The Day Before...

I'm studying for my Hebrew Bible comp right now, which I will take tomorrow. I wonder, later on today, if I'll get the same sort of mixture between burn-out and panic attack that I got last week, while studying for my rabbinics comp. Last week, I was studying the rabbinic texts to prepare myself to translate and to explain them. I'm not doing that so much this week, for my Hebrew Bible professor told me that, in terms of what I'll have to translate on the test, anything in the Hebrew Bible except the Book of Job (which is difficult) is fair game. I can't read the entire Hebrew Bible by tomorrow, so I'll probably hit a few prominent poetic passages: Exodus 15, and the Song of Deborah.

In terms of translation, I'm relying on the fact that I have read a lot of biblical texts in Hebrew for my weekly quiet time, and for my study. I've done the Pentateuch. I've done Joshua-II Kings. I've done Ecclesiastes and (I think) the Song of Solomon. I did Isaiah. I'm a little weak, however, on other prophets and the Book of Proverbs. For many chapters of Proverbs, it's not easy to translate a passage by looking at context, for the chapters contain sentences that follow each other and really don't have much to do with each other. My professor once said that, in Proverbs, it's hard to determine what one sentence means in relation to another, whereas, in Job, it's hard to determine what one word means in relation to another. I guess that's why I won't be tested on Job!

Today's burn-out may come as I try to iron out all the different beliefs on the composition and sources of the Pentateuch, which can become a headache. I decided to take my comp with this professor because I wanted to learn the scholarly spectrum when it comes to the Hebrew Bible. I find different approaches to be interesting. Today, my study of them may lead to burn-out and panic attack! Or I may find what I discovered last week while I was working through the Mishnah tractate on vows (Nedarim): I'm actually interested in what I'm reading, but I'm stressed at having to know it for a test the next day!

In any case, I'll be studying and incorporating prayer into my day. I probably won't be able to publish comments until tomorrow evening, when I'll be done with my Hebrew Bible comp---so don't think I'm snubbing you if your comment doesn't appear for a while.

I'll probably let you all know tomorrow how my comp went! God bless.