Genesis 35:24

Summary

This verse lists the two sons born to Rachel: Yosef ("Joseph", H3130G) and Vinyamin ("Benjamin", H1144G). It is part of a genealogical listing of Jacob's sons grouped by mother.

Key words

benei ("[the] sons of", H1121A) — masculine plural construct form of "son," grammatically bound to the following name Rachel, forming the possessive phrase "sons of Rachel."

Rachel (H7354) — proper name in the genitive/construct relationship, identifying the mother to whom the two sons that follow belong.

Yosef ("Joseph", H3130G) — proper name, first of the two sons named, standing in apposition to benei Rachel.

u- ("and", H9002) — conjunction prefixed directly to Binyamin, joining the two names as a pair under the single construct phrase.

Vinyamin ("Benjamin", H1144G) — proper name, second son named, connected to Yosef by the conjunction u-.

What the text says

The Hebrew sentence has no verb; it is a nominal clause built entirely on the construct chain benei Rachel ("sons of Rachel"), followed by the two proper names that specify who those sons are: Yosef and u-Vinyamin. The construct noun benei (H1121A) requires a following genitive, here supplied by Rachel (H7354), and the two names Yosef (H3130G) and Vinyamin (H1144G) stand in apposition to this construct phrase, identifying its referents. The conjunction u- (H9002) links the two names as a single coordinated pair, marking them as belonging equally to the category "sons of Rachel."

Because the clause is verbless, the syntax simply presents a list-like identification: "sons-of-Rachel: Joseph and-Benjamin." The construct form places the emphasis on the maternal relationship first, before the individual names are given, a common pattern in the surrounding genealogical material of this chapter where sons are grouped by mother rather than listed as a flat sequence.

Differences between versions

The Hebrew text has no verb, presenting the clause as a bare identification ("sons of Rachel: Joseph and Benjamin"). The LXX renders it with the particle δὲ ("but/and"), huioi de Rachēl, adding a mild connective not present in the Hebrew conjunction structure, and transliterates Benjamin as Beniameín. The Vulgate similarly supplies no verb, keeping "Filii Rachel: Joseph et Benjamin," matching the Hebrew's verbless, colon-style structure. The English versions BSB and SBLIBRE insert the verb "were/fueron" ("were," "fueron") to smooth the construction into a full sentence, a grammatical element supplied by the translators rather than present in the Hebrew original.