The Perfect Verb

Hebrew has no “tenses.” Tense indicates time related to the action of the verb. The time of a Hebrew verb is indicated by the context, not the use of a form.

The inflection of the Hebrew Verb

State, rather than time, is inflected by the Hebrew verb. The verb presents the condition of the action as complete or incomplete. The completed states are perfects; the incomplete states are imperfects.

Infinitives

Infinitives are not verbs. They are nouns or adverbs used to name the action of a verb or to modify a verb.

Imperatives

Imperatives follow the specific pattern of the imperfect.

The Participle

The participle shares the qualities of a noun and of a verb. Therefore, it is not a state but an adjectival form of the verb.

Using the perfect for the past tense and the imperfect for the future tense is incorrect in Biblical Hebrew.

The Perfect State

The fundamental part of any verb is the root. The simplest verb form is the third-person masculine singular of the perfect. The three consonants of this form, as a rule, constitute the root. One of the characteristics of Semitic Languages is that the verbs are generally composed of a root that has three letters. The letters of the strong verb like קַטָל appear in all forms of the verb without change. The vowels of the third masculine singular perfect continue in all other forms of the perfect except as the laws of syllable and tone require a change when suffixes are added. Suffixes are the remnants of personal pronouns, which are added to indicate variations in the person, number, and gender.

The suffixes for the perfect verb are:

Singular Plural
3 m - he
2 f ה ָ she 3 c וּ they
2 m תָּ You (m) 2 m תֶּם you all (m)
2 f תְּ You (f) 2 f תֶּן you all (f)
1 c תִּי I 1 c נוּ we
By taking the ground form קַטָל and adding these suffixes, after we apply the rules of syllabication and the value of the vowels, we have the full diagram of the perfect verb.
Singular
3 m קָטַל He killed
3 f קָטְלָה She killed
2 m קָטַ֣לְתָּ You (m) killed
2 f קָטַלְתְּ You (f) killed
1 c קָטַ֣לְתִּי I killed
Plural
3 c קָֽטְלוּ They killed
2 m קְטַלְתֶּם You all (m) killed
2 f קְטַלְתֶּן You all (f) killed
1 c קָטַ֣לְנוּ We killed

Explanation of the vowel changes

With vocalic suffixes

A vocalic or vowel suffix is a suffix that begins with a vowel. There are two of these types, ָה and וּ. Since they begin with a vowel, they cannot form separate syllables and attach themselves to the final consonant of the root. They draw the accent to themselves.
A general rule to follow: Before a vocalic suffix an open pre-tonic syllable will volatilize. ט of קָטַלָה becomes קָֽטְלָה. The shewa of this syllable, being a changing vowel form, is vocal. It is also pretonic. Therefore, the vowel preceding it receives a metheg. Thus the forms are קָֽטְלָה and קָֽטְלוּ.

With consonantal suffixes

A consonantal affix is one that begins with a consonant. תֶּם and תֶּן are the only two consonantal suffixes that will take the accent. Before consonantal suffixes, an open ante-pre-tonic (the first) syllable will volatilize. When the heavy suffixes draw the accent from the penult, the vowel of the anti-penult, standing in an open syllable two places before the tone, must receive a metheg or volatilize. Usually volatilizes קְטַלְתֶּם and קְטַלְתֶּן.
In the case of the second feminine singular the תְּ cannot form a separate syllable and so attaches itself to the ultima. תְּ is a remnant of אַתְּ in which the shewa is vocal; therefore, it is a vocal in the perfect 2 f s. The daghesh in תְּ shows that the shewa of the לְ is a syllable divider. טַלְ is a closed syllable that has been opened by the addition of תְּ. Thus טַלְתְּ is a syllable, not fully shut, but half closed. Vowel affix and תֶּם and תֶּן take the accent. The nearest vowel in an open syllable is volatilized to shewa.
Note: To form the simple perfect of any strong verb, exchange the three consonants with the three consonants of קָטַל. The vowels will be the same.