| 2. Linguistic Exegesis The verse begins with vayehi {וַ֠יְהִי | vayyĕhî} “and it was,” employing the vav consecutive to signal narrative progression. The phrase livnê Menashshê hanôtārîm lə-mishpechôtām {לִבְנֵי מְנַשֶּׁה הַנּוֹתָרִים לְמִשְׁפְּחֹתָם | livnē mĕ-naš-šê han-ô-tā-rîm lə-miš-pə-chô-tām} designates the subgroup of Manasseh as those remaining for distribution. The repeated pattern wə-livnê-X {וְלִבְנֵי־X | wə-liv-nē-X} enumerates each clan in turn, reflecting a distributive inheritance formula. The demonstrative ʾelleh {אֵלֶּה | ʾĕl-lêh} functions as a resumptive pronoun to gather the listed clans. The construct chain ben-Yôseph {בֶֿן־יוֹסֵף | ben-yô-seph} links Manasseh to Joseph, and haz-zə-kārîm {הַזְּכָרִים | haz-zə-kā-rîm} restricts the group to males. The closing lə-mishpechôtām reiterates the familial allotment context. English rendering uses possessive constructions and smooths the distributive list while preserving the original emphasis on clan divisions. |