Numeri 11:27 (Numbers 11:27)

Posted on May 8, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Nm 11:27 Cumque prophetarent in castris, cucurrit puer, et nunciavit Moysi, dicens: Eldad et Medad prophetant in castris.

And when they were prophesying in the camp, a young man ran, and reported to Moyses, saying: “Eldad and Medad are prophesying in the camp.”

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Cumque and when CONJ
2 prophetarent they were prophesying 3PL.IMP.ACT.SUBJ
3 in in PREP+ABL
4 castris camp ABL.PL.N
5 cucurrit ran 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
6 puer young man NOM.SG.M
7 et and CONJ
8 nunciavit reported 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
9 Moysi to Moyses DAT.SG.M
10 dicens saying NOM.SG.M.PRES.ACT.PTCP
11 Eldad Eldad INDECL
12 et and CONJ
13 Medad Medad INDECL
14 prophetant are prophesying 3PL.PRES.ACT.IND
15 in in PREP+ABL
16 castris camp ABL.PL.N

Syntax

Temporal Clause: Cumque prophetarent in castris introduces the circumstance in which the following action occurs. prophetarent is the verb, with an implied plural subject referring to Eldad and Medad, and in castris is a prepositional phrase indicating location.

Main Clause: puer is the subject, and cucurrit is the main verb. The clause presents the swift reaction of an unnamed messenger.

Coordinated Clause: et nunciavit Moysi is joined to the previous clause by et. nunciavit is the verb, and Moysi is the indirect object receiving the report.

Participial Phrase: dicens modifies the subject puer and introduces the content of the report.

Reported Clause: Eldad et Medad prophetant in castris gives the content of what was announced. Eldad et Medad is the compound subject, prophetant is the verb, and in castris again specifies the place where the activity is occurring.

Morphology

  1. Cumque — Lemma: cum; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: subordinating conjunction with enclitic conjunction; Function: introduces a temporal subordinate clause; Translation: and when; Notes: The enclitic -que closely links this clause to the previous narrative flow.
  2. prophetarent — Lemma: prophetō; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person plural imperfect active subjunctive, first conjugation; Function: verb of the temporal clause; Translation: they were prophesying; Notes: The imperfect subjunctive fits the circumstantial setting introduced by cum.
  3. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: preposition governing the ablative; Function: introduces a locative phrase; Translation: in; Notes: With the ablative, it marks location rather than motion.
  4. castris — Lemma: castra; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative plural neuter, second declension; Function: object of in; Translation: camp; Notes: The plural form is the regular Latin usage for a camp.
  5. cucurrit — Lemma: currō; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular perfect active indicative, third conjugation; Function: main verb of the narrative clause; Translation: ran; Notes: The perfect tense presents the messenger’s action as a sudden completed event.
  6. puer — Lemma: puer; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular masculine, second declension; Function: subject of cucurrit and nunciavit; Translation: young man; Notes: In context it refers to an attendant or youthful messenger rather than a small child.
  7. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: coordinating conjunction; Function: joins two narrative verbs; Translation: and; Notes: It links the running directly with the reporting.
  8. nunciavit — Lemma: nunciō; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular perfect active indicative, first conjugation; Function: main verb of the coordinated clause; Translation: reported; Notes: The verb emphasizes formal communication of news.
  9. Moysi — Lemma: Moyses; Part of Speech: noun; Form: dative singular masculine, proper noun; Function: indirect object of nunciavit; Translation: to Moyses; Notes: The dative marks Moyses as the recipient of the message.
  10. dicens — Lemma: dīcō; Part of Speech: verb; Form: nominative singular masculine present active participle, third conjugation; Function: participial modifier of puer; Translation: saying; Notes: It introduces the exact content of the announcement.
  11. Eldad — Lemma: Eldad; Part of Speech: noun; Form: indeclinable proper noun; Function: first subject of the reported clause; Translation: Eldad; Notes: One of the two men who remained in the camp.
  12. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: coordinating conjunction; Function: links the two named subjects; Translation: and; Notes: It joins Eldad and Medad into a compound subject.
  13. Medad — Lemma: Medad; Part of Speech: noun; Form: indeclinable proper noun; Function: second subject of the reported clause; Translation: Medad; Notes: The second of the two named men in the camp.
  14. prophetant — Lemma: prophetō; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person plural present active indicative, first conjugation; Function: main verb of the reported clause; Translation: are prophesying; Notes: The present tense presents the prophetic activity as ongoing at the moment of the report.
  15. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: preposition governing the ablative; Function: introduces a locative phrase; Translation: in; Notes: Again marks location, reinforcing that the prophecy is occurring away from the tabernacle.
  16. castris — Lemma: castra; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative plural neuter, second declension; Function: object of in; Translation: camp; Notes: Its repetition highlights the surprising setting of the prophetic activity.

 

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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