Numeri 18:32 (Numbers 18:32)

Posted on May 15, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Nm 18:32 Et non peccabitis super hoc, egregia vobis et pinguia reservantes ne polluatis oblationes filiorum Israel, et moriamini.

And you shall not sin concerning this, reserving for yourselves the excellent and the fat things, lest you pollute the oblations of the sons of Israel, and die.’”

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Et and CONJ
2 non not ADV
3 peccabitis you will sin 2PL.FUT.ACT.IND
4 super concerning PREP+ACC
5 hoc this ACC.SG.N.DEM.PRON
6 egregia excellent things ACC.PL.N.ADJ.POS
7 vobis for yourselves DAT.PL.PERS.PRON
8 et and CONJ
9 pinguia fat things ACC.PL.N.ADJ.POS
10 reservantes reserving NOM.PL.M.PRES.ACT.PTCP
11 ne lest CONJ
12 polluatis you pollute 2PL.PRES.ACT.SUBJ
13 oblationes oblations ACC.PL.F.NOUN.3RD DECL
14 filiorum of the sons GEN.PL.M.NOUN.2ND DECL
15 Israel of Israel GEN.SG.M.INDECL.NOUN
16 et and CONJ
17 moriamini you die 2PL.PRES.DEP.SUBJ

Syntax

Main Clause: The implied Subject is “you,” referring to those being addressed; peccabitis is the future indicative verb, negated by non.

Prepositional Phrase: super hoc functions as the matter or occasion concerning which sin would be committed.

Participial Phrase: egregia vobis et pinguia reservantes describes the manner or condition of the implied subject: “reserving for yourselves the excellent and the fat things.”

Purpose or Negative Result Clause: ne polluatis oblationes filiorum Israel expresses what must be avoided: polluting the sacred offerings belonging to the sons of Israel.

Coordinated Result: et moriamini is joined to the ne clause, expressing the grave consequence to be avoided: death following sacrilege.

Morphology

  1. Et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: coordinating conjunction; Function: connects this command to the preceding instruction; Translation: “and”; Notes: Here Et continues the legal exhortation and may carry the force of “then” in context.
  2. non — Lemma: non; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: negative adverb; Function: negates the finite verb peccabitis; Translation: “not”; Notes: The negation makes the statement a prohibition-like assurance tied to obedience.
  3. peccabitis — Lemma: pecco; Part of Speech: verb; Form: second person plural future active indicative; Function: main verbal predicate; Translation: “you shall sin”; Notes: The future tense has practical force: if the command is followed, guilt will not be incurred.
  4. super — Lemma: super; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: preposition governing the accusative; Function: introduces the matter concerned; Translation: “concerning”; Notes: With hoc, it indicates the issue over which guilt might arise.
  5. hoc — Lemma: hic; Part of Speech: demonstrative pronoun; Form: accusative singular neuter; Function: object of the preposition super; Translation: “this”; Notes: The pronoun points back to the regulation about setting apart the best portion.
  6. egregia — Lemma: egregius; Part of Speech: adjective used substantively; Form: accusative plural neuter positive degree; Function: direct object of reservantes; Translation: “excellent things”; Notes: The word denotes what is choice, outstanding, or selected from the rest.
  7. vobis — Lemma: vos; Part of Speech: personal pronoun; Form: dative plural second person; Function: dative of advantage with reservantes; Translation: “for yourselves”; Notes: The dative marks the beneficiaries of the reserved portions.
  8. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: coordinating conjunction; Function: joins egregia and pinguia; Translation: “and”; Notes: It links two descriptions of superior portions.
  9. pinguia — Lemma: pinguis; Part of Speech: adjective used substantively; Form: accusative plural neuter positive degree; Function: direct object of reservantes; Translation: “fat things”; Notes: In sacrificial and agricultural language, “fat” suggests richness, abundance, and quality.
  10. reservantes — Lemma: reservo; Part of Speech: participle; Form: nominative plural masculine present active participle; Function: circumstantial participle describing the implied subject; Translation: “reserving”; Notes: The participle describes the action by which the addressees properly keep the allotted portion.
  11. ne — Lemma: ne; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: subordinating conjunction introducing a negative purpose clause; Function: introduces what is to be avoided; Translation: “lest”; Notes: It governs subjunctive verbs and gives the sentence a warning force.
  12. polluatis — Lemma: polluo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: second person plural present active subjunctive; Function: verb of the negative purpose clause; Translation: “you pollute”; Notes: The subjunctive follows ne and describes the sacrilege to be prevented.
  13. oblationes — Lemma: oblatio; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural feminine third declension; Function: direct object of polluatis; Translation: “oblations”; Notes: The term refers to offerings presented in sacred service.
  14. filiorum — Lemma: filius; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive plural masculine second declension; Function: possessive genitive modifying oblationes; Translation: “of the sons”; Notes: It identifies whose offerings are in view.
  15. Israel — Lemma: Israel; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: genitive singular masculine indeclinable; Function: genitive complement to filiorum; Translation: “of Israel”; Notes: The indeclinable name completes the covenantal designation “sons of Israel.”
  16. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: coordinating conjunction; Function: joins moriamini to the preceding negative purpose construction; Translation: “and”; Notes: It links pollution of the offerings with the severe consequence of death.
  17. moriamini — Lemma: morior; Part of Speech: deponent verb; Form: second person plural present deponent subjunctive; Function: coordinated verb in the negative purpose clause; Translation: “you die”; Notes: Though passive in form, morior is deponent and active in meaning.

 

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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