Numbers 32:20

Summary

Moses responds to the Reubenites and Gadites, setting a conditional statement: if they act on what they have proposed and arm themselves for battle before Yehovah, an agreement is possible. The verse consists of two parallel conditional clauses introduced by the same particle.

Key words

• va-yomer ("and he said", H9001+H0559) — narrative vav plus qal verb, marking the next step in the story sequence: Moses speaking in response.
• 'im ("if", H0518A) — conditional particle appearing twice (words 6 and 14), each time introducing a separate condition; this repetition creates a parallel structure of two linked stipulations.
• ta'aSu ("you will do", H6213A) — qal imperfect, 2nd person masculine plural, referring to future/ongoing action by the Reubenites and Gadites; carries a paragogic nun (word 8, H9013), a suffix that adds emphasis to the verb form.
• techal'tzu ("you will equip yourselves", H2502B) — niphal imperfect, 2nd person masculine plural; the niphal stem indicates the tribes acting upon themselves (reflexive/passive sense) — arming themselves rather than being armed by another.
• li-fnei ("before", H6440G+H9005) — construct plural noun with preposition, literally "to the face of," here referring to position before Yehovah, i.e., in his presence.

What the text says

The verse is built on two consecutive conditional clauses, each introduced by 'im ("if", H0518A). The first condition uses ta'aSu ("you will do", H6213A), a qal imperfect referring to the tribes fulfilling "the thing," ha-davar ha-zeh ("this thing", H1697I + H2088), which was proposed in the preceding narrative. The paragogic nun attached to this verb (word 8) is a grammatical feature that adds emphasis or solemnity to the verb form without changing its basic meaning.

The second condition uses techal'tzu ("you will equip yourselves", H2502B), a niphal (reflexive/passive) imperfect. The niphal stem here suggests the tribes preparing or arming themselves, rather than being outfitted by an external agent. This second condition specifies the manner of fulfilling the first: doing "this thing" is defined as arming for battle li-fnei Yehovah ("before Yehovah", H6440G+H3068G) — a phrase using the construct noun pnei ("face of"), indicating position or presence — la-milchamah ("for the battle", H4421).

The two clauses work together: the general condition (doing "the thing") is clarified and made specific by the second (military mobilization in Yehovah's presence).

Differences between versions

The Hebrew repeats 'im ("if") twice, producing two linked conditional clauses. The LXX mirrors this with two instances of ἐὰν ("if"), preserving the parallel structure. The Vulgate, however, renders the first clause as Si facitis quod promittitis ("If you do what you promise") without repeating "si" as a separate conditional marker in the same paratactic way, and uses expediti pergite ("go forth equipped") as an imperative construction for the second clause rather than maintaining a second conditional "if" clause paralleling the Hebrew techal'tzu.