Cohortatives & Jussives

One very important aspect of the imperfect tense is the use of what is called the Cohortative and Jussive usages of Imperfect forms.

The Cohoratitive

The Cohortative is used with the first person singular and plural in the imperfect, and is recognizable by an appended הָּ to the last syllable of the first person singular or plural Imperfect form. The purpose and reason for the Cohortative usage is emphasis.

For example, I could say in Hebrew, “I will keep the Law of God” – אֶשְׁמֹר הַתּוֹרַת אֱלֹהִים (’ešmōr hattôrat ’ĕlōhîm) – but with the Cohortative, it will read, “I will surely keep the Law of God” – אֶשְׁמְרָה הַתּוֹרַת אֱלֹהִים (’ešmərâ hattôrat ’ĕlōhîm) – with the “surely” being employed for the added emphasis.

However, there are also times when the first person singular or plural has a Cohortative emphasis without the final הָּ, and that in turn requires a judgment call of you, the exegete, in determining if the context requires and allows a Cohortative usage without an appended הָּ.

There is also an additional particle that is added at times to both the Cohortative and Jussive for added emphasis – נָא – and it is tacked on to the last syllable containing the appended הָ with a maqqef, which will appear as such, הָ־נָאָ, and the best translation in most usages of נָא, is “please.”

However, when used with the Cohortative in either the first person singular or plural, the wording might better be, “with permission, we will…,” or “with permission, I will…” The “please” aspect of the נא, therefore, when used with the Cohortative, is to affirmatively state, in a courteous manner, the intention of the Cohortative action of the verb being used with the idea of allowance of such action by the person or persons being addressed.

There are also times when the Cohortative will be translated with “let,” but when that occurs, it is used as an emphatic expression of someone’s deep desire for whatever action the verb is expressing. And like the Jussive, the Cohortative is used with all of the Hebrew verb stems.

Below are three examples of the Cohortative in both the first person singular and plural. In the first example, the Piel stem is used with the first person singular. In the second, the Qal stem is used with the first person plural as an example of the נָא being appended to the Cohortative. In the third example, we have the first person singular Cohortative used with “let”:

1. וַאֲדַבְּרָה בְעֵדֹתֶיךָ נֶגֶד מְלָכִים וְלֹא אֵבֹֽושׁ (wa’ădabbərâ bə‘ēdōtêkā neɡed məlākîm wəlō’ ’ēbôš) – “And I will speak (וַאֲדַבְּרָה – wa’ădabbərâ – cohortative) about your testimonies before kings, and I will not be ashamed (non-cohortative)” (Psalm 119:46). What is also interesting is that the verb “I will speak” is also a Piel verb stem, which in this case is also emphatic, so David, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, is doubly emphatic about his intention to “speak about God’s testimonies before kings.”

2. נַעְבְּרָה־נָּא בְאַרְצֶךָ לֹא נַעֲבֹר בְּשָׂדֶה וּבְכֶרֶם (na‘bərâ-nnā’ bə’arṣekā lō na‘ăbōr bəśādeh ûbəkerem) – “With permission, we will pass נַעְבְּרָה־נָּא – (na‘bərâ-nnā’) through in your land; we will not pass through in a field or in a vineyard,...” (Numbers 20:17). The translation I am giving you is a bit different from most translations, but when the נָא is attached to the Cohortative, the emphatic force of the Cohortative is there for a reason, but it is also coupled with the idea of courteous submission. Therefore, what Moses is saying to the King of Edom in an amplified manner is, “We will indeed pass through your land, with your permission, and in doing so, we will absolutely not exploit any of your resources for your people.” Thus, Moses is categorically affirming that as they pass through Edom’s land, the Israelites will in no way adversely affect any of their produce, etc. Consequently, even in something seemingly as insignificant as the appended הָ־נָא on the end of a first person singular or plural imperfect verb form, you can see that it is quite important for you to look at the passage in its total context in order to determine as accurately as possible what the passage is actually saying.

