[Mesorah] vav hahipuch and the jussive mood

[Akiva Miller]

"Yehi" (yod heh yod) is usually translated as "Let it be so". Examples
include: "Yehi ratzon etc etc" and "Yehi Shem etc etc". Rabbi Seth Mandel
once referred to this as the "jussive" form.

But when preceded by a vav, the wishfulness seems to evaporate, and it
becomes a simple past tense - "it happened":
Vayhi erev vayhi boker
Vayhi miketz
Vayhi b'etzem hayom
Vayhi bachatzi halaila

If so, then why not use the past tense ("V'hayah") in those cases? What
meaning is added by saying "vayhi"?

Akiva Miller
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