Genesis 37:16

Summary

Genesis 37:16 records the reply of a man (identified in context as Joseph, though the Hebrew here simply says "he") to someone he encounters in the fields. He states that he is searching for his brothers and asks to be told where they are pasturing.

Key words

• va-Yomer ("and he said", H0559) — qal narrative verb form, the standard formula introducing direct speech in Hebrew narrative, linking this line to the preceding action.
• achAi ("my brothers", H0251G) — construct plural noun with 1st-person suffix, meaning "brothers of me"; the object of the search.
• mevaqQesh ("[am] seeking", H1245) — piel participle, masculine singular, expressing an intensive, ongoing action ("actively seeking") rather than a simple past act.
• haggIdah-na ("tell, please", H5046 + H4994) — hiphil imperative with paragogic he for emphasis, followed by the particle na softening the command into a polite request — "please tell."
• ro'Im ("pasturing", H7462B) — qal participle, masculine plural, describing the ongoing activity of the brothers ("they are pasturing") at the moment of speaking.

What the text says

The verse opens with the narrative formula va-Yomer ("and he said", H0559), which simply continues the story without naming the speaker explicitly in this clause — the referent is established by the surrounding narrative. The first sentence, 'et-achAi 'anoKhi mevaqQesh ("my brothers I am seeking"), places the object achAi ("my brothers", H0251G) before the subject pronoun 'anoKhi ("I", H0595) and the participle mevaqQesh ("seeking", H1245). This word order fronts the object for emphasis, a common feature of Hebrew clauses answering a direct question — the search for the brothers is the point being stressed.

The second sentence contains a polite imperative construction: haggIdah-na li ("tell me, please", H5046, H4994), using the hiphil causative imperative with the paragogic he ending, which in Biblical Hebrew often adds a note of urgency or formality to a request, combined with the softening particle na ("please", H4994). The question itself, 'eiFoh hem ro'Im ("where are they pasturing?"), uses the interrogative 'eiFoh ("where?", H0375) followed by the plural participle ro'Im ("pasturing", H7462B), describing an activity in progress rather than a completed or habitual act.

Differences between versions

The LXX and Vulgate render the opening narrative verb with an explicit subject ("ὁ δὲ εἶπεν," "At ille respondit"), making clear that "he" (not yet named as Joseph in this clause) is answering a prior question, a nuance implicit but unmarked morphologically in the Hebrew va-Yomer. The Vulgate's indica mihi ubi pascant greges adds greges ("flocks"), an object not present in the Hebrew, which only has the participle ro'Im ("pasturing") without a stated object.