Leviticus 25:8

Posted on April 25, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Lv 25:8 Numerabis quoque tibi septem hebdomadas annorum, id est, septies septem, quæ simul faciunt annos quadraginta novem:

You shall also count for yourself seven weeks of years, that is, seven times seven, which together make forty-nine years;

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Numerabis you will count 2SG.FUT.IND.ACT
2 quoque also ADV
3 tibi for yourself DAT.SG.PERS
4 septem seven INDECL.NUM
5 hebdomadas weeks ACC.PL.F.1ST.DECL
6 annorum of years GEN.PL.M.2ND.DECL
7 id that NOM.SG.N.DEM
8 est is 3SG.PRES.IND.ACT
9 septies seven times ADV
10 septem seven INDECL.NUM
11 quæ which NOM.PL.N.REL
12 simul together ADV
13 faciunt make 3PL.PRES.IND.ACT
14 annos years ACC.PL.M.2ND.DECL
15 quadraginta forty INDECL.NUM
16 novem nine INDECL.NUM

Syntax

Main Clause: Numerabis (verb) with tibi (ethical dative) + septem hebdomadas annorum (direct object with partitive genitive).
Explanatory Apposition: id est, septies septem — clarifies the computation by multiplication.
Relative Clause: quæ simul faciunt annos quadraginta novem — sums the total, with annos as object and compound numeral as modifier.

Morphology

  1. Numerabis — Lemma: numero; Part of Speech: verb; Form: second person singular future indicative active; Function: main verb of command; Translation: you will count; Notes: Future indicative functions prescriptively in legal instruction.
  2. quoque — Lemma: quoque; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: invariable; Function: adds an additional requirement; Translation: also; Notes: Signals a new counting obligation beyond the sabbatical year.
  3. tibi — Lemma: tu; Part of Speech: personal pronoun; Form: dative singular; Function: ethical dative; Translation: for yourself; Notes: Emphasizes personal responsibility in reckoning the cycle.
  4. septem — Lemma: septem; Part of Speech: numeral; Form: indeclinable; Function: modifies hebdomadas; Translation: seven; Notes: Introduces the base unit of the count.
  5. hebdomadas — Lemma: hebdomas; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural feminine, first declension; Function: direct object of numerabis; Translation: weeks; Notes: Used metaphorically for seven-year cycles rather than literal weeks.
  6. annorum — Lemma: annus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive plural masculine, second declension; Function: partitive/defining genitive; Translation: of years; Notes: Specifies that the “weeks” are composed of years.
  7. id — Lemma: is; Part of Speech: demonstrative pronoun; Form: nominative singular neuter; Function: subject of est; Translation: that; Notes: Introduces an explanatory equivalence.
  8. est — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular present indicative active; Function: copula; Translation: is; Notes: Links the clarification directly to the preceding count.
  9. septies — Lemma: septies; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: invariable; Function: expresses multiplication; Translation: seven times; Notes: Converts the count into a multiplicative formula.
  10. septem — Lemma: septem; Part of Speech: numeral; Form: indeclinable; Function: object of the adverbial multiplication; Translation: seven; Notes: Repetition underscores the sabbatical pattern.
  11. quæ — Lemma: qui; Part of Speech: relative pronoun; Form: nominative plural neuter; Function: subject of faciunt; Translation: which; Notes: Refers back to the computed cycles.
  12. simul — Lemma: simul; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: invariable; Function: modifies faciunt; Translation: together; Notes: Emphasizes the total obtained by aggregation.
  13. faciunt — Lemma: facio; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person plural present indicative active; Function: verb of calculation; Translation: make; Notes: Common idiom for numerical totals.
  14. annos — Lemma: annus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural masculine, second declension; Function: direct object of faciunt; Translation: years; Notes: States the unit of the final sum.
  15. quadraginta — Lemma: quadraginta; Part of Speech: numeral; Form: indeclinable; Function: modifies annos; Translation: forty; Notes: First component of the compound numeral.
  16. novem — Lemma: novem; Part of Speech: numeral; Form: indeclinable; Function: modifies annos; Translation: nine; Notes: Completes the total of forty-nine years.

 

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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