BBH Chapter 34 — Hithpael Strong Verbs (הִתְקַטֵּל)¶
Learn the Hithpael stem for strong verbs in all conjugations: perfect, imperfect, imperative, infinitives, and participle. Identify the diagnostic הִתְ- preformative and dagesh forte in the middle root consonant, and learn the metathesis rule (when the root begins with a sibilant, ת and the first consonant switch places) and the assimilation rules (when the root begins with certain consonants). Understand the Hithpael's primary reflexive and reciprocal functions.
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Basics of Biblical Hebrew, Pratico & Van Pelt, Chapter 34
1. Introduction (§34.1)¶
The Hithpael is the easiest of the derived stems to recognize because of its distinctive preformatives and prefixes. Every Hithpael strong verb form carries three diagnostic features:
- A distinctive prefix in all conjugations (הִתְ in the Perfect; יִתְ / תִּתְ / אֶתְ / נִתְ in the Imperfect; מִתְ in the Participle)
- Pathach under the first consonant of the verbal root
- Daghesh Forte in the second consonant of the verbal root
The Piel, Pual, and Hithpael all share the Daghesh Forte in R2.
2. Meaning of the Hithpael (§34.2)¶
1. Intensive-Reflexive¶
The most common Hithpael function. The subject performs the verbal action upon itself.
| Form | Translation | Analysis |
|---|---|---|
| הִתְקַדֵּשׁ | he sanctified himself | Hithpael Perfect 3ms from קָדַשׁ |
| הִתְחַבְּאוּ | they hid themselves | Hithpael Perfect 3cp from חָבָא |
2. Reciprocal¶
Multiple subjects perform the action on one another.
| Form | Translation | Analysis |
|---|---|---|
| הִתְרָאוּ | they looked at each other | Hithpael Perfect 3cp from רָאָה |
| הִתְקַשְּׁרוּ | they conspired with each other | Hithpael Perfect 3cp from קָשַׁר |
3. Iterative¶
Repeated or habitual action.
| Form | Translation | Analysis |
|---|---|---|
| הִתְהַלֵּךְ | he walked back and forth | Hithpael Perfect 3ms from הָלַךְ |
| הִתְהַפֵּךְ | he turned this way and that | Hithpael Perfect 3ms from הָפַךְ |
4. Simple Action¶
Some Hithpael verbs are translated like a Qal simple action.
| Form | Translation | Analysis |
|---|---|---|
| הִתְפַּלֵּל | he prayed | Hithpael Perfect 3ms from פָּלַל |
| הִתְיַצֵּב | he stood firm | Hithpael Perfect 3ms from יָצַב |
3. Hithpael Perfect (§34.3–34.4)¶
The Hithpael Perfect is formed with the הִתְ prefix, the verbal root (with Daghesh Forte in R2), and the Perfect sufformatives.
| PGN | Qal | Hithpael | Translation |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3ms | קָטַל | הִתְקַטֵּל | he slaughtered himself |
| 3fs | קָֽטְלָה | הִתְקַטְּלָה | she slaughtered herself |
| 2ms | קָטַ֫לְתָּ | הִתְקַטַּ֫לְתָּ | you slaughtered yourself |
| 2fs | קָטַלְתְּ | הִתְקַטַּלְתְּ | you slaughtered yourself |
| 1cs | קָטַ֫לְתִּי | הִתְקַטַּ֫לְתִּי | I slaughtered myself |
| 3cp | קָֽטְלוּ | הִתְקַטְּלוּ | they slaughtered themselves |
| 2mp | קְטַלְתֶּם | הִתְקַטַּלְתֶּם | you slaughtered yourselves |
| 2fp | קְטַלְתֶּן | הִתְקַטַּלְתֶּן | you slaughtered yourselves |
| 1cp | קָטַ֫לְנוּ | הִתְקַטַּ֫לְנוּ | we slaughtered ourselves |
Diagnostics: 1. הִתְ prefix in every form 2. Pathach under R1 3. Daghesh Forte in R2
4. Hithpael Imperfect (§34.5–34.6)¶
The Hithpael Imperfect uses the preformatives יִתְ / תִּתְ / אֶתְ / נִתְ with the verbal root and Imperfect sufformatives.
