Genesis 36:43

Summary

The verse closes a list of Edomite clan chiefs by naming the last two, Magdiel and Iram, then summarizes that these are all the 'alufim ("chiefs", H0441B) of Edom according to their dwelling places, and identifies Esau as the ancestor of Edom.

Key words

• 'a.Luf ("chief", H0441B) — masculine singular noun, repeated before each proper name (Magdiel, Iram) throughout the chapter as a title marking clan leadership; here it also appears in construct plural ('a.lu.Fei) governing "Edom."
• 'El.leh ("these", H0428) — demonstrative particle that functions as the summarizing pivot, closing the enumeration and introducing the concluding statement about the 'alufim.
• mo.she.vo.Ta ("dwelling places", H4186) — feminine plural construct noun with 3rd person masculine plural suffix (-am, H9028), "their dwelling places," linking the chiefs to specific settlement locations.
• 'a.chu.za.Ta ("possession", H0272) — feminine singular construct noun with the same suffix, "their possession," paired with 'E.retz ("land of", H0776G) to form "the land of their possession."
• 'a.Vi ("ancestor of", H0001G) — masculine singular construct noun linking Esau directly to Edom as the eponymous ancestor, closing the genealogical unit.

What the text says

The verse begins by finishing the list pattern seen throughout the chapter: 'a.Luf ("chief") followed by a proper name, first Magdiel, then Iram. After the two final names, the demonstrative 'El.leh ("these") shifts the sentence from listing individual names to a summary statement, introducing the construct phrase 'a.lu.Fei 'e.Dom ("chiefs of Edom"), where the plural construct form of 'a.Luf binds all the previously named chiefs into a single collective category tied to the proper name Edom.

The next clause locates these chiefs spatially: le-mo.she.vo.Tam be-'E.retz 'a.chu.za.Tam ("according to their dwelling places, in the land of their possession"). Both mo.she.vo.Ta and 'a.chu.za.Ta carry the 3rd masculine plural suffix -am ("their"), and both stand in construct relationships — the first governed by the preposition le ("to/according to"), the second by be ("in") governing 'E.retz ("land of"), which is itself in construct with 'a.chu.za.Ta ("possession of"). This creates a nested chain: "land" belongs to "their possession," and the chiefs are situated "according to" their "dwelling places" within that land.

The final clause uses the independent pronoun hu' ("he/that") to emphatically identify the subject: hu' 'e.Sav 'a.Vi 'e.Dom — "that [one], Esau, [is the] ancestor of Edom." The construct 'a.Vi 'e.Dom ("ancestor of Edom") closes the genealogical unit by connecting the personal name Esau to the collective/national name Edom.

Differences between versions

The Hebrew name 'i.Ram (H5902, "Iram") is rendered as "Hiram" in the Vulgate (VULCLEM: Hiram) and BSB/SBLIBRE as "Iram," while RV1909 also gives "Hiram" — a variation in transliteration of the same proper name across versions, not a difference in the underlying Hebrew consonants.