I found a verse (1 Chronicles 12:24) with prefixes c, m, and h just by scanning on a filter. A little more work on my part allowed me to see the count of the use of these common prefixes: c (caf) is used 3,168 times as a prefix, m (mem) 17,419, v (vav) 60,131, h (heh) 34,070, b (beth) 15,386, and l (lamed) 17,689.
So prefixes are very commonly used. We need to get a handle on them and the variability of their usage. I was surprised, having not looked at my programming, how I had not included 'h' in my single character prefixes. The reason is perhaps -- I don't remember -- that h has a number of different uses as a prefix in both verbs and nouns.
If you look at a lexicon like BDB, you will of course find a long essay on each letter. I wonder if it could be made easier to absorb. Every one of the grammatical team of letters needs such an essay, as do the weak letters that appear or disappear in various word forms, and the strong ones that rarely disappear or metastasize. Perhaps I will find specific memorable verses that will illustrate the various letter prefixes. Verses with combinations of prefixes are relatively easy to find. E.g. there are 1211 verses that contain words with both prefixes c and m.
But not to be too dependent on counting, we still need to see and hear things in their context in order to learn by example.
Here first is the music for this randomly chosen verse 1 Chronicles 12:24.
1 Chronicles 12:24 |
This verse is a contrast to the well known verses of the first two posts on the grammar of love. 1 Chronicles 12:24 is not exactly my or anyone's favorite on which one could hang all the law and the prophets. It's more about the political and personal violence that pervades our social structures.
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