Lesson 7 | Qal Perfect
[4] In the Songs We’ve Learned
Speaking of worship, let’s turn back to a couple of songs we have learned so far and take note of the perfect verbs they contain.
Here we have a qal sequential-perfect from the verb שָׁאַב. From the ending, we can see that it is a 2mp speaking to “y’all.”
וּשְׁאַבְתֶּם־מַ֖יִם - “and you will draw water…”
This song contains the most common verb in the תנ״ך twice in the perfect form. Remember, הָיָה has a weak final letter in its root and so the ה becomes a י. With the completed sense of the perfect aspect and noting the context, we can translate both of these instances as follows:
Once again we have a sequential-perfect with imperfect aspect. However, this time we will not translate it as a simple future tense given the flow of the context. Instead, a jussive sense (i.e. a command or invitation in the 3rd person) seems best.
וְאָמַ֖ר כָּל־הָעָ֥ם אָמֵ֗ן — “Let all the people say ‘Amen’!”
You learned this song in the previous lesson. There is one perfect verb in it: גָבַר.
כִּ֥י גָ֘בַ֤ר עָלֵ֨ינוּ׀ חַסְדּ֗וֹ — “For his kindness toward us is great”
The perfect aspect of גָבַר shows that the psalmist views the greatness of God’s kindness toward his people as a full-fledged reality. He doesn’t say that God’s kindness “will be great,” but that it “is great”—he views God’s kindness as a completed whole, a steadfast truth.
Next, let’s learn a new song—one with two more qal perfect verbs.