Page:Gesenius' Hebrew Grammar (1910 Kautzsch-Cowley edition).djvu/452

 Rem. 1. Where an adjectival attribute appears to stand before its substantive (according to the usual explanation, for the sake of special emphasis) the relation is really appositional in character; thus,  (but probably, is to be read); cf. 23:12, 53:11 (a righteous man, my servant; but in 28:21 and  are  preceding the substantives);, 10 f.,  him who is worthy to be praised will I call upon the Lord; 92:12 (apposition after participles).—But  and , are sometimes placed, like numerals, before the substantive, ,  (in   is a subst. regens, in 89:51 the text is corrupt); an appositional relation can scarcely be intended in these instances.

2. In a few expressions (mostly poetic) the adjective appears not as an attribute after the substantive, but in the construct state governing it; so in the singular, (unless  should be read);  (the height of his stature); in the plural,   (among) stones, i.e. smooth stones;, , , and with a following collective instead of a plural, e.g.  , i.e. poor men; , ; cf. in Latin canum degeneres. However, in almost all these cases the adjective which is made into a regens is strongly emphatic, and is frequently equivalent to a superlative (see below, ).

3. When two adjectives follow a feminine, sometimes only that standing next to the noun takes the feminine termination, e.g.  (but read );  (but cf. );,. A similar dislike of the feminine form may also be observed in the case of verbal predicates referring to feminine subjects, cf. and t.

When an attribute qualifies several substantives of different genders, it agrees with the masculine, as being the prior gender (cf. ), e.g. ;,.

When three attributes follow a substantive, the first two may stand without a conjunction, and the last be attached by, cf. .

4. After feminines plural ending in  the adjectival attribute (in accordance with the fundamental rule stated above, under a) takes the ending, e.g.  ;. For a strange exception see (differently in 24:2).

5. With regard to number it is to be remarked that—

(a) Substantives in the dual are followed by adjectives (or participles) in the plural, e.g.  ;,  f., cf. .

(b) Collective ideas are not infrequently joined with the plural of the adjective or participle (constructio ad sensum); thus, e.g. [with fem. plur.],, ; =men, , ; =all the Israelites, ; =the exiles, ; cf. also,. Cf. similar phenomena in the connexion of collectives with plural predicates in.

(c) The pluralis excellentiae or pluralis maiestatis is joined, as a rule, to the singular of the attribute, e.g. ;, 16 (=, 17); ; but cf. ,, 36, , , perhaps also