Numbers 21:20

Summary

The verse continues an itinerary list, naming the stopping point after Bamoth: a valley in the territory of Moab, at the top of Pisgah, from where the terrain looks out over the Yeshimon ("desolate place", H3452H). The Hebrew text presents this as a chain of construct relations rather than a full narrative sentence.

Key words

• gay' ("valley", H1516R) — common noun with the definite article (ha, H9009), identifying the specific valley referenced by the relative particle that follows.
• 'asher ("which/that", H0834A) — relative particle introducing a description that locates the valley "in the region of Moab."
• sedeh ("field/region of", H7704G) — construct-state noun, meaning it must be joined to what follows (Mo'av, H4124G) as "region of Moab," not a standalone word.
• rosh ("top of", H7218I) — construct-state noun linking to Pisgah (H6449), meaning "top/head of Pisgah."
• nishqafah ("it looked down / overlooked", H8259) — Niphal participle, feminine singular, agreeing grammatically with rosh ("the top") as the subject that "looks over" the Yeshimon.

What the text says

The Hebrew sentence is built almost entirely through construct chains (noun + noun relationships marked "X of Y") rather than independent clauses with verbs. Sedeh Mo'av ("region of Moab") and rosh ha-Pisgah ("top of the Pisgah") are both construct phrases, so the valley is defined by its location within Moab's territory, and then further specified by the topographic feature — the summit of Pisgah — associated with it. The only finite/participial verb form in the verse is nishqafah, a Niphal participle that carries a passive or reflexive nuance ("the one that looks/is seen looking"), and its feminine singular form agrees with rosh (top), the grammatical subject performing the "overlooking" action toward the Yeshimon.

The verse has no independent main verb governing the whole sentence in Hebrew; it functions as a continuation of a place-name list begun by the conjunction u- ("and", H9002) attached to mi-Bamot ("from Bamoth"). This paratactic, place-name-chaining structure is a feature of the underlying Hebrew that a fluent English or Spanish translation (which requires full verbs like "overlooks") does not preserve as directly.

Differences between versions

The LXX reads Ἰανήν ("Ianen") as if it were a place name distinct from "the valley," where the Hebrew ha-gay' ("the valley", H1516R) is simply a common noun meaning "valley." The LXX also renders ha-Pisgah as τοῦ λελαξευμένου ("the hewn/carved [rock]"), treating Pisgah (H6449) as a descriptive term rather than the proper name it appears to be in the Hebrew text. The Vulgate follows the Hebrew more closely, keeping "Phasga" as a proper name and "vallis... in regione Moab" corresponding to the construct phrase sedeh Mo'av.