Deuteronomy 28:17

Summary

Deuteronomy 28:17 pronounces a curse on two household items: the tan'akha ("your basket") and the mish'artekha ("your kneading trough"). The verse belongs to a series of curses listed as consequences within the covenant framework of chapter 28.

Key words

• 'Arur ("cursed", H0779) — Qal passive participle, masculine singular; functions as the predicate of the sentence, placed first for emphasis.
• Tan'akha ("your basket", H2935) — masculine singular noun in construct form, meaning "basket of you," i.e., "your basket"; the pronominal suffix attaches directly to the construct noun.
• Mish'artekha ("your kneading trough", H4863) — feminine singular noun in construct form with second-person masculine singular suffix; refers to the vessel used for kneading dough.
• u- ("and", H9002) — conjunction joining the two nominal phrases under a single verbal predicate.

What the text says

The Hebrew sentence has a minimal structure: a single passive participle, 'arur, stands at the head of the clause and governs two coordinated noun phrases — tan'akha and mish'artekha — joined by the conjunction u-. Notably, 'arur is grammatically singular and masculine, yet it applies to two nouns of different genders (tan'a is masculine, mish'arah is feminine). This is a fixed formulaic use of the participle as a curse-pronouncement, functioning almost like an invariable predicate rather than agreeing in gender and number with its subjects, a common feature in this chapter's curse formulas.

The two nouns designate everyday agricultural/household equipment: the basket (used for carrying or storing produce) and the kneading trough (used for preparing dough). Both are marked as construct forms with second-person masculine singular pronominal suffixes, indicating the items belong to "you" (singular, addressing an individual or collective entity).

Differences between versions

The Hebrew text uses one singular participle ('arur) covering both nouns. The LXX renders this with a plural adjective, ἐπικατάρατοι ("cursed," plural), agreeing grammatically with the two plural nouns αἱ ἀποθῆκαί σου ("your storehouses") καὶ τὰ ἐγκαταλίμματά σου ("your remains"). The LXX also shifts the lexical sense: "storehouses" instead of "basket," and "remains/leftovers" instead of "kneading trough."

The Vulgate splits the single Hebrew predicate into two separate curse-statements: Maledictum horreum tuum ("cursed be your storehouse," singular) and et maledictae reliquiae tuae ("and cursed be your remains," plural), each verb agreeing in number with its respective noun — a structure differing from the Hebrew's single invariant participle governing both terms.