Numeri 11:33 (Numbers 11:33)

Posted on May 8, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Nm 11:33 Adhuc carnes erant in dentibus eorum, nec defecerat huiuscemodi cibus: et ecce furor Domini concitatus in populum, percussit eum plaga magna nimis.

The meats were still in their teeth, and food of this kind had not yet failed; and behold, the fury of the LORD, stirred up against the people, struck it with a very great plague.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Adhuc still / yet ADV
2 carnes meats NOM.PL.F
3 erant were 3PL.IMP.ACT.IND
4 in in PREP+ABL
5 dentibus teeth ABL.PL.M
6 eorum their GEN.PL.3.PERS
7 nec and not / nor CONJ
8 defecerat had failed 3SG.PLUP.ACT.IND
9 huiuscemodi of this kind INDECL
10 cibus food NOM.SG.M
11 et and CONJ
12 ecce behold INTJ
13 furor fury NOM.SG.M
14 Domini of the LORD GEN.SG.M
15 concitatus stirred up NOM.SG.M.PERF.PASS.PTCP
16 in against PREP+ACC
17 populum people ACC.SG.M
18 percussit struck 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
19 eum it / him ACC.SG.M.3.PERS
20 plaga with a plague ABL.SG.F
21 magna great ABL.SG.F
22 nimis exceedingly / very ADV

Syntax

Main Clause 1: carnes is the subject, and erant is the verb. Adhuc modifies the clause adverbially, and in dentibus eorum is a prepositional phrase indicating location, meaning that the meat was still being eaten.

Coordinated Clause: nec defecerat huiuscemodi cibus is joined to the first clause by nec. cibus is the subject, defecerat is the verb, and huiuscemodi modifies cibus. The sense is that this kind of food had not yet come to an end.

Exclamatory Clause: et ecce furor Domini concitatus in populum introduces the sudden divine response. furor is the subject, Domini is a dependent genitive, and concitatus in populum functions as a participial expression describing the fury as aroused against the people.

Main Clause 2: percussit eum plaga magna nimis gives the result. percussit is the verb, eum is the direct object referring back to the collective noun populum, and plaga magna nimis is an ablative phrase expressing the means or instrument of striking.

Morphology

  1. Adhuc — Lemma: adhuc; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: indeclinable adverb; Function: modifies erant; Translation: still / yet; Notes: It emphasizes that the judgment came before the eating had fully run its course.
  2. carnes — Lemma: caro; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative plural feminine, third declension; Function: subject of erant; Translation: meats; Notes: The plural matches the concrete pieces of flesh being consumed.
  3. erant — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person plural imperfect active indicative; Function: main verb of the first clause; Translation: were; Notes: The imperfect tense presents the action as ongoing in past time.
  4. 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 position rather than motion.
  5. dentibus — Lemma: dens; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative plural masculine, third declension; Function: object of in; Translation: teeth; Notes: The image vividly conveys that the people were still in the act of eating.
  6. eorum — Lemma: is; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: genitive plural third person personal pronoun; Function: modifies dentibus; Translation: their; Notes: It points back to the people as a group.
  7. nec — Lemma: nec; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: coordinating negative conjunction; Function: joins the second clause negatively to the first; Translation: and not / nor; Notes: It intensifies the continuity of the situation before judgment falls.
  8. defecerat — Lemma: dēficiō; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular pluperfect active indicative; Function: main verb of the coordinated clause; Translation: had failed; Notes: The pluperfect marks the food as not yet having run out at that stage.
  9. huiuscemodi — Lemma: huiuscemodi; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: indeclinable adjective; Function: modifies cibus; Translation: of this kind; Notes: It characterizes the food as belonging to the same specific type just mentioned.
  10. cibus — Lemma: cibus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular masculine, second declension; Function: subject of defecerat; Translation: food; Notes: The singular treats the provision collectively as a category of nourishment.
  11. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: coordinating conjunction; Function: links the narrative to the sudden divine action; Translation: and; Notes: It transitions from human action to divine response.
  12. ecce — Lemma: ecce; Part of Speech: interjection; Form: indeclinable interjection; Function: introduces a sudden exclamatory notice; Translation: behold; Notes: It heightens dramatic immediacy and draws attention to what follows.
  13. furor — Lemma: furor; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular masculine, third declension; Function: subject of percussit; Translation: fury; Notes: The noun presents divine wrath as forceful and active.
  14. Domini — Lemma: Dominus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive singular masculine, second declension; Function: dependent genitive modifying furor; Translation: of the LORD; Notes: Here Domini refers to YHWH and is therefore rendered “LORD.”
  15. concitatus — Lemma: concitō; Part of Speech: verb; Form: nominative singular masculine perfect passive participle; Function: participial modifier of furor; Translation: stirred up; Notes: It portrays the fury as having been aroused into action against the offenders.
  16. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: preposition governing the accusative; Function: introduces the object toward which the fury is directed; Translation: against; Notes: With the accusative, it conveys hostile direction rather than location.
  17. populum — Lemma: populus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular masculine, second declension; Function: object of in; Translation: people; Notes: The collective singular is later resumed by the singular pronoun eum.
  18. percussit — Lemma: percutiō; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular perfect active indicative; Function: main verb of the final clause; Translation: struck; Notes: The perfect tense presents the plague-strike as a decisive completed act.
  19. eum — Lemma: is; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: accusative singular masculine third person personal pronoun; Function: direct object of percussit; Translation: it / him; Notes: It refers back to populum, treated grammatically as a singular collective noun.
  20. plaga — Lemma: plaga; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular feminine, first declension; Function: ablative of means or instrument; Translation: with a plague; Notes: It names the instrument by which the blow is administered.
  21. magna — Lemma: magnus; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: ablative singular feminine positive degree; Function: modifies plaga; Translation: great; Notes: It stresses the severity of the judgment.
  22. nimis — Lemma: nimis; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: indeclinable adverb; Function: modifies magna; Translation: exceedingly / very; Notes: It intensifies the greatness of the plague beyond ordinary measure.

 

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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