H853. eth

I. אֵת‎, with makk. אֶתֿ‎, with suffix אֹתִי‎; אֹתְכָה אֹתְךָ,‎ Numbers 22:33, אֹתָ֑כָה אֹתָ֑ךְ,‎ Exodus 29:35, feminine אֹתָךְ‎; אֹתוֺ‎ etc.; 2 plural אֶתְכֶם‎, once אוֺתְכֶם‎ Joshua 23:15; 3masculine plural regularly אֹתָם‎, rarely אֶתְהֶם‎ Genesis 32:1; Exodus 18:20; Numbers 21:3; Ezekiel 34:12; 1 Chronicles 6:50, once אוֺתְהֶם‎ Ezekiel 23:45; 3feminine plural, on the contrary, regularly אֶתְהֶן‎ (13 t.), once אֹתָן‎ 16:54 (also אוֺתְהֶן‎ 23:47, אֹתָ֖נָה‎ Exodus 35:26, אוֺתָ֖נָה‎ Ezekiel 34:21); forms with cholem also often written plene: — the

mark of the accusative, prefixed as a rule only to nouns that are definite (Moabite id., Phoenician אית‎ i.e. אִיַּת‎ (Schröd^{p. 213 f.}); Aramaic יָת‎ frequently in ᵑ7‎; Syriac very rare as mark of accusative (for which is preferred), but used often in the sense of substance οὐσία, also in that of self, e.g. per se, reapse, sibi ipsi, PS^1640f., Samaritan ; Arabic , only used with suffix, when it is desired to emphasize the pronoun, e.g. Qor 1:4 W^{AG i. § 189.} [Ethiopic uses k£y¹ similarly, Di^{§ 150 a}; but it is dubious if this is etymologically akin.] The primitive form will have been 'iwyath, originally a substantive with following Genitive, Ol^{p. 432}; whether ultimately a parallel development with אוֺת‎ sign from √ אוה‎ is uncertain: Ol W^{AG i. § 188} Lag^{M i. 226 affirm}, Nö^{ZMG 1886, 738 doubts. In Hebrew the ground-form is} אוֺת‎; the forms with ¢, e being abbreviated. In post Biblical Hebrew, used in combination with another preposition: thus הַיּוֺם בְּאוֺתוֺ‎ = Bibl. הַשָּׁעָה בְּאוֺתָהּ הַהוּא, בַּיּוֺם‎; or as a nomin., e.g. הָאִישׁ אוֺתוֺ‎ = Bibl. הַהוּא הָאִישׁ‎).

1 As mark of the accusative prefixed to substantives defined either by the article (or כֹּל‎), or by a Genitive or pronominal affix, or in virtue of being proper names:

a. with transitive verbs, Genesis 1:1, 16, 29, 30; 2:11; 4:1-2, 9:3 (אֶתֿכֹּל׃‎) etc. Similarly אֶתמִֿי‎ whom (in particular), Joshua 24:15; 1 Samuel 12:3; 28:11; Isaiah 6:8 and elsewhere (but never אֶתמָֿה‎); also with זֶה‎ Genesis 29:33; 44:29; 1 Samuel 21:16; 1 Kings 22:27 +, זֹאת‎ Genesis 29:27; 2 Samuel 13:27 +, אֵלֶּה‎ Genesis 46:18; Leviticus 11:18; Isaiah 49:21 +. So pretty uniformly in prose; but in poetry את‎ is commonly dispensed with. By the use of את‎ with the pronominal affix, a pronoun can at once, if required, be placed in a position of emphasis; let the order of words from this point of view be carefully noticed in the following passages: Genesis 7:1; 24:14; 37:4; Leviticus 10:17; 11:33; Numbers 22:32 thee I had slain, and her I had kept alive, Deuteronomy 4:14; 6:13, 23; 13:5; Judges 14:3 לִי קַח אוֺתָהּ‎ take for me her, 1 Samuel 14:35; 15:1; 18:17; 21:10 קָ֔ח תִּקַּחלְֿךָ אִםאֹֿתָהּ‎ if thou wilt take that, take it, 1 Kings 1:35; 14:9; Isaiah 43:22; 57:11; Jeremiah 9:2. So הַאוֺתִי‎ 5:22; 7:19. It also sometimes enables the reflexive sense to be expressed (elsewhere נַפְשָׁם‎) 7:19; Ezekiel 34:2. Rarely with a substantive which is undefined (Ew^{§ 277 d 2} Ges^{§ 117}, 1, R. 2), as Exodus 21:28; Numbers 21:9; Leviticus 20:14; 1 Samuel 24:6 (but see Dr) 2 Samuel 4:11; 18:18; 23:21; or which, though definite, is without the article, Genesis 21:30; 2 Samuel 15:16; Leviticus 26:5; 1 Samuel 9:3 (so Numbers 16:15) Isaiah 33:19; 41:7; Ezekiel 43:10 (for further examples see Ew 1.c.)

