Deuteronomy 28:67

Summary

The verse describes a state of constant dread in which the person wishes for the opposite time of day, morning wishing for evening and evening wishing for morning, because of fear in the heart and the sights the eyes will witness. The repetition of the phrase mi yiten ("who will give", H4310 + H5414Q) frames both halves of the verse as parallel expressions of longing for time to pass.

Key words

• toMar ("you will say", H0559) — qal imperfect, second person masculine singular, repeated twice, framing both statements as direct speech the addressee will utter.
• yiTen ("will he give", H5414Q) — qal imperfect, third person masculine singular, used idiomatically with mi ("who", H4310) to form the fixed expression "who will give," i.e., a wish.
• Pachad ("dread of", H6343) — masculine singular noun in construct state, linking to levav ("heart", H3824) to form "the dread of your heart."
• tifChad ("you will dread", H6342) — qal imperfect, second person masculine singular, from the same root as Pachad, creating a verbal echo within the clause "which you will dread."
• tirEh ("you will see", H7200G) — qal imperfect, second person masculine singular, paired with mar'eh ("sight of", H4758) and einei ("eyes", H5869A) in construct chain "the sight of your eyes which you will see."

What the text says

The verse is built on a chiastic repetition: ba-Boker toMar mi-yiTen 'Erev ("in the morning you will say, who will give evening") is mirrored by u-va-'Erev toMar mi-yiTen Boker ("and in the evening you will say, who will give morning"). The construction mi yiten is an idiomatic interrogative-optative form — literally "who will give," but functioning as a wish formula ("if only," "would that"). This structure produces a cyclical effect: morning names evening, evening names morning, without resolution.

The second half of the verse explains the cause of this repeated wish through two construct chains. The first, mi-Pachad levav-Kha 'asher tifChad ("from the dread of your heart which you will dread"), uses the noun Pachad ("dread", H6343) and the cognate verb tifChad ("you will dread", H6342) from the same root, reinforcing the intensity of the fear by repeating it in both nominal and verbal form. The second, u-mi-mar'eh einei-kha 'asher tirEh ("and from the sight of your eyes which you will see"), similarly pairs the noun mar'eh ("sight of", H4758) with the verb tirEh ("you will see", H7200G) from the same root ra'ah. Both clauses are introduced by the relative particle 'asher ("which", H0834A), each modifying the preceding construct noun and specifying that the dread and the sight are things the addressee will personally experience.

Differences between versions

The LXX renders the Hebrew idiom mi yiten ("who will give") as a direct question, "Ἠὼς ἄν γένοιτο ἑσπέρα;" ("would that it become evening?"), preserving the optative sense through Greek grammar rather than a literal "who will give" construction. The Vulgate similarly shifts to "Quis mihi det vesperum?" ("who will give me the evening?"), adding "mihi" ("to me") not present in the Hebrew. The Hebrew construct chain mar'eh einei-kha ("sight of your eyes") appears in the LXX as the plural "τῶν ὁραμάτων τῶν ὀφθαλμῶν σου" ("the visions of your eyes"), while the Vulgate uses "ea, quæ tuis videbis oculis" ("those things which you will see with your eyes"), each expanding or adjusting the compact Hebrew construct phrase.