Exodus 27:8

Summary

Exodus 27:8 concludes the instructions for the bronze altar, specifying that it must be built hollow, constructed of boards, following the pattern Moses was shown on the mountain. The verse shifts from singular address (to Moses) to a plural verb form for the actual builders.

Key words

• ne.Vuv ("hollow of", H5014) — passive participle, masculine singular construct; describes the altar's structural quality (empty inside) and stands in construct relationship with the next word, forming the phrase "hollow of boards."
• lu.Chot ("boards", H3871) — feminine plural noun; specifies the material/construction method, completing the construct phrase begun by ne.Vuv.
• ta.'a.Seh ("you will make", H6213H) — qal imperfect, second person masculine singular; addresses Moses directly regarding the altar's construction.
• her.'Ah ("he showed", H7200G) — hiphil perfect, third person masculine singular; causative form indicating that someone (understood as God) caused Moses to see the pattern, a completed past action.
• ya.'a.Su ("they will do", H6213H) — qal imperfect, third person masculine plural; same root as ta.'aSeh but shifts to plural subject, referring to those who will actually execute the construction.

What the text says

The verse opens with a construct chain, nevuv luchot ("hollow of boards"), where the passive participle nevuv qualifies the manner of construction before the main verb ta'aseh ("you will make") appears. This word order places the structural description (hollow, made of boards) before the command itself, emphasizing the altar's construction method at the sentence's start.

The verse's grammatical structure moves between two verbal subjects: it begins with singular address to Moses (ta'aseh, her'ah referring to what "he showed you"), then closes with the plural ya'asu ("they will make/do"). This shift from second-person singular to third-person plural within a single sentence points to a distinction between the individual receiving instructions (Moses) and the group who will carry out the actual building.

The clause ka'asher her'ah otekha bahar ("as he showed you on the mountain") uses the hiphil perfect her'ah, a causative form indicating that someone caused Moses to see a pattern — the grammatical subject of "he showed" is not explicitly named in this verse but implied from context.

Differences between versions

The Hebrew ends with the plural verb ya'asu ("they will make"), but the LXX renders this final clause with the singular ποιήσεις ("you will make"), maintaining singular address throughout rather than shifting to plural as the Hebrew does.

The Vulgate renders her'ah ("he showed," active hiphil) with the passive construction "monstratum est" ("it was shown"), removing the implied active subject present in the Hebrew verb form. Additionally, the Vulgate's sentence stops at "as it was shown to you in the mountain," omitting a rendering equivalent to the Hebrew's closing clause ken ya'asu ("so they will do").