Numbers 32:3

Summary

Numbers 32:3 consists of a list of nine place names, each joined by the conjunction ve/u ("and", H9002). The verse has no verb; it is a bare enumeration of toponyms located in the territory the Reubenites and Gadites are describing to Moses in the surrounding narrative.

Key words

• A.ta.Rot ("Ataroth", H5852G) — proper name, first item in the list, unmarked by any conjunction since it opens the series.
• ve.di.Von — the conjunction ve ("and", H9002) prefixed to Di.Von ("Dibon", H1769G), the standard pattern linking each subsequent name to the previous one.
• u.se.Vam — here the conjunction appears as u rather than ve (H9002), a phonetic variant conditioned by the following labial/vocalic sound in Se.Vam ("Sebam", H7643G).
• ne.Vo ("Nebo", H5015A) — proper name for a place, connected by u (H9002); the same consonantal form elsewhere in the Hebrew Bible can denote a mountain or a deity name, but here functions strictly as a toponym in this list.
• ve.'On ("Beon", H1194) — final item, closing the enumeration with the conjunction u (H9002) attached.

What the text says

Grammatically, the verse is a chain of nine proper nouns for places, with no predicate, subject, or finite verb of its own — it depends syntactically on the surrounding verses (32:1–2, 4) for its function within the sentence. The conjunction "and" (H9002) appears before every name except the first, alternating between the forms ve and u depending on the phonetic shape of the following word (a common vowel-conditioned alternation in Biblical Hebrew, not a difference in meaning). This produces a simple additive list structure: "Ataroth and Dibon and Jazer and Nimrah and Heshbon and Elealeh and Sebam and Nebo and Beon."

Because every element is a place name, none of the words carries independent lexical meaning beyond identifying a location; the grammatical marking (repeated conjunction) is the only structural device organizing the list, giving it a paratactic, additive rhythm rather than a hierarchical or grouped structure.

Differences between versions

The Septuagint (LXX) renders nim.Rah (H5247) as "Νασμβρὰ" and ve.'On (H1194) as "βαιάν," both differing in transliteration from the Masoretic forms. The LXX also gives "Σεβαμὰ" for se.Vam (H7643G), adding a final vowel not present in the Hebrew consonantal form. The Vulgate's "Nemra" and "Saban" likewise show transliteration variants of nim.Rah and se.Vam respectively, differing slightly from both the Hebrew and the LXX renderings. These are transliteration differences in rendering proper names across the versions, not differences in the list's content or structure.