Q73 MT Gen 35:26 wl dly r#) SV(1) – Difference in gender.^808
4QGen-Exoda 5 8 wl hdly r#)
Q74 MT Gen 41:7 hn(lbt OV(l) – Possible difference in
4QGenc 1 ii 13 N(lbt pronunciation.^809
Q75 MT Gen 41:7 omits SV(2) – 4QGenc adds an expan-
4QGenc 1 ii 14 twpd#h sive plus lacking in the MT.^810
Q76 MT Gen 41:11 hmlxnw OV(l) – Possible difference in
808
The MT has wl dly r#) bq(y ynb hl), “these are the sons of Jacob who was (sic) born to him.” In this
phrasing the Qal masculine singular passive participle √dly, “to be born,” conflicts with the plural object,
bq(y ynb, “the sons of Jacob.” The grammatical problem of the MT is not found in the LXX, which has the
indicative aorist middle 3pl εγενοντο, “they were born,” also reflected in the SP which has wdly, “they were
born.” 4QGen-Exoda is still grammatically correct but instead has an active indicative, rendering the verb
as Qal 3fs perfect in the phrase hl) wl hdly r#) bq(y ynb, “these are the sons of Jacob that she (Zilpah)
bore to him.” Targum Pseudo-Jonathan, Tg. Neof. and Tg. Onq. all reflect a similar phrasing to the LXX
and the SP, with the hitpᵊ‘el 3mpl form of the verb in the phrase hl wdlyt)d bq(yd y(w)nb Nyl(y)), “these are
the sons of Jacob who were born to him.” 809
Here and below (Q76) the spelling of 4QGenc seems to reflect the use of short forms of verbal affixes
and pronominal suffixes where the MT preserves the long (Qumran Hebrew) forms. This appears to go
against all expectations of the grammar. However, it is not mandatory that the spelling in the MT must al-
ways be in preference of short forms against the preference for long forms in the Dead Sea Scrolls biblical
manuscripts. Indeed, there is no requirement for the MT to have an absolute monopoly on the shorter forms
against all of the manuscripts from Qumran. It may be acceptable that some manuscripts from Qumran,
such as 4QGenc, reflect the orthographic practices that became most common in the text-type from which
the MT stems, and this is quite possibly what we find in evidence here. In fact, the short form of the femi-
nine plural prefixed conjugation Nl+qt is relatively common in the MT (appearing about 38 times) but the
long form hnl+qt is clearly preferred (appearing some 297 times). Occasionally the afformative (h)n- is
dropped entirely (Jer 49:11, Ez 37:7, and before a pronominal suffix in Jer 2:19 and Job 19:15). See W.
Gesenius, E. Kautzsch, and A.E. Cowley, Gesenius' Hebrew Grammar (New York: Dover Publications,
20062 ) 161, §60a, for these exceptional forms. Gesenius also lists Ct 1:6 as containing a feminine plural
imperfect verb that lacks the expected afformative before a pronominal suffix, but it is unclear which verb
he is referring to. The only possibility is the form ynw)rt, which in the present writer’s understanding is best
read as a masculine singular form that adheres to the expected grammar. 810
4QGenc harmonises the description of the ears of grain with that of the previous verse in MT Gen 41:6
(b# tpwd#w twqd Mylb#, “seven ears of grain, blighted and burned.” The LXX agrees with 4QGenc, where
both adjectives are found in both verses. See the discussion in E. Ulrich and F.M. Cross, Qumran Cave 4.
VII: Genesis to Numbers (DJD 12; Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1994) 42. Cf. Q79 below.