Genesis 19:36

Summary

The verse reports the outcome of the episode: both daughters of Lot became pregnant, and the text specifies that the pregnancy came from their father (me'avihen). It is a short narrative closure statement, connecting back to the preceding events.

Key words

• ta.ha.Rei.na ("they conceived", H2029) — qal verb, feminine plural, narrative form (with the vav) marking sequential action: "and then they conceived."
• she.Tei ("two of", H8147) — feminine dual cardinal number in construct state, binding directly to the next noun to mean "the two of [daughters]."
• ve.not- ("daughters of", H1323G) — feminine plural noun in construct state, forming the phrase "daughters of Lot."
• 'a.vi. ("father of", H0001G) — masculine singular noun in construct state, here governing the pronominal suffix to produce "their father."
• Hen ("their", H9029) — feminine pronominal suffix attached to 'avi, specifying that the father belongs to the two women just named (the daughters).

What the text says

The Hebrew sentence is compact: a verb (tahareina), its subject (shetei venot-Lot, "the two daughters of Lot"), and a prepositional phrase indicating source (me'avihen, "from their father"). The construct chain shetei venot-Lot stacks two construct relationships — "two of" governing "daughters of," which in turn governs "Lot" — producing a single tight noun phrase meaning "the two daughters of Lot." The preposition min (H9006, "from") prefixed to 'avihen marks the source or origin of the conception, and the feminine plural suffix -hen ("their") on 'avi confirms that the father in question is the father of the two daughters just mentioned, i.e., the same person named earlier as Lot.

Grammatically, the sentence has no independent word for "father"—'avi is bound to the suffix -hen, so the noun and pronoun form one grammatical unit: "father-of-them." The narrative vav on tahareina signals continuation of a sequence, presenting this verse as the direct next event following what happened previously in the account, without any interruption or additional clause.

Differences between versions

The Hebrew me'avihen ("from their father") is rendered in the LXX as ek tou patros autōn ("from their father"), matching closely. The Vulgate uses de patre suo ("from their own father"), where suo ("his own/their own") slightly emphasizes possession compared to the plain Hebrew suffix -hen. The modern versions (BSB "by their father," RV1909 "de su padre," SBLIBRE "de su propio padre") show similar variation, with SBLIBRE's "propio" ("own") echoing the Vulgate's suo rather than a strict rendering of the Hebrew suffix alone.