| PGN | Qal | Hithpael | Translation |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3ms | יִקְטֹל | יִתְקַטֵּל | he will slaughter himself |
| 3fs | תִּקְטֹל | תִּתְקַטֵּל | she will slaughter herself |
| 2ms | תִּקְטֹל | תִּתְקַטֵּל | you will slaughter yourself |
| 2fs | תִּקְטְלִי | תִּתְקַטְּלִי | you will slaughter yourself |
| 1cs | אֶקְטֹל | אֶתְקַטֵּל | I will slaughter myself |
| 3mp | יִקְטְלוּ | יִתְקַטְּלוּ | they will slaughter themselves |
| 3fp | תִּקְטֹ֫לְנָה | תִּתְקַטֵּ֫לְנָה | they will slaughter themselves |
| 2mp | תִּקְטְלוּ | תִּתְקַטְּלוּ | you will slaughter yourselves |
| 2fp | תִּקְטֹ֫לְנָה | תִּתְקַטֵּ֫לְנָה | you will slaughter yourselves |
| 1cp | נִקְטֹל | נִתְקַטֵּל | we will slaughter ourselves |
Diagnostics: 1. Preformatives יִתְ / תִּתְ / אֶתְ / נִתְ — unique and easy to identify 2. Pathach under R1 3. Daghesh Forte in R2
5. Hithpael Imperative (§34.7)¶
The Hithpael Imperative is formed with the הִתְ prefix, the verbal root (with Daghesh Forte in R2), and the Imperative sufformatives.
| PGN | Qal | Hithpael | Translation |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2ms | קְטֹל | הִתְקַטֵּל | slaughter yourself! |
| 2fs | קִטְלִי | הִתְקַטְּלִי | slaughter yourself! |
| 2mp | קִטְלוּ | הִתְקַטְּלוּ | slaughter yourselves! |
| 2fp | קְטֹ֫לְנָה | הִתְקַטֵּ֫לְנָה | slaughter yourselves! |
6. Hithpael Infinitive Construct and Infinitive Absolute (§34.8)¶
Both the Infinitive Construct and Infinitive Absolute are identical to the Perfect 3ms and Imperative 2ms: הִתְקַטֵּל. Context distinguishes these four identical-looking forms.
Shared diagnostics (§34.9): 1. הִתְ prefix 2. Pathach under R1 3. Daghesh Forte in R2
7. Hithpael Participle (§34.10–34.11)¶
The Hithpael Participle uses the מִתְ prefix.
| Qal | Hithpael | Translation | |
|---|---|---|---|
| ms | קֹטֵל | מִתְקַטֵּל | slaughtering himself |
| fs | קֹטֶ֫לֶת | מִתְקַטֶּ֫לֶת | slaughtering herself |
| mp | קֹטְלִים | מִתְקַטְּלִים | slaughtering themselves |
| fp | קֹטְלוֹת | מִתְקַטְּלוֹת | slaughtering themselves |
Diagnostics: 1. מִתְ prefix — unique; makes the Hithpael Participle easy to identify 2. Pathach under R1 3. Daghesh Forte in R2
8. Metathesis (§34.12)¶
When the ת of the Hithpael prefix or preformative precedes a verbal root beginning with a sibilant consonant (ס, צ, שׂ, or שׁ), the two consonants switch places.
| Qal | Hithpael | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| שָׁמַר | he guarded | הִשְׁתַּמֵּר | he guarded himself |
| שָׂכַר | he hired | הִשְׂתַּכֵּר | he hired himself (earned wages) |
| סָתַר | he hid | הִסְתַּתֵּר | he hid himself |
The most important form to know: הִשְׁתַּחֲוָה (bow down, worship) from root שׁחה — the most frequent Hithpael form in the OT (~173 occurrences). See §11 for the full Hishtaphel treatment.
