Exodus 39:25

Summary

The verse describes the making of bells of pure gold and their placement between pomegranates around the hem of the robe. Two sequential actions are narrated: the manufacture of the bells, then their positioning alternating with the pomegranate ornaments.

Key words

• va-ya'aSu ("and they made", H6213) — qal narrative verb, marks the first sequential action in the construction sequence.
• pa'amoNei ("bells of", H6472) — masculine plural construct, links directly to zahav to specify the material.
• zaHav taHor ("pure gold", H2091 + H2889) — noun plus adjective describing the metal's quality.
• va-yiteNu ("and they put", H5414H) — second qal narrative verb, marks the following action: placement of the bells.
• shuLei ("skirts/hem of", H7757) — masculine plural construct, indicates the lower edge of the me'il ("robe", H4598) where the ornaments are placed.

What the text says

The sentence is built on two coordinated narrative verbs linked by the vav consecutive: va-ya'aSu ("and they made") and va-yiteNu ("and they put"). This construction is typical of Hebrew narrative prose, presenting actions as a temporal sequence: first the bells were made, then they were placed. The direct object of the first verb is pa'amoNei zahav tahor ("bells of pure gold"), where pa'amoNei is in construct state, directly linking the bell-noun to the material that qualifies it.

The second verb, va-yiteNu, takes as object et-ha-pa'amoNim ("the bells"), marked with the direct object marker 'et (H0853) and the definite article ha- (H9009), referring back to the bells just made. The spatial location is expressed through two uses of the noun tokh ("between/among", H8432) in construct form: be-tokh ha-rimoNim ("in the midst of the pomegranates") appears twice in the verse, framing the phrase describing the position of the bells relative to the pomegranates on the hem (shulei ha-me'il, "skirts of the robe") and the qualifier saviv ("all around", H5439G).

The repetition of be-tokh ha-rimoNim at the beginning and end of the spatial description (positions 11-14 and 20-23) creates a structure that frames the phrase "on the skirts of the robe, all around" — emphasizing that the pomegranates and bells alternate continuously around the entire hem.

Differences between versions

The Vulgate text provided (VULCLEM) does not correspond to this verse; it describes tunics made for Aaron and his sons, which belongs to a different section of the chapter. No comparison with the Vulgate can be made from the data given.