Numbers 27:15

Summary

The verse reports that Moses spoke to Yehovah, introducing direct speech that follows in the next verses. The construction is a standard narrative formula used throughout the Pentateuch to open a discourse addressed to the deity.

Key words

• va ("and", H9001) — narrative vav, the connective that links this clause to the preceding episode, marking sequential action in the story.
• y.daBer ("he spoke", H1696G) — piel stem, third person masculine singular, narrative form (vayyiqtol). The piel here carries the basic sense of speaking/declaring rather than a specifically intensified action; its function in narrative is to mark a new event in sequence.
• Mosheh ("Moses", H4872) — proper noun, subject of the verb, in apposition following it (verb-subject word order typical of Hebrew narrative).
• 'el ("to", H0413) — preposition marking the addressee of the speech, directing the verb's action toward Yehovah.
• leMor ("saying", H0559) — qal infinitive construct with prefixed le, functioning as a quotative marker that formally opens the reported speech to follow.

What the text says

The Hebrew clause follows the common verb-subject-object syntax of biblical narrative: va-y.daBer ("and he spoke") precedes its subject Mosheh ("Moses"), which is typical when a narrative vav introduces a new action. The prepositional phrase 'el-Yehovah ("to Yehovah") specifies the addressee, and the infinitive leMor ("saying") serves as a hinge that opens direct speech, a formula repeated constantly in the Pentateuch to introduce reported dialogue. The clause itself contains no content of the speech — it only announces that speech is about to occur.

Grammatically, the sentence contains no elements suggesting a "response" to a prior statement; it uses the general verb daBer ("to speak"), not a term specifically meaning "to answer" or "to reply." The construction is a self-standing introduction of dialogue, not marked as reactive within the Hebrew grammar itself.

Differences between versions

The Hebrew verb y.daBer ("he spoke") is neutral, but the Vulgate renders it as respondit ("he answered"), and the RV1909 follows this with respondió ("he responded"), both of which frame Moses' speech as a reply. The LXX uses εἶπεν ("he said"), a simple verb of speech, closer to the Hebrew's non-reactive sense but with "said" rather than "spoke." The BSB's "appealed" introduces an interpretive nuance not present in the Hebrew daBer or the infinitive leMor, which simply mark the onset of direct speech without indicating tone or intent.