Numeri 32:7 (Numbers 32:7)

Posted on May 29, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Nm 32:7 Cur subvertitis mentes filiorum Israel, ne transire audeant in locum, quem eis daturus est Dominus?

Why do you turn away the hearts of the sons of Israel, so that they do not dare to cross over into the place that the LORD is about to give them?

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Cur why ADV.INVAR
2 subvertitis do you turn away 2PL.PRES.ACT.IND
3 mentes hearts ACC.PL.F.OBJ
4 filiorum of the sons GEN.PL.M
5 Israel of Israel INDECL
6 ne lest CONJ.INVAR
7 transire to cross PRES.ACT.INF
8 audeant they may dare 3PL.PRES.ACT.SUBJ
9 in into PREP+ACC
10 locum the place ACC.SG.M
11 quem which ACC.SG.M.REL.OBJ
12 eis to them DAT.PL.PERS.IOBJ
13 daturus about to give FUT.ACT.PTCP.NOM.SG.M
14 est is 3SG.PRES.ACT.IND
15 Dominus the LORD NOM.SG.M

Syntax

Main Interrogative Clause: Cur subvertitis mentes filiorum Israel is the principal question. Cur introduces the question, subvertitis is the verb, mentes is the direct object, and filiorum Israel is a possessive genitive modifying mentes.

Negative Purpose Clause: ne transire audeant expresses the consequence or intended result that the Israelites might not dare to cross. The conjunction ne introduces the clause, the subjunctive audeant is its finite verb, and transire is the complementary infinitive.

Prepositional Phrase: in locum modifies transire, indicating the destination into which the Israelites would cross.

Relative Clause: quem eis daturus est Dominus modifies locum. The relative pronoun quem is the direct object of the verbal idea expressed by the future active participle daturus with est, while Dominus is the subject and eis is the indirect object.

Future Periphrastic: daturus est forms a future periphrastic construction, expressing that the LORD is about to give or intends to give the land to Israel.

Morphology

  1. Cur — Lemma: cur; Part of Speech: Interrogative adverb; Form: Invariable; Function: Introduces the rhetorical question; Translation: “why”; Notes: Moyses challenges the motive behind the request.
  2. subvertitis — Lemma: subverto; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: Second person plural, present active indicative, third conjugation; Function: Main verb of the question; Translation: “do you turn away”; Notes: Here it means to discourage or undermine the resolve of others.
  3. mentes — Lemma: mens; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Accusative plural feminine, third declension; Function: Direct object of subvertitis; Translation: “hearts”; Notes: Refers to the minds, courage, or determination of the Israelites.
  4. filiorum — Lemma: filius; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Genitive plural masculine, second declension; Function: Genitive modifying mentes; Translation: “of the sons”; Notes: Specifies whose hearts are being discouraged.
  5. Israel — Lemma: Israel; Part of Speech: Proper noun; Form: Indeclinable; Function: Completes the expression filiorum Israel; Translation: “Israel”; Notes: Identifies the covenant people.
  6. ne — Lemma: ne; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: Invariable; Function: Introduces the negative purpose clause; Translation: “lest”; Notes: Expresses the undesirable result of discouragement.
  7. transire — Lemma: transeo; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: Present active infinitive; Function: Complementary infinitive with audeant; Translation: “to cross”; Notes: Refers to crossing the Jordan into the promised land.
  8. audeant — Lemma: audeo; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: Third person plural, present active subjunctive, second conjugation; Function: Verb of the negative purpose clause; Translation: “they may dare”; Notes: The subjunctive follows ne to express intended or feared result.
  9. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: Governing the accusative; Function: Introduces in locum; Translation: “into”; Notes: Indicates motion toward the promised land.
  10. locum — Lemma: locus; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Accusative singular masculine, second declension; Function: Object of the preposition in; Translation: “the place”; Notes: Refers to the land promised by the LORD.
  11. quem — Lemma: qui; Part of Speech: Relative pronoun; Form: Accusative singular masculine; Function: Direct object of the future periphrastic verbal idea; Translation: “which”; Notes: Refers back to locum.
  12. eis — Lemma: is; Part of Speech: Demonstrative pronoun; Form: Dative plural; Function: Indirect object of daturus est; Translation: “to them”; Notes: Refers to the sons of Israel.
  13. daturus — Lemma: do; Part of Speech: Future active participle; Form: Nominative singular masculine; Function: Forms the future periphrastic with est; Translation: “about to give”; Notes: Expresses the LORD’s future intention to give the land.
  14. est — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: Third person singular, present active indicative; Function: Completes the future periphrastic construction; Translation: “is”; Notes: Combined with daturus, it conveys imminent future action.
  15. Dominus — Lemma: Dominus; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Nominative singular masculine, second declension; Function: Subject of daturus est; Translation: “the LORD”; Notes: Refers to YHWH, the giver of the promised land.

 

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.
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