Resumptive Elements

Hebrew 2 (2022) texts

A resumptive element is a grammatical element or structure which repeats or in some way recapitulates a prior event.
or
A grammatical element connecting a clause to a preceding nominative absolute
These often occur in sentences with a relative particle (אשר or ש)

במדבר י״ג:ל״ב

(לב) וַיֹּצִ֜יאוּ דִּבַּ֤ת הָאָ֙רֶץ֙ אֲשֶׁ֣ר תָּר֣וּ אֹתָ֔הּ אֶל־בְּנֵ֥י יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל לֵאמֹ֑ר הָאָ֡רֶץ אֲשֶׁר֩ עָבַ֨רְנוּ בָ֜הּ לָת֣וּר אֹתָ֗הּ אֶ֣רֶץ אֹכֶ֤לֶת יוֹשְׁבֶ֙יהָ֙ הִ֔וא וְכׇל־הָעָ֛ם אֲשֶׁר־רָאִ֥ינוּ בְתוֹכָ֖הּ אַנְשֵׁ֥י מִדּֽוֹת׃

Numbers 13:32

(32) Thus they spread calumnies among the Israelites about the land they had scouted, saying, “The country that we traversed and scouted is one that devours its settlers. All the people that we saw in it are of great size;

דברים כ״ח:מ״ט

(מט) יִשָּׂ֣א יְהֹוָה֩ עָלֶ֨יךָ גּ֤וֹי מֵרָחֹק֙ מִקְצֵ֣ה הָאָ֔רֶץ כַּאֲשֶׁ֥ר יִדְאֶ֖ה הַנָּ֑שֶׁר גּ֕וֹי אֲשֶׁ֥ר לֹא־תִשְׁמַ֖ע לְשֹׁנֽוֹ׃

Deuteronomy 28:49

(49) יהוה will bring a nation against you from afar, from the end of the earth, which will swoop down like the eagle—a nation whose language you do not understand,

בראשית כ״ח:י״ג

(יג) וְהִנֵּ֨ה יְהֹוָ֜ה נִצָּ֣ב עָלָיו֮ וַיֹּאמַר֒ אֲנִ֣י יְהֹוָ֗ה אֱלֹהֵי֙ אַבְרָהָ֣ם אָבִ֔יךָ וֵאלֹהֵ֖י יִצְחָ֑ק הָאָ֗רֶץ אֲשֶׁ֤ר אַתָּה֙ שֹׁכֵ֣ב עָלֶ֔יהָ לְךָ֥ אֶתְּנֶ֖נָּה וּלְזַרְעֶֽךָ׃

Genesis 28:13

(13) And standing beside him was יהוה, who said, “I am יהוה, the God of your father Abraham’s [house] and the God of Isaac’s [house]: the ground on which you are lying I will assign to you and to your offspring.

Resumptive elements can also occur without a relative particle. These are the types of sentences that you have seen in the mishnah and mishneh torah in which the sentence begins by naming the topic of the sentence and a later element refers back to it. We have often translated this structure by saying " With regard to x" or "x:"

בראשית ל״ד:ח׳

(ח) וַיְדַבֵּ֥ר חֲמ֖וֹר אִתָּ֣ם לֵאמֹ֑ר שְׁכֶ֣ם בְּנִ֗י חָֽשְׁקָ֤ה נַפְשׁוֹ֙ בְּבִתְּכֶ֔ם תְּנ֨וּ נָ֥א אֹתָ֛הּ ל֖וֹ לְאִשָּֽׁה׃

Genesis 34:8

(8) And Hamor spoke with them, saying, “My son Shechem longs for your daughter. Please give her to him in marriage.

בראשית י״ז:ט״ו

(טו) וַיֹּ֤אמֶר אֱלֹהִים֙ אֶל־אַבְרָהָ֔ם שָׂרַ֣י אִשְׁתְּךָ֔ לֹא־תִקְרָ֥א אֶת־שְׁמָ֖הּ שָׂרָ֑י כִּ֥י שָׂרָ֖ה שְׁמָֽהּ׃

Genesis 17:15

(15) And God said to Abraham, “As for your wife Sarai, you shall not call her Sarai, but her name shall be Sarah.*Sarah I.e., “princess.”

ישעיהו י״א:י׳

(י) וְהָיָה֙ בַּיּ֣וֹם הַה֔וּא שֹׁ֣רֶשׁ יִשַׁ֗י אֲשֶׁ֤ר עֹמֵד֙ לְנֵ֣ס עַמִּ֔ים אֵלָ֖יו גּוֹיִ֣ם יִדְרֹ֑שׁוּ וְהָיְתָ֥ה מְנֻחָת֖וֹ כָּבֽוֹד׃ {פ}

Isaiah 11:10

(10) In that day,
The stock of Jesse that has remained standing
Shall become a standard to peoples—
Nations shall seek his counsel
And his abode shall be honored.

שופטים א׳:י״ב

(יב) וַיֹּ֣אמֶר כָּלֵ֔ב אֲשֶׁר־יַכֶּ֥ה אֶת־קִרְיַת־סֵ֖פֶר וּלְכָדָ֑הּ וְנָתַ֥תִּי ל֛וֹ אֶת־עַכְסָ֥ה בִתִּ֖י לְאִשָּֽׁה׃

Judges 1:12

(12) And Caleb announced, “I will give my daughter Achsah in marriage to the man who attacks and captures Kiriath-sepher.”

In other cases, של + noun functions as a resumptive element that repeats a preceding possessive suffix.

ְזֶהוּ עִקָּרוֹ שֶׁל וִדּוּי

משנה אבות ג׳:ב׳

(ב) רַבִּי חֲנִינָא סְגַן הַכֹּהֲנִים אוֹמֵר, הֱוֵי מִתְפַּלֵּל בִּשְׁלוֹמָהּ שֶׁל מַלְכוּת,

Pirkei Avot 3:2

(2) Rabbi Hanina, the vice-high priest said: pray for the welfare of the government,

In other cases, a pronoun can be placed before the noun it represents.

משנה אבות ב׳:ג׳

(ג) הֱווּ זְהִירִין בָּרָשׁוּת, שֶׁאֵין מְקָרְבִין לוֹ לָאָדָם אֶלָּא לְצֹרֶךְ עַצְמָן.

Pirkei Avot 2:3

(3) Be careful [in your dealings] with the ruling authorities for they do not befriend a person except for their own needs;

Now revisit the examples from last week and identify the element the first time it appears and its resumption:

שָׂעִיר הַמִּשְׁתַּלֵּחַ לְפִי שֶׁהוּא כַּפָּרָה עַל כָּל יִשְׂרָאֵל כֹּהֵן גָּדוֹל מִתְוַדֶּה עָלָיו עַל לְשׁוֹן כָּל יִשְׂרָאֵל
וּשְׁבוּעַת שָׁוְא וָשֶׁקֶר אַף עַל פִּי שֶׁאֵין בָּהֶן כָּרֵת הֲרֵי הֵן מִן הַחֲמוּרוֹת
"רִשְׁעַת הָרָשָׁע לֹא יִכָּשֶׁל בָּהּ בְּיוֹם שׁוּבוֹ מֵרִשְׁעוֹ".