Numbers 34:26

Summary

The verse identifies the leader (nasi, H5387A) appointed from the tribe of the descendants of Issachar to take part in a task involving representatives from each tribe. His name is given as Paltiel, son of Azzan.

Key words

• u ("and", H9002) — conjunction linking this entry to the preceding list of tribal leaders, marking the verse as one item in a series.
• matteh ("tribe of", H4294H) — masculine singular construct noun, meaning it must be followed by another noun to complete its sense; here it introduces "the tribe of the descendants of Issachar."
• benei ("descendants of", H1121G) — masculine plural construct of the noun "son," used here in the standard idiom "sons of X" to denote a tribal group rather than literal sons.
• nasi ("a leader", H5387A) — masculine singular noun, not in construct form, standing in apposition to the name Paltiel that follows; it designates his function/title.
• ben ("son of", H1121A) — masculine singular construct, linking Paltiel to his father Azzan, the standard patronymic formula.

What the text says

The Hebrew sentence is built as a chain of construct relationships: u-le-matteh benei Yissoshkhar — "and for/of the tribe of the descendants of Issachar." The prefixed preposition le ("of/for", H9005) attaches to matteh, which is itself in construct with benei, which is in construct with the proper name Yissoshkhar ("Issachar", H3485G). This produces a compact genitive chain typical of Hebrew tribal listings, where each construct noun depends on the next until a proper name closes the chain.

After this tribal identification, the noun nasi ("a leader", H5387A) appears without the definite article and without a construct link to what follows, standing in simple apposition to the name Paltiel ("Paltiel", H6409G). The structure is: "[tribe of Issachar] — a leader, Paltiel, son of Azzan." The patronymic ben Azzan ("son of Azzan", H1121A + H5821) closes the entry, following the same construct pattern used throughout the surrounding list of tribal leaders in Numbers 34.

Differences between versions

The Hebrew nasi ("a leader", H5387A) is rendered by the LXX as archōn ("ruler/chief") and by the Vulgate as dux ("leader/commander"). Both versions convey a leadership title but use terms drawn from Greek and Latin administrative vocabulary rather than a direct transliteration of the Hebrew term. The proper name Azzan (H5821) appears in the LXX as Ozan and in the Vulgate as Ozan, both consonantally close to the Hebrew but with vowel adaptation typical of transliteration into Greek and Latin phonology.