What does thou mayest mean in Steinbeck?
East of eden timshel timshel basically means thou mayest, and in east of eden is seen as highly important because of it meaning thou mayest, not do thou or thou shalt. This meant that man was not ordered to triumph over sin or promised he will triumph over sin but that he may triumph over sin, that if he makes . The king james translation makes a promise in ‘thou shalt,’ meaning that men will surely triumph over sin. But the hebrew word, the word timshel—’thou mayest’—that gives a choice. It might be the most important word in the world. That says the way is open.But the Hebrew word timshel—’Thou mayest’—that gives a choice. For if ‘Thou mayest’—it is also true that ‘Thou mayest not. That makes a man great and that gives him stature with the gods, for in his weakness and his filth and his murder of his brother he has still the great choice.The King James version says “thou shalt” conquer sin, whereas the American Standard one says “do thou rule. But the Hebrew word used is “timshel,” which translates to “thou mayest. And that means there is a choice. With “timshel,” Cain would have a choice to either rule over sin or not.
What is the meaning of “thou mayest”?
Thou mayest means that man has a choice of how he will overcome and triumph over sin or not. Lee, Adam’s servant and cook, tells the story of how he sought help from Chinese scholars to understand the Hebrew word timshel. Lee explains the importance of thou mayest by stating, That says the way is open. Timshel is a Hebrew word, which translates to thou mayest. Its origins can be found in the Bible, specifically in the story of Cain and Abel in Genesis 4:7.