Exodus 38:4

Summary

The verse describes the construction of a bronze grating for the altar, made in the form of a net, positioned under the altar's ledge and reaching halfway up from the bottom.

Key words

• va-ya'as ("and he made", H9001+H6213H) — narrative vav plus qal verb, continuing the sequential account of construction.
• mikhbar ("a grating", H4345) — masculine singular noun naming the object being fabricated.
• ma'aseh reshet ("work of a net", H4639G+H7568) — construct chain describing the grating's form: a "net-work" design.
• ne.choshet ("bronze", H5178A) — feminine singular noun specifying the material.
• ta.chat karkub-o ("under its ledge", H8478G+H3749+H9023) — construct noun with pronominal suffix "its," locating the grating relative to the altar's ledge.

What the text says

The Hebrew sentence opens with the narrative verb va-ya'as ("and he made", H6213H), continuing the sequence of construction actions typical of this section of Exodus. The direct object is introduced through the preposition-plus-noun la-mizbeach ("for the altar", H4196), followed by mikhbar ("a grating", H4345), the item fabricated. This grating is qualified by a double construct chain: ma'aseh reshet ("work of a net", H4639G + H7568), meaning the grating was shaped like netting, and ne.choshet ("bronze", H5178A) specifies the material.

The placement of the grating is given through a second construct phrase, ta.chat karkub-o ("under its ledge", H8478G + H3749 + H9023), where the pronominal suffix -o ("its") refers back to the altar. The text then adds a vertical range using two prepositional phrases: mi-le-matah ("from downwards", H9006+H9005+H4295) and 'ad-chetzy-o ("to its middle", H5704+H2677+H9023), indicating the grating extended from the bottom of the altar up to its midpoint. The construct forms (ma'aseh, reshet, ta.chat, karkub, chetzy) chain nouns together without needing additional prepositions, a feature of Hebrew that allows compact spatial and material description not always visible in translation.

Differences between versions

The Hebrew text describes the grating (mikhbar, H4345) made as netting, its material (bronze), and its position under the ledge up to the altar's middle. The LXXSWETE text provided here describes something different: poles wide enough for carrying the object, with no explicit mention of a bronze net-grating or ledge in this segment. The Vulgate (craticulam... in modum retis... æneam) aligns with the Hebrew in describing a small bronze grate made like a net, and adds in altaris medio arulam ("a small altar in the middle of the altar"), which is not present in the Hebrew construct chain analyzed here.