Numeri 29:12 (Numbers 29:12)

Posted on May 26, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Nm 29:12 Quintadecima vero die mensis septimi, quæ vobis sancta erit atque venerabilis, omne opus servile non facietis in ea, sed celebrabitis sollemnitatem Domino septem diebus.

But on the fifteenth day of the seventh month, which shall be holy and venerable for you, you shall not do any servile work on it, but you shall celebrate a feast to the LORD for seven days.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Quintadecima fifteenth NOM.SG.F
2 vero but ADV
3 die day ABL.SG.F
4 mensis of month GEN.SG.M
5 septimi seventh GEN.SG.M
6 quæ which NOM.SG.F.REL
7 vobis for you DAT.PL.PERS
8 sancta holy NOM.SG.F
9 erit shall be 3SG.FUT.ACT.IND
10 atque and also CONJ
11 venerabilis venerable NOM.SG.F
12 omne every ACC.SG.N
13 opus work ACC.SG.N
14 servile servile ACC.SG.N
15 non not ADV
16 facietis you shall do 2PL.FUT.ACT.IND
17 in on PREP+ABL
18 ea it ABL.SG.F.DEM
19 sed but CONJ
20 celebrabitis you shall celebrate 2PL.FUT.ACT.IND
21 sollemnitatem feast ACC.SG.F
22 Domino to the LORD DAT.SG.M
23 septem seven INDECL
24 diebus days ABL.PL.M

Syntax

Temporal Phrase: Quintadecima die mensis septimi establishes the time of the observance, “on the fifteenth day of the seventh month.”

Relative Clause: quæ vobis sancta erit atque venerabilis modifies the day. quæ refers to die, erit is the copulative verb, sancta and venerabilis are predicate adjectives, and vobis is a dative of reference.

Main Clause 1: facietis is the main verb, negated by non. omne opus servile is the direct object. in ea is a temporal phrase referring to the sacred day.

Main Clause 2: celebrabitis is the main verb. sollemnitatem is the direct object. Domino is a dative of reference indicating for whom the feast is celebrated. septem diebus is an ablative of duration expressing the length of the festival.

