Bible HebrewQal Imperfect
Basic verb stem, ongoing/future action.
Imperfect (yiqtol): ongoing or future
The imperfect shows the person mostly with a prefix:
| In English | שׁמר “keep” | Prefix |
|---|---|---|
| I will keep | אֶשְׁמֹר | א |
| you will keep (said to a man), or she will keep | תִּשְׁמֹר | ת |
| he will keep | יִשְׁמֹר | י |
| we will keep | נִשְׁמֹר | נ |
| they will keep | יִשְׁמְרוּ | י … וּ |
Command: drop the prefix: שְׁמֹר “keep!”. Story past: וַ + imperfect is the wayyiqtol, the main storytelling form: וַיֹּאמֶר “and he said”.
Don't: לֹא + imperfect is a lasting prohibition (לֹא תִּגְנֹב “you shall not steal”); אַל + a short form is “don't!” right now.
The codes work the same as in the perfect: 3ms “he will keep”, 1cs “I will keep”, 1cp “we will keep”.
Check yourself
Which prefix means “we” in the imperfect?
✓ נ · א · ת · י
The letter נ in front means “we”: נִשְׁמֹר “we will keep”.
In אַל־תִּירָא אַבְרָם (Genesis 15:1), what kind of “don’t” is אַל?
✓ an urgent “don’t!” for right now · a lasting law, like the Ten Commandments · a question · “not yet”
אַל is the in-the-moment “don’t”; לֹא with the imperfect is the lasting one: לֹא תִּגְנֹב (Exodus 20:15).
What is וַיֹּאמֶר?
✓ the story verb: “and he said” · an imperative: “say!” · a perfect: “he has said” · a participle: “saying”
וַ in front of a “he will” form makes the story verb, which tells what happened next: וַיֹּאמֶר “and he said”.
What does יְהוָה יִמְלֹךְ לְעֹלָם וָעֶד say (Exodus 15:18)?
✓ Yəḥawwe will reign forever and ever. · Yəḥawwe reigned forever. · Reign, O yəḥawwe! · We will reign forever.
The prefix י means “he”, and the imperfect looks ahead: יִמְלֹךְ “he will reign”.
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