Numbers 4:24

Summary

The verse opens a summary statement about the assigned tasks of the Gershonite clans within the Levitical service, introduced by the demonstrative zot ("this", H2063). It defines their duty as twofold: the infinitive la'avod ("to serve", H5647G) and the noun massa ("carrying", H4853A), joined by the conjunction u- ("and", H9002).

Key words

• zot ("this", H2063) — demonstrative particle pointing forward to the description that follows, a formulaic opener used to introduce a defined set of duties.
• 'avodat ("service of", H5656G) — feminine singular noun in construct state, requiring a following genitive; it cannot stand alone and grammatically binds to mishpechot.
• mishpechot ("clans of", H4940) — feminine plural construct, itself governing ha-gershuni; this creates a double construct chain ("service of the clans of the Gershonite").
• ha-gershuni ("the Gershonite", H1649) — gentilic noun with the definite article ha- (H9009), marking the group as a known, specific class rather than an individual.
• la'avod ("to serve", H5647G) — qal infinitive with prefixed preposition la- (H9005), expressing purpose or function ("in serving," "with respect to serving") rather than a finite command.

What the text says

The Hebrew sentence is built as a nominal clause: the demonstrative zot functions as subject, and 'avodat mishpechot ha-gershuni forms the predicate through a chain of two construct relationships — "service" is construct to "clans," and "clans" is construct to "the Gershonite." This produces a compact genitive stack that a single English gloss like "the service of the Gershonite clans" must unpack into prepositional phrases. The remainder of the verse, la'avod u-le-massa, consists of two parallel prepositional phrases built on an infinitive (la'avod, "to serve") and a noun (le-massa, "for carrying"), both governed by the preposition le-/la- (H9005). This structure indicates that the "service" just named consists specifically of these two components, functioning almost as an appositional gloss on 'avodat.

Differences between versions

The LXX renders mishpechot ("clans", plural construct) with the singular tou dēmou ("of the people/tribe"), collapsing the Hebrew's plural clan-reference into one collective noun. It also transliterates ha-gershuni as Gedsōn, matching the group name to the ancestor's name rather than preserving the gentilic form. The Vulgate text provided (officium familiae Gersonitarum) similarly uses a singular officium ("duty") for 'avodat, and stops before rendering the la'avod u-le-massa clause, so no comparison is available for that portion in this data. The BSB translates the infinitive-plus-noun pair la'avod u-le-massa as two nominalized phrases, "work and transport," rather than preserving the infinitive form "to serve" found in the Hebrew and reflected in the LXX's leitourgein.