Leviticus 26:37

Posted on April 26, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Lv 26:37 et corruent singuli super fratres suos quasi bella fugientes, nemo vestrum inimicis audebit resistere.

and they will fall, each upon his brother, as those fleeing from battles; none of you will dare to resist the enemies.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 et and CONJ
2 corruent they will fall 3PL.FUT.IND.ACT
3 singuli each one NOM.PL.M.ADJ
4 super upon PREP+ACC
5 fratres brothers ACC.PL.M.3RD.DECL
6 suos their own ACC.PL.M.POSS.ADJ
7 quasi as if ADV
8 bella battles ACC.PL.N.2ND.DECL
9 fugientes fleeing NOM.PL.PTCP.PRES.ACT
10 nemo no one NOM.SG.M.INDEF
11 vestrum of you GEN.PL.PERS.PRON
12 inimicis to enemies DAT.PL.M.3RD.DECL
13 audebit will dare 3SG.FUT.IND.ACT
14 resistere to resist PRES.INF.ACT

Syntax

Coordinated Result: et corruent — continuation of the judgment sequence, expressing inevitable collapse.
Subject Emphasis: singuli — distributive nominative stressing individual panic rather than collective order.
Hostile Contact: super fratres suos — prepositional phrase indicating fratricidal collision born of fear.
Comparative Manner: quasi bella fugientes — simile portraying chaos as battlefield flight.
Absolute Incapacity: nemo vestrum inimicis audebit resistere — negative main clause declaring total loss of courage.

Morphology

  1. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: invariable; Function: coordination; Translation: and; Notes: Links this consequence to the preceding panic.
  2. corruent — Lemma: corruo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person plural future indicative active; Function: main verb; Translation: they will fall; Notes: Indicates physical and social collapse.
  3. singuli — Lemma: singulus; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: nominative plural masculine; Function: subject modifier; Translation: each one; Notes: Emphasizes isolation within the group.
  4. super — Lemma: super; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governing the accusative; Function: spatial relation; Translation: upon; Notes: Conveys collision rather than cooperation.
  5. fratres — Lemma: frater; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural masculine, third declension; Function: object of super; Translation: brothers; Notes: Highlights internal breakdown of kinship.
  6. suos — Lemma: suus; Part of Speech: possessive adjective; Form: accusative plural masculine; Function: modifies fratres; Translation: their own; Notes: Reflexive possession intensifying the tragedy.
  7. quasi — Lemma: quasi; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: invariable; Function: comparative marker; Translation: as if; Notes: Introduces an imagined scenario to clarify manner.
  8. bella — Lemma: bellum; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural neuter, second declension; Function: object of implied motion; Translation: battles; Notes: Evokes scenes of military rout.
  9. fugientes — Lemma: fugio; Part of Speech: participle; Form: nominative plural present active participle; Function: modifies implied subject; Translation: fleeing; Notes: Describes uncontrolled retreat.
  10. nemo — Lemma: nemo; Part of Speech: indefinite pronoun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: subject; Translation: no one; Notes: Absolute negation of resistance.
  11. vestrum — Lemma: vos; Part of Speech: personal pronoun; Form: genitive plural; Function: partitive genitive; Translation: of you; Notes: Restricts the negation to the addressed group.
  12. inimicis — Lemma: inimicus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: dative plural masculine, second declension; Function: indirect object; Translation: to enemies; Notes: The external threat remains unopposed.
  13. audebit — Lemma: audeo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular future indicative active; Function: main verb; Translation: will dare; Notes: Expresses moral courage now absent.
  14. resistere — Lemma: resisto; Part of Speech: verb; Form: present active infinitive; Function: complementary infinitive; Translation: to resist; Notes: Marks the lost capacity for opposition.

 

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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