Numeri 19:9 (Numbers 19:9)

Posted on May 16, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Nm 19:9 Colliget autem vir mundus cineres vaccæ, et effundet eos extra castra in loco purissimo, ut sint multitudini filiorum Israel in custodiam, et in aquam aspersionis: quia pro peccato vacca combusta est.

Then a clean man shall gather the ashes of the cow, and he shall pour them out outside the camp in a most pure place, so that they may be kept for the multitude of the sons of Israel for preservation and for water of sprinkling, because the cow was burned for sin.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Colliget shall gather 3SG.FUT.ACT.IND
2 autem then CONJ
3 vir man NOM.SG.M
4 mundus clean NOM.SG.M.ADJ
5 cineres ashes ACC.PL.M
6 vaccæ of the cow GEN.SG.F
7 et and CONJ
8 effundet shall pour out 3SG.FUT.ACT.IND
9 eos them ACC.PL.M.PERS
10 extra outside PREP+ACC
11 castra the camp ACC.PL.N
12 in in PREP+ABL
13 loco place ABL.SG.M
14 purissimo most pure ABL.SG.M.SUPER
15 ut so that CONJ
16 sint they may be 3PL.PRES.ACT.SUBJ
17 multitudini for the multitude DAT.SG.F
18 filiorum of the sons GEN.PL.M
19 Israel of Israel GEN.INDECL
20 in for PREP+ACC
21 custodiam preservation ACC.SG.F
22 et and CONJ
23 in for PREP+ACC
24 aquam water ACC.SG.F
25 aspersionis of sprinkling GEN.SG.F
26 quia because CONJ
27 pro for PREP+ABL
28 peccato sin ABL.SG.N
29 vacca the cow NOM.SG.F
30 combusta having been burned PERF.PASS.PTCP.NOM.SG.F
31 est was 3SG.PRES.ACT.IND

Syntax

Main Clause: vir mundus colliget cineres vaccæ introduces the primary ritual action, with vir mundus as the subject and cineres vaccæ as the direct object.

Coordinated Verb Clause: et effundet eos extra castra in loco purissimo continues the sequence of ritual instructions concerning the ashes.

Prepositional Phrases: extra castra and in loco purissimo specify the location where the ashes are deposited.

Purpose Clause: ut sint multitudini filiorum Israel in custodiam et in aquam aspersionis explains the intended ritual purpose of the ashes.

Dative Phrase: multitudini filiorum Israel identifies the beneficiaries of the preserved ashes.

Causal Clause: quia pro peccato vacca combusta est explains the sacrificial reason for the ritual burning.

Morphology

  1. Colliget — Lemma: colligo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular future active indicative; Function: principal verb of the opening clause; Translation: “shall gather”; Notes: Continues the sequence of ritual legislation with future imperative force.
  2. autem — Lemma: autem; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: transitional connective; Translation: “then”; Notes: Marks progression to another stage of the purification procedure.
  3. vir — Lemma: vir; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular masculine, second declension; Function: subject of colliget; Translation: “man”; Notes: Refers to a ritually qualified individual.
  4. mundus — Lemma: mundus; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: nominative singular masculine positive degree; Function: modifies vir; Translation: “clean”; Notes: Indicates ritual purity rather than physical cleanliness alone.
  5. cineres — Lemma: cinis; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural masculine, third declension; Function: direct object of colliget; Translation: “ashes”; Notes: Refers to the remains of the sacrificial cow used in purification rites.
  6. vaccæ — Lemma: vacca; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive singular feminine, first declension; Function: dependent genitive modifying cineres; Translation: “of the cow”; Notes: Specifies the source of the ashes.
  7. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: coordinates the ritual actions; Translation: “and”; Notes: Links gathering and depositing the ashes.
  8. effundet — Lemma: effundo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular future active indicative; Function: second principal verb; Translation: “shall pour out”; Notes: Describes depositing the ashes into a designated place.
  9. eos — Lemma: is; Part of Speech: personal pronoun; Form: accusative plural masculine; Function: direct object of effundet; Translation: “them”; Notes: Refers back to the ashes.
  10. extra — Lemma: extra; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs the accusative case; Function: introduces spatial separation; Translation: “outside”; Notes: Indicates removal from the sacred camp area.
  11. castra — Lemma: castra; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural neuter; Function: object of the preposition extra; Translation: “the camp”; Notes: Refers to the Israelite encampment.
  12. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs the ablative case; Function: introduces the deposition location; Translation: “in”; Notes: With the ablative, it expresses location.
  13. loco — Lemma: locus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular masculine, second declension; Function: object of the preposition in; Translation: “place”; Notes: Indicates the designated storage area.
  14. purissimo — Lemma: purus; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: ablative singular masculine superlative degree; Function: modifies loco; Translation: “most pure”; Notes: The superlative emphasizes the ritual suitability of the location.
  15. ut — Lemma: ut; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: introduces a purpose clause; Translation: “so that”; Notes: Governs the following subjunctive verb.
  16. sint — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person plural present active subjunctive; Function: verb of the purpose clause; Translation: “they may be”; Notes: Refers to the continuing ritual use of the ashes.
  17. multitudini — Lemma: multitudo; Part of Speech: noun; Form: dative singular feminine, third declension; Function: dative of advantage; Translation: “for the multitude”; Notes: Identifies the beneficiaries of the purification provision.
  18. filiorum — Lemma: filius; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive plural masculine, second declension; Function: modifies multitudini; Translation: “of the sons”; Notes: Part of the covenant designation of Israel.
  19. Israel — Lemma: Israel; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: indeclinable genitive; Function: modifies filiorum; Translation: “of Israel”; Notes: The biblical name remains indeclinable in Latin.
  20. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs the accusative case; Function: introduces purpose or function; Translation: “for”; Notes: Indicates intended use.
  21. custodiam — Lemma: custodia; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular feminine, first declension; Function: object of the preposition in; Translation: “preservation”; Notes: Suggests guarded storage for future ritual use.
  22. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: coordinates ritual functions; Translation: “and”; Notes: Links preservation with purification use.
  23. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs the accusative case; Function: introduces intended ritual application; Translation: “for”; Notes: Indicates purpose or designated function.
  24. aquam — Lemma: aqua; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular feminine, first declension; Function: object of the preposition in; Translation: “water”; Notes: Refers to the purification water prepared from the ashes.
  25. aspersionis — Lemma: aspersio; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive singular feminine, third declension; Function: dependent genitive modifying aquam; Translation: “of sprinkling”; Notes: Specifies the ceremonial use of the water.
  26. quia — Lemma: quia; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: introduces the causal clause; Translation: “because”; Notes: Explains the sacrificial basis for the ritual.
  27. pro — Lemma: pro; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs the ablative case; Function: expresses substitution or purpose; Translation: “for”; Notes: Indicates the sacrificial purpose connected with sin.
  28. peccato — Lemma: peccatum; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular neuter, second declension; Function: object of the preposition pro; Translation: “sin”; Notes: Refers to purification from ritual defilement associated with sin.
  29. vacca — Lemma: vacca; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular feminine, first declension; Function: subject of the causal clause; Translation: “the cow”; Notes: Identifies the sacrificial animal whose ashes are preserved.
  30. combusta — Lemma: comburo; Part of Speech: participle; Form: perfect passive participle nominative singular feminine; Function: predicate participle linked with est; Translation: “having been burned”; Notes: Describes the completed sacrificial destruction of the animal.
  31. est — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular present active indicative; Function: auxiliary verb completing the perfect passive construction; Translation: “was”; Notes: Forms the completed passive verbal expression together with combusta.

 

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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