Numbers 33:43

Summary

The verse records one stage of the itinerary of the Israelites in the wilderness: departure from Punon and encampment at Oboth. It follows the fixed formula of the itinerary list in Numbers 33, naming only the two places without additional detail.

Key words

• va-yis'u ("and they set out", H5265) — qal verb with narrative vav, marking sequential action ("and then they set out"); third person masculine plural.
• mi-Punon ("from Punon", H6325) — preposition mi ("from", H9006) attached to the proper name Punon, indicating the point of departure.
• va-yachanu ("and they encamped", H2583) — qal verb with narrative vav, parallel in form to va-yis'u, continuing the sequence of movement and rest.
• be-Obot ("at Oboth", H0088) — preposition be ("at", H9003) attached to the proper name Obot, indicating the point of arrival.

What the text says

The verse is built on two parallel clauses, each consisting of a narrative-vav verb followed by a prepositional phrase with a place name: va-yis'u mi-Punon ("and they set out from Punon") and va-yachanu be-Obot ("and they encamped at Oboth"). Both verbs, yis'u (H5265) and yachanu (H2583), are qal forms in the narrative (consecutive) conjugation, which in this list produces the repeated "and they set out... and they encamped..." pattern found throughout Numbers 33. The subject "they" is not stated as a separate noun but is carried by the plural verb form itself, referring back to the group whose journey is being tracked in the chapter.

The two prepositions min ("from", H9006) and be ("at", H9003) mark the structural logic of the itinerary: min denotes the place left behind, be denotes the place where the encampment occurs. This paired preposition-plus-verb structure is the basic building block repeated across the itinerary list, so that each verse names a departure point and an arrival point without further narrative elaboration — no motive, distance, or duration is given in the Hebrew text.

Differences between versions

The Hebrew place names Punon (H6325) and Obot (H0088) appear in the LXX as Φεινώ (Pheinō) and Σωβώθ (Sōbōth), and in the Vulgate as Phunon and Oboth. The LXX form Σωβώθ shows an additional initial consonant compared to the Hebrew Obot and the Vulgate Oboth, a transliteration difference in how the place name is rendered into Greek.