וּכְאַבְשָׁל֗וֹם לֹֽא־הָיָ֧ה אִישׁ־יָפֶ֛ה בְּכׇל־יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל לְהַלֵּ֣ל מְאֹ֑ד מִכַּ֤ף רַגְלוֹ֙ וְעַ֣ד קׇדְקֳד֔וֹ לֹא־הָ֥יָה ב֖וֹ מֽוּם׃
No other man in Israel was so admired for his beauty as Absalom; from the sole of his foot to the crown of his head he was without blemish.
(The above rendering comes from the RJPS translation, an adaptation of the NJPS translation. Before accounting for this rendering, I will analyze the plain sense of the expression containing אִישׁ, by employing a situation-oriented construal as outlined in “Notes on Gender in Translation,” pp. 11–16.)
The phrasing posits the existence of other handsome Israelite men—who don’t, however, measure up to Absalom. The use of אִישׁ regards them as essential participants for grasping the depicted situation.
As for rendering into English, the NJPS ‘No one in all Israel’ uses an indefinite pronoun, which weakens the depicted situation by leaving the field of competition vague. The revised rendering employs a situating noun, much like REB and NIV.