Numeri 34:18 (Numbers 34:18)

Posted on June 1, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Nm 34:18 et singuli principes de tribubus singulis,

and one prince from each tribe,

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 et and CONJ INVAR
2 singuli one each NOM.PL.M.ADJ
3 principes princes NOM.PL.M 3RD DECL
4 de from PREP+ABL
5 tribubus tribes ABL.PL.F 4TH DECL
6 singulis each ABL.PL.F.ADJ

Syntax

Continuation of the Previous Verse: et singuli principes de tribubus singulis continues the enumeration of the men appointed to divide the Land. It adds the tribal princes to Eleazar sacerdos and Iosue filius Nun named in the preceding verse.

Coordinated Noun Phrase: singuli principes means literally “the princes, one each,” and naturally “one prince each.” principes is nominative plural, while the distributive adjective singuli indicates that the princes are to be taken individually, one for each tribal unit.

Prepositional Phrase: de tribubus singulis means “from each tribe.” de governs the ablative plural tribubus, and singulis agrees with tribubus. The repetition of distributive forms in singuli … singulis emphasizes the one-from-each arrangement.

Elliptical Construction: No finite verb is expressed in this verse. The phrase depends syntactically on the preceding statement identifying the men who will divide the Land; the sense is that, in addition to Eleazar and Josue, one prince from each tribe is included among them.

Morphology

  1. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: Indeclinable coordinating conjunction; Function: Adds the tribal princes to Eleazar and Josue named in the preceding verse; Translation: “and”; Notes: The conjunction continues the list of those appointed to take part in dividing the Land.
  2. singuli — Lemma: singuli; Part of Speech: Distributive adjective; Form: Nominative plural masculine, first-and-second-declension distributive adjective; Function: Modifies principes and indicates one prince apiece; Translation: “one each”; Notes: Unlike a simple cardinal numeral, singuli has distributive force, emphasizing that the princes are selected individually, one corresponding to each tribe.
  3. principes — Lemma: princeps; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Nominative plural masculine, third declension; Function: Coordinated nominative noun phrase added to the previously named men; Translation: “princes”; Notes: In this context principes denotes tribal leaders or chiefs who participate in the allocation of the Land.
  4. de — Lemma: de; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: Indeclinable preposition governing the ablative; Function: Introduces tribubus singulis as the groups from which the princes are drawn; Translation: “from”; Notes: The phrase identifies the tribal source of each appointed prince.
  5. tribubus — Lemma: tribus; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Ablative plural feminine, fourth declension; Function: Object of the preposition de; Translation: “tribes”; Notes: The noun refers to the individual tribal groups from which the appointed princes are selected.
  6. singulis — Lemma: singuli; Part of Speech: Distributive adjective; Form: Ablative plural feminine, first-and-second-declension distributive adjective; Function: Modifies tribubus; Translation: “each”; Notes: Its distributive force corresponds to singuli earlier in the phrase, yielding the precise sense “one prince from each tribe.”

 

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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