Morphology

  1. Quintadecima — Lemma: quintusdecimus; Part of Speech: Adjective; Form: Ablative Singular Feminine; Function: Modifies die in a temporal expression; Translation: “fifteenth”; Notes: Specifies the exact day of the month.
  2. vero — Lemma: vero; Part of Speech: Adverb; Form: Indeclinable; Function: Marks contrast or transition; Translation: “but”; Notes: Introduces a new festival regulation.
  3. die — Lemma: dies; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Ablative Singular Feminine; Function: Ablative of time when; Translation: “day”; Notes: Indicates the date on which the command applies.
  4. mensis — Lemma: mensis; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Genitive Singular Masculine; Function: Genitive dependent on die; Translation: “of month”; Notes: Specifies the month to which the day belongs.
  5. septimi — Lemma: septimus; Part of Speech: Adjective; Form: Genitive Singular Masculine; Function: Modifies mensis; Translation: “seventh”; Notes: Identifies the month within the calendar.
  6. quæ — Lemma: qui; Part of Speech: Relative Pronoun; Form: Nominative Singular Feminine; Function: Subject of the relative clause; Translation: “which”; Notes: Refers to the sacred day.
  7. vobis — Lemma: vos; Part of Speech: Personal Pronoun; Form: Dative Plural; Function: Dative of reference; Translation: “for you”; Notes: Identifies the community receiving the command.
  8. sancta — Lemma: sanctus; Part of Speech: Adjective; Form: Nominative Singular Feminine; Function: Predicate adjective; Translation: “holy”; Notes: Marks the day as consecrated.
  9. erit — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: Third Person Singular Future Active Indicative; Function: Copulative verb; Translation: “shall be”; Notes: States the future status of the day.
  10. atque — Lemma: atque; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: Indeclinable; Function: Connects predicate adjectives; Translation: “and”; Notes: Closely links the descriptions of the day.
  11. venerabilis — Lemma: venerabilis; Part of Speech: Adjective; Form: Nominative Singular Feminine; Function: Predicate adjective; Translation: “venerable”; Notes: Indicates that the day is worthy of reverence.
  12. omne — Lemma: omnis; Part of Speech: Adjective; Form: Accusative Singular Neuter; Function: Modifies opus; Translation: “every”; Notes: Gives comprehensive scope to the prohibition.
  13. opus — Lemma: opus; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Accusative Singular Neuter; Function: Direct object of facietis; Translation: “work”; Notes: Refers to labor or occupational activity.
  14. servile — Lemma: servilis; Part of Speech: Adjective; Form: Accusative Singular Neuter; Function: Modifies opus; Translation: “servile”; Notes: Refers to ordinary labor prohibited on the feast day.
  15. non — Lemma: non; Part of Speech: Adverb; Form: Indeclinable; Function: Negates facietis; Translation: “not”; Notes: Forms the prohibition.
  16. facietis — Lemma: facio; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: Second Person Plural Future Active Indicative; Function: Main verb of prohibition; Translation: “you shall do”; Notes: Future indicative functions as a legal command.
  17. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: Governing the Ablative; Function: Introduces temporal phrase; Translation: “on”; Notes: Refers to the sacred day.
  18. ea — Lemma: is; Part of Speech: Demonstrative Pronoun; Form: Ablative Singular Feminine; Function: Object of in; Translation: “it”; Notes: Refers back to the feast day.
  19. sed — Lemma: sed; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: Indeclinable; Function: Introduces contrast; Translation: “but”; Notes: Contrasts prohibited labor with required celebration.
  20. celebrabitis — Lemma: celebro; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: Second Person Plural Future Active Indicative; Function: Main verb; Translation: “you shall celebrate”; Notes: Commands active observance of the feast.
  21. sollemnitatem — Lemma: sollemnitas; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Accusative Singular Feminine; Function: Direct object of celebrabitis; Translation: “feast”; Notes: Refers to a sacred festival observance.
  22. Domino — Lemma: Dominus; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Dative Singular Masculine; Function: Dative of reference; Translation: “to the LORD”; Notes: Refers to YHWH, for whom the feast is celebrated.
  23. septem — Lemma: septem; Part of Speech: Numeral; Form: Indeclinable Cardinal Number; Function: Modifies diebus; Translation: “seven”; Notes: Specifies the duration of the feast.
  24. diebus — Lemma: dies; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Ablative Plural Masculine; Function: Ablative of duration of time; Translation: “days”; Notes: Expresses the length of the festival celebration.

 

About Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Born around 346 A.D. in Stridon, St. Jerome was a scholar fluent in Latin, Greek, and Hebrew whose ascetic discipline and deep engagement with Scripture prepared him for a monumental task: translating the Bible into Latin. Commissioned by Pope Damasus I around 382 A.D., Jerome began by revising the flawed Old Latin Gospels, then expanded his work to the entire Bible. For the New Testament, he corrected Latin texts using Greek manuscripts; for the Old Testament, he translated most books directly from Hebrew—a controversial but principled choice. His final Psalter, however, followed the Greek Septuagint tradition for liturgical use. This composite translation, later known as the Vulgate (editio vulgata), became the authoritative biblical text of the Western Church, formally endorsed at the Council of Trent in 1546. The Vulgate’s influence extends beyond theology into textual criticism and Latin education. As one of the earliest translations grounded in original-language scholarship, it offers a vital witness to the state of biblical texts in late antiquity. Jerome’s lexical and syntactic decisions are studied to trace manuscript history and assess variant readings. Its elegant Latin, consistent in grammar and rich in vocabulary, became a model for medieval and Renaissance learning, bridging classical and ecclesiastical Latin. More than a translation, the Vulgate helped define Christian doctrine, preserved the Latin language, and laid essential groundwork for the critical study of Scripture—remaining indispensable to students of Latin, theology, and textual history.
This entry was posted in Numeri. Bookmark the permalink.

Comments are closed.