              Preposition
                preposition: לְ
              Object
                Nominal
                  ConstructChain 
                    noun: אֹרֶךְ
                    noun: יָמִים
        Predicate <status="alternative">
          verb: יָשַׁבְתִּי I will dwell <status="emendation"> 
      Conjunction <status="alternative"> 
        conjunction: <height="300">
      Clause 
        Subject <located="after infinitive construct">
          Clause 
            Subject <located="after infinitive construct">               
            Predicate 
              ConstructChain <gloss="I will dwell">
                verb-infinitive: שִׁבְתּ dwelling <status="revocalization">
                suffix-pronoun: ִי me 
        Predicate <gloss="I will dwell">
          verb: will be
          Adverbial
            PrepositionalPhrase <gloss="for as long as I live">
              Preposition
                preposition: לְ
              Object
                Nominal
                  ConstructChain
                    noun: אֹרֶךְ
                    noun: יָמִים 
          Complement
            PrepositionalPhrase <gloss="in YHWH's house">
              Preposition
                preposition: בְּ
              Object
                ConstructChain
                  noun: בֵית
                  noun: יְהוָה

The three options for this text are:

Hebrew	v.	Masoretic Text
וְשַׁבְתִּ֥י בְּבֵית־יְ֝הוָ֗ה לְאֹ֣רֶךְ יָמִֽים׃	6	I will return to the house of YHWH…

Hebrew	v.	Revocalization
וְשִׁבְתִּי בְּבֵית־יְ֝הוָ֗ה לְאֹ֣רֶךְ יָמִֽים׃	6	“and my dwelling will be in the house of YHWH…”

Hebrew	v.	Emendation
וְיָשַׁבְתִּי בְּבֵית־יְ֝הוָ֗ה לְאֹ֣רֶךְ יָמִֽים׃	6	“and I will dwell in the house of YHWH…”

Our preferred reading is the revocalization reading, so this is the one displayed in black. The Masoretic Text and the Emendation are dispreferred, and are listed in pink.

The vowels of וְשַׁבְתִּי can be plausibly re-read, re-vocalized, as וְשִׁבְתִּי. This would change the meaning from “I will return to the house of the LORD” to “and my dwelling will be in the house of the YHWH…”. Revocalizations are represented in purple in the diagram, as seen in the diagram above (you can select "full screen" or zoom in on the diagram to achieve a better view).

Another option scholars have proposed here is to emend the consonantal text from וְשַׁבְתִּי to וְיָשַׁבְתִּי. This would change to the meaning to “and I will dwell in the house of YHWH…”. All emendations are represented in light blue text, as shown in this example.

At Scriptura we are very hesitant to alter the received Masoretic Text text, and only do so if we are thoroughly convinced this is the more faithful reading. Almost all serious textual issues have an accompanying Exegetical Issue page and Exegetical Issue video.

Here are some examples:

For an introduction to our Exegetical Issue pages, see here.

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Users Guide: Grammar

Contents

Book 1

Book 2

Book 3

Book 4

Book 5

Grammar

Basic Concepts

The Core: Subject + Verb

Subject + Verb + Object

Subject + Complement (Verbless Clause)

Modifiers

Legend

Alternatives

Grammatical Alternative

Revocalization + Emendation