Genesis 25:14

Summary

Genesis 25:14 continues a genealogical list, naming three additional sons: Mishma ("Mishma", H4927G), Dumah ("Dumah", H1746G), and Massa ("Massa", H4854). The verse consists solely of these three proper names joined by conjunctions, with no verbs or descriptive material.

Key words

• u ("and", H9002) — the conjunction prefix attached to mishma', linking this name to the preceding item in the list (from v.13).
• mishma' ("Mishma", H4927G) — proper name, masculine, functioning as a list item with no additional grammatical marking (no verb, no article).
• ve ("and", H9002) — the conjunction prefix attached to dumah, structurally identical to the first u, coordinating the second name.
• dumah ("Dumah", H1746G) — proper name, masculine, third item in a chain of coordinated nouns.
• u ("and", H9002) — the conjunction prefix attached to massa', coordinating the final name in the series.

What the text says

The Hebrew verse is composed entirely of three personal names, each preceded by the conjunction ve/u ("and", H9002). This produces a simple additive chain: "and Mishma and Dumah and Massa." There is no verb, no syntactic subject-predicate structure, and no descriptive or narrative content — the verse functions purely as a continuation of a genealogical enumeration begun in the preceding verse. The repeated conjunction before each name is a common feature of Hebrew list-style genealogies, where each item is joined paratactically rather than through a single conjunction before the last item only (as is common in English lists).

The absence of verbs or qualifiers means the verse conveys no action or relationship beyond simple sequential listing. The three names are grammatically parallel: each is an unmarked masculine proper noun, none bearing suffixes, articles, or modifiers.

Differences between versions

The Hebrew renders the second name as Dumah ("Dumah", H1746G), while the LXX (Swete) transliterates it as Ἰδουμὰ (Idouma), adding an initial vowel/consonant not present in the Hebrew form. Similarly, the LXX gives Μασμὰ (Masma) for mishma' and Μασσὴ (Masse) for massa', which are close phonetic renderings but show minor differences in vowel representation compared to the Hebrew. The Vulgate (Masma, Duma, Massa) follows the Hebrew forms more closely than the LXX, particularly for the second name, where it retains Duma rather than the LXX's Idouma. Modern translations (BSB, RV1909, SBLIBRE) consistently follow the Hebrew name forms without the LXX's added element in the second name.