Numbers 27:10

Summary

This verse continues a legal sequence about inheritance in the absence of direct heirs. It states that if a man has no brothers, his inheritance is to be given to his father's brothers.

Key words

• 'ein ("not", H0369) — a construct-form negative existential noun, here functioning to deny existence ("there is no..."), setting up the conditional clause introduced by 'im ("if", H0518A).
• 'achim ("brothers", H0251G) — masculine plural, the class of heir being ruled out in this clause before the text moves to the next category (father's brothers).
• netatem ("you will give", H5414G) — qal sequential perfect, second person masculine plural; the sequential form continues the chain of legal instructions begun earlier in the passage, giving the sense "and then you shall give."
• nachalato ("his inheritance", H5159) — construct noun with pronominal suffix, linking the inheritance directly to the man ("the inheritance of him") who has died without brothers.
• 'achei 'aviv ("brothers of his father", H0251G + H0001G) — a construct chain: "brothers" is construct to "father," which itself carries the suffix "his," producing "the brothers of his father."

What the text says

The verse opens with the conjunction ve ("and", H9002) attached to the conditional particle 'im ("if", H0518A), forming "and if." The condition itself is expressed through the negative existential construction 'ein lo 'achim — literally "there is no, to him, brothers" — where 'ein (H0369) denies existence, the prepositional phrase lo ("to him") marks possession, and 'achim (H0251G) names the missing category of heir. This is a common Biblical Hebrew way of expressing "he has no brothers" without a verb "to have."

The main clause begins with u-netatem ("and you will give," H9001 + H5414G), a sequential perfect verb form that carries forward the instructional sequence from the preceding verses of the inheritance law. The direct object is marked by the untranslated particle 'et (H0853) followed by nachalato ("his inheritance," H5159), a construct noun bearing a third-person masculine singular suffix. The recipient of the inheritance is introduced by the preposition la ("to," H9005) followed by the construct chain 'achei 'aviv ("the brothers of his father," H0251G + H0001G), where "brothers" stands in construct relation to "father," and "father" itself carries the pronominal suffix "his." This chain moves the inheritance one generational step further outward from the deceased man's immediate family to his father's siblings.

Differences between versions

The LXX renders 'achei 'aviv ("brothers of his father," plural construct) with the singular τῷ ἀδελφῷ τοῦ πατρὸς αὐτοῦ ("to the brother of his father"), differing from the Hebrew plural form. The Vulgate follows the Hebrew plural with fratribus patris ejus ("to the brothers of his father"), matching the Hebrew construction more closely than the LXX does at this point.