Numeri 4:42 (Numbers 4:42)

Posted on May 1, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Nm 4:42 Numerati sunt et filii Merari per cognationes et domos patrum suorum

And the sons of Merari were numbered by their clans and the houses of their fathers

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Numerati numbered NOM.PL.M.PTCP
2 sunt they are 3.PL.PRES.ACT.IND
3 et and CONJ
4 filii sons NOM.PL.M
5 Merari Merari INDECL
6 per through PREP+ACC
7 cognationes clans ACC.PL.F
8 et and CONJ
9 domos houses ACC.PL.F
10 patrum of fathers GEN.PL.M
11 suorum their own GEN.PL.M

Syntax

Main Clause: Numerati sunt filii Merari — passive periphrastic construction, with Numerati sunt as the verb and filii Merari as the subject.

Prepositional Phrase: per cognationes et domos patrum suorum — expresses distribution, indicating classification by clans and paternal households.

Genitive Phrase: patrum suorum modifies domos, specifying lineage.

Clause Function: The sentence reports the census of the Merarites, structured according to family divisions.

Morphology

  1. Numerati — Lemma: numero; Part of Speech: participle; Form: perfect passive participle nominative plural masculine; Function: predicate; Translation: “numbered”; Notes: Indicates completed census action.
  2. sunt — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: present active indicative, third person plural; Function: auxiliary; Translation: “they are”; Notes: Forms perfect passive construction.
  3. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: coordinating conjunction; Function: joins clause; Translation: “and”; Notes: Continues narrative.
  4. filii — Lemma: filius; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative plural masculine; Function: subject; Translation: “sons”; Notes: Clan members.
  5. Merari — Lemma: Merari; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: indeclinable; Function: genitive relation; Translation: “Merari”; Notes: Clan designation.
  6. per — Lemma: per; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs accusative; Function: expresses distribution; Translation: “through”; Notes: Indicates categorization.
  7. cognationes — Lemma: cognatio; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural feminine; Function: object of per; Translation: “clans”; Notes: Kinship groups.
  8. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: coordinating; Function: joins; Translation: “and”; Notes: Continues structure.
  9. domos — Lemma: domus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural feminine; Function: object of per; Translation: “houses”; Notes: Household units.
  10. patrum — Lemma: pater; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive plural masculine; Function: modifier; Translation: “of fathers”; Notes: Indicates lineage.
  11. suorum — Lemma: suus; Part of Speech: possessive adjective; Form: genitive plural masculine; Function: modifies patrum; Translation: “their own”; Notes: Emphasizes belonging.

 

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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