Note that this chart simply provides the default semantics of the verb—that is, the semantics that each form suggests when considered alone. As we will see, these defaults are often overridden by contextual considerations.5 For example, although qatal usually evokes a past tense idea (עָשִׂיתָ in Gen 4:10), it can also express present tense (יָעַצְתִּי in 2 Sam 17:11) and future tense (לָקַחְתִּי in 1 Sam 2:16), depending on context. Such examples do not mean that the BH verbal system is arbitrary