02_Biblica_1_B_Pinker_Layout 1 30/01/13 13:15 Pagina 508 02_B 508 ARON PINKER (15,15; 25,5) a clear deficiency is stated: the heavens or stars are not as pure as he wishes them to be, or they did not gain merit in his eyes. ― Derive the meaning of hlht from the context Ralbag ― “shine” from I llh (Job 29,3) assuming that )l ex- tends to My#y; Rashbam, Berechiah ben Natronai ― leave hlht unexplained 39; Judeo-Persian MS ― “ingratitude”. However, the marginal ad- dition reads “curse” instead 40; Cox ― “frailty” 41; Delitzsch ― “imperfection” 42; Chaham ― “disgrace, reproach” (ypd, y)ng) 43; Tur-Sinai ― “threat, reproof” (as the Arabic tahwîl), a derivative of the unattested root lwh, and perhaps originally pronounced hlfhut; 44; Grabbe ― Grabbe’s analysis of the different options leads him to the conclusion that hll is the only well attested word with a mean- ing “be foolish.” Unfortunately, it is not clear whether hlht can be derived from hll. If a credible rationale for the derivation hlht from hll can be found, that would be the best option and in line with the versions and traditional notions. The second option is to derive hlht from the Arabic wahila 45. Grabbe’s conclusion is based on the assumption that the required meaning for hlht is “be foolish”. However, this assumption is log- ically questionable and certainly unsupported by the majority of the versions 46. Many commentators opted to translate hlht by “folly, error,” perhaps believing that such a sense would provide some ex- planation for the injustice on earth. For instance, Smith argues that injustice on earth can in part be explained by the fact that some of JAPHET, Rashbam, 354. 39 H.H. PAPER, “A Judeo-Persian Book of Job”, Proceedings of the Israel 40 Academy of Sciences and Humanities, Vol. V (1971-1976) (Jerusalem 1976) 315. S. COX, A Commentary on the Book of Job (London 1894) 78. 41 F. DELITZSCH, Biblical Commentary on the Book of Job (Edinburgh 42 1881) I, 94. CHAHAM, bwy), 35. 43 TUR-SINAI, Job, 85. 44 GRABBE, Comparative, 43. 45 Symmachus is the only one that has “folly” for hlht. 46 © Gregorian Biblical Press 2012 - Tutti i diritti riservati