Genesis 19:37

Summary

The verse reports that the firstborn daughter bore a son and named him Mo'av ("Moab", H4124), with an editorial note that he became the ancestor of the Moabites, a status that the text says persists "until this day."

Key words

• ha-bekhirah ("the firstborn", H1067) — feminine singular noun with definite article, identifying the elder daughter as the subject of the birth without naming her directly in this verse.
• tikra' ("she called", H7121) — qal narrative verb, third feminine singular, continuing the narrative chain begun by va-teled ("and she bore", H3205).
• shem-o ("his name", H8034 + H9023) — construct noun with pronominal suffix "his," the direct object of the naming act.
• hu' ("he", H1931) — independent personal pronoun opening a new clause that shifts from narrating the birth to stating a lasting genealogical fact.
• 'avi ("ancestor of", H1) — construct form of "father," here functioning to designate origin/ancestry rather than immediate paternity.
• 'ad ha-yom ("until this day", H5704 + H3117) — temporal phrase closing the verse, marking the statement as valid at the time of narration.

What the text says

The Hebrew sentence divides into two parts joined by narrative vav chains. The first part, va-teled ha-bekhirah ben ("and the firstborn bore a son"), reports the event using the qal narrative form of yalad ("to bear", H3205), a standard construction for sequential storytelling. The subject ha-bekhirah ("the firstborn", H1067) carries the definite article, pointing back to a previously identified daughter rather than introducing a new character. The second clause, va-tikra' shemo Mo'av ("and she called his name Moab"), uses the same narrative verb pattern with tikra' ("she called", H7121), and the name Mo'av (H4124) is given without explanation of its meaning in the Hebrew text itself.

The final segment shifts syntax: hu' 'avi-Mo'av 'ad ha-yom ("he [is] ancestor of Moab until this day") drops the narrative vav pattern and uses the independent pronoun hu' ("he", H1931) followed by a construct noun phrase, 'avi Mo'av ("ancestor of Moab", H1 + H4124), functioning as a nominal (verbless) clause. This construction states a condition true at the time of writing rather than a sequential past action, distinguishing it grammatically from the preceding narrative verbs.

Differences between versions

The LXX adds a phrase not present in the Hebrew: legousa Ek tou patros mou ("saying, From my father"), attributing an explanation for the name to the daughter's speech, which the Hebrew text does not include. The Vulgate's pater Moabitarum ("father of the Moabites") and the LXX's patēr Moabitōn both render 'avi-Mo'av (H1 + H4124) as referring to the people ("Moabites") rather than the place-name "Moab" as the Hebrew construct itself literally reads.