3.וַיֹּאמֶר יִשְׂרָאֵל אֶל־יוֹסֵף אָמוּתָה הַפָּעַם אַחֲרֵי רְאוֹתִי אֶת־פָּנֶיךָ כִּי עוֹדְךָ חָֽי (wayyō’mer yiśrā’ēl’el-yôsēp’āmûtâ happā‘am’aḥărêrə’ôtî’et-pānêkā kî‘ôdəkāḥāy) – “And Israel said unto Joseph, ‘Let me die (אָמוּתָה– ’āmûtâ) now after I have seen your face that you are still alive” (Genesis 46:30). The form (אָמוּתָה – ’āmûtâ) is a Qal Imperfect, 1^st person singular, from the root verb מוּת (mût), which means “ to die,” and is an Ayin Waw verb, with the Cohortative ending הָ on the last syllable. Thus, in this instance, and in the context of this passage, the use of “let” is quite applicable and fitting with Jacob’s spiritual and emotional state of finally seeing his long, lost son, Joseph, whom he thought was dead and gone from his life, but now, as he sees Joseph face to face, his joy is complete, and he is ready for his life to end. However, some translators apply the Jussive aspect of “hope,” or “desire,” or “wish” with what they deem is a Cohortative usage of a verb in the first person singular or plural without the appended הָ, and such a translation as, “let me...,” or “let us...” is at the discretion of the translator because such a verb may just as easily and correctly be translated as “I will...,” or “we will...” Therefore, just know that when you come to such translations of the Imperfect first person singular or plural such as “let me...” or “let us...,” as just stated above, those translations can just as easily be translated as “I will...,” or “we will...,” and my encouragement to you, once again, is to look at such a phrase in the total context of the passage as a whole.

The Jussive

On the other hand, the Jussive is translated as carrying the idea of asking permission for a certain action to be or not to be carried out, with the English auxiliary words “let” and “may” being the ones primarily used, and as just stated, the Jussive is expressing the speaker’s desire and entreaty, and sometimes even in the form of a command, but a command that is a genuine entreaty. In addition, the Jussive is also used in the Imperfect verb form, but with the second and third person singular and plural. However, as with the Cohortative above, when the particle נָא is attached to the Jussive, then the English auxiliary word “please” is indeed the best, overall translation, and the נָא will be attached to the last syllable of the verb with a maqqef as such, ־נָא. Also, the Hiphil verb stem in particular has a shortened, Imperfect form that is translated as a Jussive throughout the weak verbs, as well as do the other verb stems in some of the weak verbs. On the other hand, here too, as with the Cohortatives above, there are times when the “let” and “may” of the typical Jussive translation may as correctly and legitimately be translated as “I will,” or “we will,” the context of the passage being the determining factor. Below, therefore, are some examples of Jussive usage:

1. וַיֹּאמֶר אֱלֹהִים יְהִי אֹור וַֽיְהִי־אֹֽור (wayyō’mer’ĕlōhîmyəhî’ôr wayəhî-’ôr) – “And God said, let there be (יְהִי – yəhî) light, and there was light” (Genesis 1:3). As you can see above, this verse may also be read, “And God said, light will be, and there was light.” Thus, the Jussive here, as elsewhere with normal and shortened forms of the Imperfect, is at the discretion of a translator because theologically, God does not ask permission, nor does He first seek out the “will” of any other being before He does anything.

2. יָסֵר מֵעָלַי שִׁבְטוֹ וְאֵמָתוֹ אַֽל־תְּבַעֲתַֽנִּי (yāsērmē‘ālayšibṭôwə’ēmātô’al-təba‘ătannî) – “Let Him remove (yāsēr) His rod from me, and let not His terror terrify me (תְּבַעֲתַֽנִּי – təba‘ătannî)” (Job 9:34). The form יָסֵר (yāsēr) is an example of the Hiphil Jussive form for the Ayin Waw verb, which in this instance is סוּר (sûr). However, the other Jussive translation at the end of the verse, “let not terrify me,” is a Piel Imperfect, 3^rd Feminine Singular of the verb בָּעַת (bā‘at). This second usage is an example of an interpretive analysis of when a Jussive translation is applicable and appropriate, and in this instance of the syntax of the verse and the passage as a whole, it certainly seems appropriate and applicable. In addition, the word “may” could also legitimately be used here (e.g., “May He remove His rod from me, and may His terror not terrify me”), and that is clearly at the discretion of the translator.

3. בְּסֹדָם אַל־תָּבֹא נַפְשִׁי בִּקְהָלָם אַל־תֵּחַד כְּבֹדִי (bəsōdām’al-tābō’napšîbiqhālām’al-tēḥadkəbōdîkîb’appām) – “Do not let my soul enter (תָּבֹא – tābō’) into their counsel, do not let my glory indeed unite (תֵּחַד – tēḥad) with their assembly” (Genesis 49:6). In this verse, we have the negative particle (אַל (’al) joined with the two pleas in this verse – “enter” and “unite” – and without any question, we can clearly see the command aspect of the Jussive entreaty being legitimately used here in this translation, but the verbal form is not an imperative (i.e., a command), but rather, it is the 3^rd person feminine singular, imperfect form of the verb. However, this is a good example of the intensity of the Jussive that is clearly expressing a strong and compelling request.