Genesis 22:14

Summary

Abraham names the place where the preceding episode occurred, giving it a name built on the verb "to see/provide." The verse closes with a saying attributed to popular usage, linking that name to a statement about "the mountain of Yehovah."

Key words

• yiqra ("he called", H7121H) — qal verb, narrative form (vav-consecutive), indicating a sequential action: after the previous events, Abraham then names the place.
• shem- ("name of", H8034) — masculine singular noun in construct state, meaning it is grammatically bound to the following phrase ("the name of the place").
• yir'eh ("he will see", H7200N) — qal imperfect, third person masculine. The imperfect aspect conveys future or ongoing action; here it forms part of the place's name.
• ye'amer ("it is said", H0559) — niphal (passive) imperfect. The passive voice removes the grammatical subject, so no specific speaker is named — the saying is presented as an impersonal, ongoing report.
• yera'eh ("it will be seen", H7200G) — niphal imperfect of the same root as yir'eh (H7200N), but here in passive form: "it will be seen" rather than "he will see."

What the text says

The verse divides into two grammatical units connected by the relative particle asher ("that", H0834A). The first unit records Abraham's naming act: va-yiqra ("and he called") + Avraham ("Abraham") + shem-ha-maqom ha-hu ("the name of that place") + YHWH yir'eh ("Yehovah yir'eh"). The name itself consists of the divine name YHWH (H3068G) followed by the qal imperfect yir'eh ("he will see", H7200N), a verb in active voice with Yehovah as its grammatical subject.

The second unit shifts voice: asher ye'amer ha-yom ("that is said today") introduces a report using the niphal (passive) ye'amer ("it is said", H0559), which grammatically omits any named speaker. This report contains the phrase be-har YHWH yera'eh ("on the mountain of Yehovah it will be seen"), using the same root as the place-name (ra'ah, "to see") but now in the niphal (passive) form yera'eh ("it will be seen", H7200G) instead of the active yir'eh. This shift from active ("he will see") to passive ("it will be seen") is a grammatical feature of the Hebrew that distinguishes the name given by Abraham from the saying quoted afterward.

Differences between versions

The LXX renders the place-name as κύριος ἴδεν ("the Lord saw" — aorist, past tense) where the Hebrew yir'eh (H7200N) is an imperfect, typically future/ongoing ("he will see"). The Vulgate follows the Hebrew more closely with "Dominus videt" (present) for the name, then "Dominus videbit" (future) for the closing saying, distinguishing the two verbs where the LXX uses κύριος ὤφθη ("the Lord was seen/appeared") for the final niphal form yera'eh, differing from the Hebrew's passive sense "it will be seen" by using a form implying divine appearance.