Ezra 10:38

Paleo Hebrew Niqqud

RBT Hebrew Interlinear:

ובני וּבָנִי

and sons

STRONGS

Strong's Lexicon

ו

wə

Definition

and

Root

From H8505; a prefix

Exhaustive

The conjunctive ו is not merely a fixed coordinator with a stable semantic value (“and/but/or/then”). Its core function is linkage, not meaning. It binds units into a single discourse field—phrases, clauses, or whole scenes—while leaving the logical relation to be inferred from aspect, word order, genre, and context.

So the variability in translation (“and / but / or / even / then”) is not polyvalence in the particle; it is underspecification by design. The language expects the reader/hearer to perceive the relation rather than have it encoded.

Crucially, conjunctive ו does not imply temporal sequence. It implies continuity of attention. Think of it as:
- “this belongs with what precedes,”
- “remain within the same frame,”
“do not reset the discourse.”
This is why Hebrew can chain dozens of clauses with ו without subordination or explicit logic markers. The text advances by accumulation, not by branching syntactic trees. Meaning arises from the interaction:
- Aspect (qatal / yiqtol / participle),
- Position (fronted elements, resumptive nouns),
- Genre (law, narrative, oracle),
- Context (who speaks, to whom).
The ו simply keeps the circuit closed so these cues can operate together. Remove tense assumptions, and the system becomes coherent.

Source: The Aonic Nature of Biblical Hebrew Prepositions

בני

Bânîy

Definition

Bani, the name of five Israelites

Root

from H1129 (בנה); built;

Exhaustive

from בנה; built; Bani, the name of five Israelites; Bani.

Source: Strong's Exhaustive Concordance — H1137

Fürst

Fürst Lexicon

בָּנִי

noun proper masculine • Root בנה • Strongs / High • Page 257

A proper name, meaning posterity.

Conjunction, Noun proper name masculine

LXX: υἱοὶ βανι υἱὸσ

LXX Usage Statistics

H1137:

υἱοὶ 5× (35.1%)

βανι 4× (29.9%)

υἱὸσ 2× (14.9%)

ובנוי וּבִנּוּי

None

STRONGS

Strong's Lexicon

ו

wə

Definition

and

Root

From H8505; a prefix

Exhaustive

The conjunctive ו is not merely a fixed coordinator with a stable semantic value (“and/but/or/then”). Its core function is linkage, not meaning. It binds units into a single discourse field—phrases, clauses, or whole scenes—while leaving the logical relation to be inferred from aspect, word order, genre, and context.

So the variability in translation (“and / but / or / even / then”) is not polyvalence in the particle; it is underspecification by design. The language expects the reader/hearer to perceive the relation rather than have it encoded.

Crucially, conjunctive ו does not imply temporal sequence. It implies continuity of attention. Think of it as:
- “this belongs with what precedes,”
- “remain within the same frame,”
“do not reset the discourse.”
This is why Hebrew can chain dozens of clauses with ו without subordination or explicit logic markers. The text advances by accumulation, not by branching syntactic trees. Meaning arises from the interaction:
- Aspect (qatal / yiqtol / participle),
- Position (fronted elements, resumptive nouns),
- Genre (law, narrative, oracle),
- Context (who speaks, to whom).
The ו simply keeps the circuit closed so these cues can operate together. Remove tense assumptions, and the system becomes coherent.

Source: The Aonic Nature of Biblical Hebrew Prepositions

בנוי

Binnûwy

Definition

Binnui, an Israelite

Root

from H1129 (בנה); built up;

Exhaustive

from בנה; built up; Binnui, an Israelite; Binnui.

Source: Strong's Exhaustive Concordance — H1131

Conjunction, Noun proper name masculine

LXX: βανουι

LXX Usage Statistics

H1131:

βανουι 4× (56.2%)

שמעי שִׁמְעִי׃

hear

STRONGS

Strong's Lexicon

שמעי

Shimʻîy

Definition

Shimi, the name of twenty Israelites

Root

from H8088 (שמע); famous;

Exhaustive

from שמע; famous; Shimi, the name of twenty Israelites; Shimeah (from the margin), Shimei, Shimhi, Shimi.

Source: Strong's Exhaustive Concordance — H8096

Fürst

Fürst Lexicon

שִׁמְעִי

noun proper masculine • Strongs / High • Page 1452

(Jah is Fame). Proper name.

שִׁמְעִי

noun proper masculine • Root שמע • Strongs / High • Page 1451

Proper name masculine, meaning 'a Hearer' (viz. El is).

Noun proper name masculine

LXX: σεμεϊ σεμει

LXX Usage Statistics

H8096:

σεμεϊ 34× (78.8%)

σεμει 3× (7.4%)

RBT Translation:

No verse found

RBT Paraphrase:
No verse found

Julia Smith Literal 1876 Translation:
And Bani, and Binnui, and Shimei,

LITV Translation:
and Bani, and Binnui, Shimei,

Brenton Septuagint Translation:
and so did the children of Binnui, and the children of Shimei,