Is the hebrew spoken today, the same as the spoken language in OT?

Answer 1

Biblical Hebrew is different from Modern Hebrew

Answer 2

According to Rabbi Elhanan Ben Avraham, yes and no. A few new words had to be created, obviously, just because of technology, but a lot has stayed the same. When Israel became a Jewish state in 1947 (I *think* that's the right year), the government had to decide what language to use. There were a few to choose from, but it was finally decided that Hebrew was really the only language most Jews had in common, because of the Scripture. This makes Hebrew the only language in the world that has ever died out (for the most part) and came back again.

Answer 3

Back then people spoke Classical Hebrew, which is different from modern Hebrew but it's just a different form of the same language. A bit like archaic English, but the differences are probably more pronounced since English hasn't been around as long.

Answer 4

Yes it is; different dialects, though.
The difference between Ancient and Modern Hebrew is sort of like the difference between Shakespearean English and modern English.

Answer 5

It's a little different--basically, it's the difference between English as we speak it today and the English of Chaucer's Canterbury Tales. Or maybe it was Shakespeare's English...I can't remember the metaphor correctly.

that_guy: 1948, but you get points for being super close ;-)
asker: he is right. some words had to be created, like obviously there were no words for things like computers and buses. But those words were usually built from the old words for similar things, like for instance the word "car" came from the word for "machine." (probably not the best example, but you know.)

Answer 6

Yes, it is, but since it is a language, some of the terms have changed over time. It is like the difference between the king James version of the Bible and the NIV version. Both are understood for the most part by English speaking persons but one is more up to date.