Numbers 33:16

Summary

The verse records one stage in the itinerary list of Numbers 33: the Israelites depart from the wilderness of Sinai and set up camp at Kibroth-hattaavah. The sentence consists of two short narrative clauses linked by consecutive verb forms.

Key words

• va-yis'u ("and they set out", H5265) — qal narrative form; the vav + prefix conjugation marks sequential action, "and then they set out," continuing the itinerary chain typical of this chapter.
• mi-midbar ("from the wilderness of", H4057B) — construct noun with the preposition min ("from," H9006) attached, linking the place-name Sinai to it as the point of departure.
• Sinai ("Sinai", H5514H) — proper name marking the starting location, in construct relation with midbar.
• va-yachanu ("and they encamped", H2583) — qal narrative form parallel to va-yis'u, "and then they camped," the second link in the sequence.
• Kivrot ha-Ta'avah ("Kibroth-hattaavah", H6914) — compound proper name for the destination, introduced by the preposition be ("at", H9003).

What the text says

The verse is built on a simple two-verb narrative pattern common throughout Numbers 33: departure verb + place departed from, followed by arrival verb + place arrived at. Both va-yis'u ("they set out", H5265) and va-yachanu ("they encamped", H2583) are qal narrative (vav-consecutive) forms, which in Biblical Hebrew narrative chain events in sequence — "they set out... and then they camped." This grammatical repetition across the chapter creates the effect of a structured travel log rather than a flowing story.

The place name Kivrot ha-Ta'avah (H6914) is a compound Hebrew toponym; the wordlist glosses it simply as "Kibroth" and "Hattaavah" under the same Strong number, treating the two elements as one geographic name meaning, in its component parts, "graves of craving/desire" — though the wordlist here does not break down the individual roots, only presenting it as a proper name. The construct phrase midbar Sinai ("wilderness of Sinai", H4057B + H5514H) identifies the starting point using the construct chain typical of Hebrew place descriptions, "wilderness of X."

Differences between versions

The Septuagint translates the place name Kivrot ha-Ta'avah descriptively rather than transliterating it, rendering it as Μνήμασιν ἐπιθυμίας ("Memorials/Tombs of desire"), reflecting an interpretive reading of the compound name's meaning. The Vulgate follows a similar interpretive path with sepulchra concupiscentiae ("graves of desire/concupiscence"). The Hebrew text, by contrast, presents Kivrot ha-Ta'avah purely as a proper toponym without unpacking its sense within the sentence itself. Modern versions (RV1909, BSB, SBLIBRE) retain the transliterated proper name "Kibroth-hattaavah," matching the Hebrew's treatment of it as a place name rather than a translated phrase.