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1994-02-02
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THE ORIGINAL BIBLE READER
_________________________
compiled by Robert D. Wood, Radisson WI 54867-0235
Here is an easy way to read the original texts of the Holy Bible.
A major difficulty facing the Western student of Biblical languages is
that of alphabet. The strange, "foreign" appearance of Hebrew, Aramaic and
Greek characters can be intimidating. Accents, vowel points and the
left-to-right reading of the text make a puzzle of language learning. These
hindrances are eliminated by the system of transliteration used by the
Original Bible Reader.
Some may object to the unorthodox guide to pronunciation. While differing
from the spoken language, it has the advantage of being easy to learn. The
reader may however feel free to use more conventional pronunciation. Others
may complain to the lack of accents, vowel points and punctuation. May it be
noted that these marks were absent in the original texts. They were added by
relatively modern scribes. For the most part, they are not necessary for
understanding the sense of the text. Context is the best teacher: this is
the advantage possessed by the native speaker. Grammar may be pursued after
basic reading skills and vocabulary are mastered.
"Sink or Swim"
There are different ways to learn another language. Like learning to
swim, this may be accomplished through a series of lessons. But a faster way
may be to "jump in!" So learns a child to speak his native tongue. The
language student may similarly jump in and start reading. He sounds out the
words of the unknown text. He may jot down common words for a beginning
vocabulary. He can then compare the text with that of an English version.
Thus he escapes the tedium of a formal or traditional approach. A
fundamental overview of the language is gained. Lexical definitions and
grammar may be studied later.
The Original Bible Reader consists of language learning tools and of the
texts themselves. For tools there are alphabets, vocabularies and grammars.
For texts there are the Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek holy scriptures:
Hebrew: Ture Nbiaim Uktubim Old Testament Masoretic
Aramaic: Ktba Qdisa New Testament Peshitta
Greek: Y Kainy Diavyky New Testament Textus Receptus
That many students may explore the rich treasures of the verbally inspired
Word of the Almighty God is my earnest prayer, through Jesus Christ our Lord
and Savior.
"ani al sdi etelk lpni ueie tmim." Genesis 17:1b (Hebrew)
"ap elin din dktibn dteimnun disuo eu msiha bre dalea umn deimntun
neuun lkun bsme hia dlolm." John 20:31 (Aramaic)
PRONUNCIATION GUIDE
-------------------
This alphabet pronunciation guide is for the benefit of the English
reader. While it does not conform to the modern spoken language, it is much
easier to use.
HEBREW and ARAMAIC GREEK
a aleph a as in father a alpha a as in father
b beth b as in boy b beta b as in boy
g gimel g as in girl g gamma g as in girl
d daleth d as in day d delta d as in day
e he e as in bed e epsilon e as in bed
u waw u as in rule z zeta z as in zoo
z zayin z as in zoo y eta y as in yet
h heth h as in happy v theta th as in thing
v teth th as in thing i iota i as in machine
i yod i as in machine k kappa k as in kitchen
k kaph k as in kitchen l lambda l as in lamp
l lamed l as in lamp m mu m as in mother
m mem m as in mother n nu n as new
n nun n as in new x xi x as in tax
c samek c as in receive o omicron o as in bought
o ayin o as in bought p pi p as in pen
p pe p as in pen r rho r as in rain
j tsadde ch as in church s sigma s as in son
q qoph qu as in quick t tau t as in table
r resh r as in rain u upsilon u as in rule
s shin sh as in show f phi f as in father
t tau t as in table h chi h as in happy
c psi ch as in church
w omega o as in gold
Where a cluster of consonants is encountered, a pseudo-vowel may be
inserted to aid pronunciation. In the example text which follows, this
pseudo-vowel has the sound of short "u" as in "butter". For instance the
word "pni" sounds as "punee'", the word "mrhpt" as "murhup'ut".
Note also that several letters of the alphabet are semi-vowels. These are
pronounced according to context:
Hebrew Letter Consonant Semi-vowel
a - ah a as in father
e h eh e as in bed
u w oo u as in rule
i y ee i as in machine
o gh aw o as in bought
l l ul l as in ("ll" lulling sound of a motor)
m m um m as in ("hmm" I'm thinking)
r r ur r as in ("brr" it's cold)
For instance: "uiamr" sounds as "weeyah'mur" (the latter "u" pseudo-vowel)
and: "ium" sounds as "yoom".
An example Hebrew text: (Genesis 1:1-3)
brasit bra aleim at esmim uat earj. uearj eite teu ubeu uhsk ol pni teum
uruh aleim mrhpt ol pni emim. uiamr aleim iei aur uiei aur.
brahsheet' brah ahleyeem' aht eshmeem' waht eharch'. weharch' ey'teh
tehwoo' oobehwoo' oohshuk' awl punee' tehwoom' oorooh' ahleyeem' murhup'ut
awl punee' ehmeem'. weeya'mur ahleyeem' yey ahwoor' weeyey' ahwoor'.
An Aramaic text: (John 1:1-3)
brsit aituei eua mlta ueu mlta aituei eua lut alea ualea aituei eua eu
mlta. ena aituei eua brsit lut alea. kl baide eua ubloduei apla hda eut mdm
deua.
bursheet' aytwey' ehwah' mul'tah wehwoo' mul'tah aytwey' ehwah' loot
ahlehyah' wahlehyah' aytwey' ehwah' ehwoo' mul'tah. eh'nah aytwey' ehwah'
bursheet' loot ahlehyah'. kul baydeh' ehwah' ooblawd'wey ahplah' huda'
ehwoot' mu'dum dehwah'.
A Greek text: (John 1:1-3)
en arhy yn o logos kai o logos yn pros ton veon kai veos yn o logos.
outos yn en arhy pros ton veon. panta di autou egeneto kai hwris autou
egeneto oude en o gegonen.
ehn arhuh' uhn aw law'gaws kay aw law'gaws uhn praws tawn thehawn' kay
thehaws' uhn aw law'gaws. oo'taws uhn ehn arhuh' praws tawn thehawn'.
pahn'tah dee owtoo' ehgeh'netaw kay hohrees' owtoo' ehgeh'nehtaw oodeh' ehn
aw geh'gawnehn.