9. Assimilation of ת (§34.13)¶
When the first consonant of a verbal root is ד, ז, ט, or ת, the ת of the Hithpael prefix assimilates into that consonant and becomes a Daghesh Forte.
| Qal | Hithpael | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| דָּבַר | he spoke | הִדַּבֵּר | he spoke with |
| טָמֵא | he was defiled | הִטַּמֵּא | he defiled himself |
10. Summary Paradigm (§34.14)¶
In every Hithpael strong verb form: Pathach under R1, Daghesh Forte in R2. The prefix/preformative changes by conjugation.
| PGN | Perfect | Imperfect | Imperative | Inf. Cs. | Inf. Abs. | Participle |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3ms | הִתְקַטֵּל | יִתְקַטֵּל | הִתְקַטֵּל | הִתְקַטֵּל | הִתְקַטֵּל | מִתְקַטֵּל |
| 3fs | הִתְקַטְּלָה | תִּתְקַטֵּל | מִתְקַטֶּ֫לֶת | |||
| 2ms | הִתְקַטַּ֫לְתָּ | תִּתְקַטֵּל | הִתְקַטְּלִי | מִתְקַטְּלִים | ||
| 2fs | הִתְקַטַּלְתְּ | תִּתְקַטְּלִי | הִתְקַטְּלוּ | מִתְקַטְּלוֹת | ||
| 1cs | הִתְקַטַּ֫לְתִּי | אֶתְקַטֵּל | ||||
| 3cp | הִתְקַטְּלוּ | יִתְקַטְּלוּ | ||||
| 2mp | הִתְקַטַּלְתֶּם | תִּתְקַטְּלוּ | הִתְקַטֵּ֫לְנָה | |||
| 2fp | הִתְקַטַּלְתֶּן | תִּתְקַטֵּ֫לְנָה | ||||
| 1cp | הִתְקַטַּ֫לְנוּ | נִתְקַטֵּל |
11. Additional Information: The Hishtaphel Stem (§34.16)¶
The verb חָוָה (to bow down, worship) appears 173 times in the Hebrew Bible and only in the Hishtaphel stem — the only verb in this stem. Its forms are recognized by the distinctive prefix הִשְׁתּ (Perfect) and מִשְׁתּ (Participle). Note that חָוָה is a III-ה verb and carries the characteristic endings of that weak class.
| Conjugation | Prefix | Form | PGN | Translation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Perfect | הִשְׁתּ | הִשְׁתַּחֲוָה | 3ms | he worshiped |
| הִשְׁתַּחֲווּ | 3cp | they worshiped | ||
| הִשְׁתַּחֲוִיתֶם | 2mp | you worshiped | ||
| Imperfect | יִשְׁתּ | יִשְׁתַּחֲוֶה | 3ms | he will worship |
| וַיִּשְׁתַּחוּ | 3ms | he worshiped (Waw Consecutive) | ||
| תִּשְׁתַּחֲוֶה | 2ms | you will worship | ||
| אֶשְׁתַּחֲוֶה | 1cs | I will worship | ||
| יִשְׁתַּחֲווּ | 3mp | they will worship | ||
| Imperative | הִשְׁתּ | הִשְׁתַּחֲווּ | 2mp | worship! |
| Inf. Construct | הִשְׁתּ | הִשְׁתַּחֲוֹת | to worship, bow down | |
| Participle | מִשְׁתּ | מִשְׁתַּחֲוֶה | ms | worshiping, bowing down |
| מִשְׁתַּחֲוִים | mp | worshiping, bowing down |
Biblical examples:
וְהִשְׁתַּחֲווּ לַיהוָה בְּהַר הַקֹּדֶשׁ
And they will worship Yahweh on the holy mountain. (Isa 27:13)
וַיִּשְׁתַּחוּ אַבְרָהָם לִפְנֵי עַם הָאָרֶץ
And Abraham bowed down before the people of the land. (Gen 23:12)
נָפְלוּ לִפְנֵי יְהוָה לְהִשְׁתַּחֲוֹת לַיהוָה
They fell down before Yahweh to worship Yahweh. (2 Chr 20:18)