Genesis 25:19

Summary

Genesis 25:19 opens a new narrative section by introducing Isaac through his genealogical line. The verse identifies Isaac as the son of Abraham and states, in a second clause, that Abraham fathered Isaac.

Key words

• 'Elleh ("these", H0428) — demonstrative particle that opens formulaic genealogical headings, pointing to what follows in the account.
• tolDot ("accounts of", H8435) — feminine plural construct noun, here bound to Yitzchak; construct form means it cannot stand alone and requires the following name to complete its meaning ("accounts of Isaac").
• ben- ("son of", H1121A) — masculine singular construct noun, linking Isaac to Abraham as his son.
• hoLid ("he fathered", H3205) — hiphil (causative) perfect verb, third person masculine singular; the hiphil stem expresses causing offspring to come into being, i.e., "caused to be born" rather than a simple active "bore."
• 'et- (H0853) — direct object marker, untranslated in English, signaling that Yitzchak is the grammatical object of hoLid.

What the text says

The verse divides into two clauses. The first is a nominal heading: ve-'Elleh tolDot Yitzchak ben-'Avraham — "and these [are] the accounts of Isaac, son of Abraham." The construct chain tolDot Yitzchak ("accounts of Isaac") marks this as a formulaic superscription, a pattern used elsewhere in Genesis to introduce a new genealogical unit. The phrase ben-'Avraham further specifies Isaac's identity through his father.

The second clause, 'Avraham hoLid 'et-Yitzchak, repeats the name 'Avraham as the grammatical subject, followed by the hiphil perfect verb hoLid and the direct object marker 'et- before Yitzchak. The repetition of 'Avraham — once at the end of the construct phrase, once as subject of the new clause — creates a chiastic-like link between the two clauses, reasserting the father-son relationship stated in the heading before proceeding to further genealogical material. The hiphil form of hoLid casts Abraham as the causative agent of Isaac's birth, a grammatical nuance not distinguished in English translations, which render it simply as "fathered" or "begot."

Differences between versions

The LXX (Swete) renders the opening as αὗται αἱ γενέσεις τοῦ υἱοῦ Ἀβραάμ ("these are the generations of the son of Abraham"), omitting the explicit name Isaac in the construct phrase found in the Hebrew (tolDot Yitzchak, "accounts of Isaac"), referring to him only as "the son of Abraham" until the second clause. The Hebrew names Isaac twice in this verse (once in the heading, once as object of hoLid), while the LXX names him only once, in the second clause (τὸν Ἰσαάκ). The Vulgate follows the Hebrew structure more closely, naming Isaac in both clauses ("generationes Isaac filii Abraham... Abraham genuit Isaac").