Genesis 6:18

Summary

God announces to Noah that he will establish his covenant with him and instructs him to enter the ark together with his sons, his wife, and his sons' wives. The verse is framed by the phrase "with you" appearing both near the beginning and at the very end.

Key words

• haqimoti ("I will establish", H6965I) — hiphil (causative) form of the root qum ("to stand, arise"), so literally "I will cause to stand/rise" — used here for establishing the covenant, joined to a sequential perfect verb form that continues the narrative flow of divine speech.
• berit ("covenant", H1285) — feminine singular noun in construct form with the suffix -i ("my"), producing "my covenant."
• bo'ta ("you will go/enter", H0935G) — qal (simple) sequential perfect, second masculine singular, continuing the same narrative chain as haqimoti.
• 'itakh ("with you", H0854 + H9031) — preposition with pronominal suffix, appearing twice in the verse (opening and closing), each time addressed to Noah (masculine singular "you").
• neshei-baneikha ("wives of your sons", H0802H + H1121A) — plural construct chain, "wives" bound to "your sons," itself carrying the second-person masculine suffix -kha.

What the text says

The Hebrew sentence is built on two sequential perfect verbs — haqimoti ("I will establish") and bo'ta ("you will go/enter") — both introduced by the narrative va-/u- conjunction (H9001), which continues a chain of divine speech rather than standing as an isolated statement. This grammatical linkage ties the establishing of the covenant directly to the instruction to enter the ark, presenting them as two connected actions within the same speech act.

The verse is framed by the preposition-plus-suffix 'itakh ("with you"), which opens the unit (referring to the covenant being "with you") and closes it (referring to the sons' wives being "with you" in the ark). This repetition creates an inclusio, bracketing the list of household members — atah ("you"), vaneikha ("your sons"), ishtekha ("your wife"), neshei-vaneikha ("wives of your sons") — each noun appearing in construct form bound to the second-person suffix -kha, marking possession or relation to Noah.

Differences between versions

The LXX renders haqimoti with στήσω ("I will set up/establish"), matching the causative sense of the hiphil. The Vulgate uses ponam ("I will place/set"), a broader verb than the Hebrew's "cause to stand." Both LXX (πρὸς σέ) and Vulgate (tecum) render the first 'itakh ("with you") as directional/associative, consistent with the Hebrew. The order of household members — you, sons, wife, sons' wives — is preserved identically across the Hebrew, LXX, and Vulgate.