b. with a passive verb (Ges^{§ 121}. 1 Ew^{§ 295 b}) conceived as expressing neutrally the action in question, and construed accordingly with an accusative of that which is its real object: examples occur with tolerable frequency from Genesis 4:18 (J) אֶתעֿירָד לַחֲנוֺךְ וַיִּוָּלֵד‎, 17:5 (P), אַברָם אֶתשִֿׁמְךָ עוֺד יִקָּרֵא לֹא‎ there shall not be called (=one shall not call) thy name Abram, 21:5 (E), 27:42; 2 Samuel 21:11; 1 Kings 18:13; Hosea 10:6 etc., to Jeremiah 35:18; 38:4; 50:20; Ezekiel 16:4-5, Esther 2:13 (compare Dr^{JPh xi. 227 f.}): also with passive verbs of filling (Ew^{§ 281 b}), as Exodus 1:7 +.

c. with neuter verbs or expressions, especially such as involve the idea of regarding, or treating, appy. by a construction κατὰ σύνεσιν (rare), Joshua 22:17; 2 Samuel 11:25; Nehemiah 9:32 (compare 1 Samuel 20:13 Dr). Once after אֵין‎, Haggai 2:17; אֵלַיָֽ אֶתְכֶם אֵין‎.

d. poet. (si vera lectio), after an abstract noun used with a verbal force, Habakkuk 3:13 (Amos 4:11; Isaiah 13:19; Jeremiah 50:40 מַהְמֵּכָה‎ exerts a verbal force, like the Arabic nom. verbi [see W^{AG i. § 196, 43}]; and Numbers 10:2; Ezekiel 17:9 לְמַשְׂאוֺת לְמַסַּע,‎ are Aramaizing infinitives: compare Ew^{§ 239 a}).

2 את‎ marks an accusative in other relations than that of direct object to a verb: a. with verbs of motion (very rare) Numbers 13:17; Deuteronomy 1:19; 2:7 (to 'walk the wilderness'); denoting the goal Judges 19:18; Ezekiel 21:25 (Ew^{§ 281 d, n., 282 a 1}). b. denoting time (duration), also very rare: Exodus 13:7; Leviticus 25:22; Deuteronomy 9:25. c. expressing the accus. of limitation (rare): Genesis 17:11, 14; 1 Kings 15:23.

3 Chiefly in an inferior or later style, אֵת‎ (or וְאֵת‎) is used irregularly, partly (α), as it would seem, to give greater definiteness (so especially וְאֵת‎) at the mention of a new subject (when it may sometimes be rendered as regards), or through the influence of a neighbouring verb (a construct κατὰ σύνεσιν), or by an anacoluthon, partly (β) as resuming loosely some other preposition Thus (α) Exodus 1:14; Numbers 3:26, 46; 5:10 (with הָיָה‎: so Ezekiel 35:10) Numbers 18:21b Deuteronomy 11:2 (anacoluthon), 14:13; Joshua 17:11; Judges 20:44, 46 (contr. 20:25; 20:35) 1 Samuel 17:34 (see Dr) 26:16; 2 Samuel 21:22; 2 Kings 6:5; Isaiah 53:8 (probably), 57:12; Jeremiah 23:33 (but read rather with הַמַּשָּׂא אַתֶּם ᵑ9 ᵐ5‎) 27:8; 36:22; 38:16 Kt, 45:4 b Ezekiel 16:22; 17:21; 20:16; 29:4; b 43:7 (ᵐ5‎ Co prefix הֲרָאִיתָ‎) 44:3; Zechariah 8:17; Ecclesiastes 4:3; Daniel 9:13; Nehemiah 9:19, 34; 1 Chronicles 2:9; 2 Chronicles 31:17. In 1 Samuel 30:23; Haggai 2:5 probably some such word as remember is to be understood. (β) Jeremiah 38:9; Ezekiel 14:22; b 37:19 b Zechariah 12:10; אֵת סָבִיב‎ 1 Kings 6:5; Ezekiel 43:17 strangely (in 1Kings ᵐ5‎ omits the clause: so Sta^{ZAW 1883, 135}). — In 1 Kings 11:1 וְ‎ is merely and also, and especially (see וְ‎); 11:25 is corrupt (read with הֲדָד עָשָׂה אֲשֶׁר הָרָעָה זֹאת ᵐ5‎); Ezekiel 47:17-18, 19 read similarly for זֹאת ואת,‎: see 47:20. — For some particulars as to the use of את‎, see A. M. Wilson^{Hebraica. vi. 139 ff. 212 ff.} (who, however, confuses it sometimes with II. אֵת‎). For denoting the pronominal object of a verb, את‎ with suffix preponderates relatively much above the verbal affix in P, as compared with J E Deuteronomy Judges Samuel Kings (see Gie^{ZAW 1881, 258 f.}), — partly, probably, on account of the greater distinctness and precision which P loves.

יָת‎ mark of accusative (= Biblical Hebrew I. אֵת‎; Palmyrene ית‎; Zinjirli^{Had. 28} with suffix ותה‎; Nabataean, Palmyrene with suffix יתה‎ (Lzb²⁶³ Cooke¹⁷⁰; compare RÉS⁴⁶⁸); ᵑ7‎ Samaritan יָת‎; Syriac (rare)); — Daniel 3:12 יָָֽתְהוֺן מַנִּיתָ דִּי‎ whom thou hast appointed.