Abstract
The aim of this paper is to make a case for the translational program of Martin Buber and Frank Rosenzweig. They set forth a methodology for reading biblical texts, based on the perception of sound patterns such as the repetition of key words, called Leitwort (Leading Word). The Leitwort enables the understanding of a word root or word stem, the repetition of which has significance in the Hebrew text. It is also reproduced in the German translation. The Leitwort is not confined to a certain word but can also refer to a sentence or a single letter. The repetition of the Leitwort creates a dynamic phonetic movement and rhythmizes the structure in the biblical text, in which the change of tone precedes God's message and expresses the meaning of the whole teaching. This is the technique in the oral tradition to express the shift from prescriptions to a final instruction. Buber and Rosenzweig seek to demonstrate how the Bible presses art into the service of a Teaching, and how a translation designed to lead the attentive listener-reader back to the syntactic and stylistic workings of the Hebrew text may serve this end.
