A Misunderstood Masorah Parva Note In L for r:(U)"l in Numbers
2:14
Daniel S. Mynatt
Anderson College, Anderson, SC, USA
1. In BHS, the word Uc:bf)ow (and his host) in Num 2:15 has been
annotated with the Mp note y@b@ r=p bsyp@ (occurs 12 times at
the beginning of a verse in this book). This arrangement of the material by
BHS obscures and simplifies a more complex situation. In L, the manuscript
base for BHS, the Mp is radically different. The pertinent section of text
in L with its Mp notes is presented below. This section of text is in the
right column of the page in the manuscript (v. 14 and Mp notes
highlighted).
[Image from Codex Leningradensis, Num 2:14]
2. The most apparent problem is that there is only one circule for the two
notes. The left note l@ b$b+ (occurs once in the section on the
tribes [Num 1:20-2:34]) obviously should be matched with r:(U)"l
(Reuel) in Num 2:14. The word r:(U)"l occurs only once in Num
1:20-2:34.
3. The right note (b@ bry$@ bsyp@) is more problematic. There
are two options for interpreting the note itself. The solution to the
problem of the one circule varies according to which alternative is chosen.
4. Option 1. The note could be understood, "occurs twice at the beginning
(of a verse) in this book." For this interpretation to work, one must
assume that ry$@ means "beginning" and is a shortened form of
ry$ pswq). Certainly, ry$ is not the usual Mp term
for "beginning" (r)$ is). Nevertheless, since ry$ is
Aramaic for "beginning," and since ry$ is used in Masoretic
notes with this meaning, the possibility exists that it might mean
"beginning" here.
5. The threshold problem with this interpretation of the note is that
r:(U)"l is not at the beginning of a verse. Thus, we must also
assume that the note belongs with another word. This is not an unwarranted
assumption since r:(U)"l already has one Mp note. The only word
in the line that begins a verse is Uc:bf)ow. Thus, the note
could belong with this word, and we would assume that the corresponding
circule has been omitted by accident.
6. There are two problems with this argument. First, it requires one to
argue that the notes and circules have been switched; each note has been
matched with the more distant circule instead of the closer one. This is
not a frequent occurrence, but it happens occasionally. See the Mp notes in
L for the phrase Ub:)ar:b.a( (e&:r"h (and in the fourteenth) in
Gen 14:5 for an example.
7. Second, Uc:bf)ow occurs at the beginning of a verse in
Numbers several more times than twice. Fortunately, it occurs 12 times.
Thus, we could speculate that the tens digit, y@, has also
accidentally been omitted. This too is not a frequent error, but it happens
occasionally. For an example, see the Mp note in L for the word
l:miyn"hU (according to its kind) in Gen 1:12.
8. This is the interpretation of the evidence which G. Weil followed in
editing the Masorah of BHS. BHK has also followed this line of reasoning,
although in the margin the note has been modified less drastically to
y@b@ bry$ bsyp@. The upper apparatus in BHK gives the correct Mp
of L, but there is no indication that the Mp note has been moved from
r:(U)"l in Num 2:14 to Uc:bf)ow in Num 2:15. Thus,
the reader cannot precisely ascertain the extent of the revision. Since
both BHS and BHK have revised the note along these lines, this
interpretation of the evidence has been presented exclusively in the
printed editions of L's Mp.
9. The 12 occurrences of Uc:bf)ow at the beginning of a verse in
Numbers are Num 2:4, 6, 8, 11, 13, 15, 19, 21, 23, 26, 28, 30. None of the
other parallel texts has an Mp note for this text feature.
10. Option 2. Although r:(U)"l is spelled with a resh here, it
is spelled with a dalet in Num 1:14; 7:42, 47; and 10:20:
d.:(U)"l (Deuel). These two names refer to the same person, the
father of Eliasaph who was the leader of Gad. Thus, the Mp of L might refer
to r:(U)"l and be understood, "occurs 2 times with resh in this
book." The note would be distinguishing occurrences of r:(U)"l
from d.:(U)"l. The second occurrence of r:(U)"l is
Num 10:29. There it refers to Moses' father-in-law, a different person with
the same name.
11. In opposition to this interpretation is that fact that it requires
r:(U)"l to have two separate Mp notes. This is uncommon in L but
not unattested. For an example, see the Mp notes in L for the word
p.:qudfyw (numbered) in Num 1:22.
12. In support of this interpretation, we can note that ry$ is
the customary spelling for the word resh, as opposed to a minority spelling
for the word "beginning."(1) The Second Rabbinic Bible has a similar note for
r:(U)"l using ry$ to mean the letter resh: l@
kty@ ry$ b$b+ym (hapax written resh in the section on the tribes).(2)
Since r:(U)"l occurs once more in Numbers (10:29), the frequency
statement in the Mp of L is accurate, and the note requires no emendation.
And last, Weil has not supplied the note in BHS to any of the parallel
passages. Although this omission could be a printing error, it might also
be an indication that he had reservations concerning the accuracy of the
note in BHS.
13. Thus, my conclusion is that the Mp of L is correct when properly
interpreted. Furthermore, this Mp note has been misunderstood in the
printed editions of L's Mp, first in BHK and then in BHS. Last, a scholar
of the MT can only discern this misunderstanding by consulting L itself.
© TC: A Journal of Biblical Textual Criticism, 1996.
Endnotes
1 Note the entry in Yeivin's glossary (Yeivin 1980:116).
2 Goshen-Gottstein 1972:310. This note is simply a reformulation of the note
on the left side of the column in L: l@ b$b+.
Bibliography
Elliger, K., and Rudolph, W., eds., 1983. Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia.
2d ed. Stuttgart: Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft.
Goshen-Gottstein, M. H., ed., 1972. Biblia Rabbinica. Vol. 1. Jerusalem:
Makor.
Kittel, Rudolf, ed., 1937. Biblia Hebraica. 3d ed. Stuttgart: Privegierte
Württembergische Bibelanstalt.
Yeivin, Israel 1980. Introduction to the Tiberian Masorah. Masoretic
Studies, no. 5. Missoula, MT: Scholars Press.