Journal of Northwest Semitic Languages 39/2 (2013), pp. 113-127 Sung Jin Park (Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion) APPLICATION OF THE TIBERIAN ACCENTUATION SYSTEM FOR COLOMETRY OF BIBLICAL HEBREW POETRY ABSTRACT This article briefly presents a most recent movement “delimitation criticism”, in which scholars have utilized the Tiberian Accentuation System as a means to establish the colometry of Hebrew verses and critically evaluates this movement's methodology. Based on the critical evaluation, the present study deals with proper application of the Tiberian Accentuation System to biblical Hebrew poetry for its colometric divisions and also provides a guideline for the colometry of the poetic texts in the Hebrew Bible: (1) Major disjunctive accents (silluq, aṭnaḥ, zaqef qaton, and revia) end a colon as main dividers. Several minor disjunctive accents may also end a colon under certain conditions; (2) A colon usually contains two disjunctive accents; (3) A line with a sequence of three disjunctive accents (in which the first two disjunctives are not major ones) is considered monocolon; (4) No conjunctive accent ends a colon. 1. THE RISE OF DELIMITATION CRITICISM This study discusses how to apply the Tiberian accentuation system (hereafter TAS) for dividing the biblical Hebrew poetic cola. Before discussing its application, however, I will briefly present a recent movement called “delimitation criticism” and evaluate its methodology, since it has been one of the most active scholarly movements regarding colometric divisions by TAS in recent years. Numerous scholars and commentators follow the authoritative editions of the Hebrew text which have already arranged the verses colometrically. Some scholars, however, do not accept that delineation. 1 Many times the Masoretic text’s divisions differ from those of other ancient Hebrew, Greek, Syriac, and Latin manuscripts. Even among the codices within the Masoretic tradition, the divisions are not identical. Accordingly, scholars have felt the urgent need for a method to determine legitimate colometry through comparison of ancient manuscripts, especially in the field of biblical Hebrew poetry. From this necessity, so-called “delimitation criticism” has arisen in the world of biblical scholarship. 1 See, in particular, Cloete (1989a:62; 1989b:40-41; 1989c:15-29; 1991:189- 204).