Numeri 15:17 (Numbers 15:17)

Posted on May 12, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Nm 15:17 Loquere filiis Israel, et dices ad eos:

“Speak to the sons of Israel, and you shall say to them:

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Loquere speak 2SG.PRES.IMP.MOOD.DEP
2 filiis to the sons DAT.PL.M.2ND DECL
3 Israel of Israel GEN.SG.M.INDECL
4 et and CONJ
5 dices you shall say 2SG.FUT.ACT.IND
6 ad to PREP+ACC
7 eos them ACC.PL.M.PERS.PRON

Syntax

Imperative Clause: Loquere commands the action, with filiis Israel as the indirect object.

Coordinated Clause: dices ad eos follows, expressing the future act of speaking to them.

Indirect Object Phrase: ad eos indicates the recipients of the speech.

Morphology

  1. Loquere — Lemma: loquor; Part of Speech: verb; Form: second person singular present imperative deponent; Function: main imperative verb; Translation: speak; Notes: Deponent verb with passive form but active meaning, issuing a direct command.
  2. filiis — Lemma: filius; Part of Speech: noun; Form: dative plural masculine second declension; Function: indirect object; Translation: to the sons; Notes: Indicates the recipients of the command.
  3. Israel — Lemma: Israel; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: genitive singular indeclinable; Function: modifies filiis; Translation: of Israel; Notes: Specifies the covenant community.
  4. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: coordinating conjunction; Function: links clauses; Translation: and; Notes: Connects the imperative and the following instruction.
  5. dices — Lemma: dico; Part of Speech: verb; Form: second person singular future active indicative; Function: main verb of second clause; Translation: you shall say; Notes: Indicates a subsequent action following the command.
  6. ad — Lemma: ad; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governing the accusative; Function: introduces object of speech; Translation: to; Notes: Marks the direction of communication.
  7. eos — Lemma: is; Part of Speech: personal pronoun; Form: accusative plural masculine; Function: object of ad; Translation: them; Notes: Refers back to filiis Israel.

 

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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