Genesis 8:11

Summary

The dove returns to Noah at evening time carrying a freshly plucked olive leaf in its beak. From this sign, Noah understands that the floodwaters have diminished from the surface of the earth.

Key words

• ta.Vo' ("it came", H0935G) — qal verb in narrative form (with the narrative vav), marking the sequential action "and it came," referring back to the dove (feminine subject).
• ha.yo.nah ("the dove", H3123) — feminine singular noun with definite article, the grammatical subject of the sentence.
• ta.raf ("freshly plucked", H2965) — masculine singular adjective modifying 'a.leh-za.yit ("leaf of olive"), specifying the leaf's condition as newly torn rather than dried or dead.
• i.ye.da' ("he knew", H3045) — qal verb in narrative form, introducing Noah as the one who perceives or understands, chained to the preceding action by the narrative vav.
• ka.lu ("they were abated", H7043) — qal perfect verb, third person plural, indicating a completed action: the waters had already diminished by the time Noah draws his conclusion.

What the text says

The verse is built as two chained clauses joined by narrative vav forms: first va.ta.vo' ("and it came") describing the dove's return, then va.i.ye.da' ("and he knew") describing Noah's realization. This chaining structure presents the events as a direct sequence — the dove's arrival with the leaf leads immediately to Noah's understanding, with the visual evidence (the leaf) functioning as the link between the two actions. The interjection hi.neh ("there!", H2009) marks the moment of observation, drawing attention to the detail before the main clause continues.

The construct phrase 'a.leh-za.yit ("leaf of olive") uses the construct noun 'a.leh ("leaf of") governing za.yit ("olive"), and this phrase is further qualified by the adjective ta.raf ("freshly plucked"), specifying that the leaf was recently torn from the tree rather than a dead leaf floating on water — a detail bearing on what Noah could infer about the state of vegetation. Noah's knowledge is expressed with the particle ki- ("that", H3588A) introducing the content clause, followed by ka.lu ("they were abated"), a perfect verb indicating the waters' recession was already an accomplished fact at the time of his realization, not something occurring simultaneously.

Differences between versions

The LXX renders ta.raf ("freshly plucked") with κάρφος (a small piece/twig), differing from the Hebrew's emphasis on the leaf being torn rather than dried, and translates the verb ka.lu ("they were abated") with κεκόπακεν ("has ceased/subsided"), a form implying a slightly different verbal aspect. The Vulgate's virentibus foliis ("with green/flourishing leaves") expands on the single leaf described in the Hebrew, introducing plural leaves with an emphasis on their greenness not explicitly stated in the Hebrew text's singular 'a.leh ("leaf of").