Numeri 20:19 (Numbers 20:19)

Posted on May 17, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Nm 20:19 Dixeruntque filii Israel: Per tritam gradiemur viam: et si biberimus aquas tuas nos et pecora nostra, dabimus quod iustum est: nulla erit in pretio difficultas, tantum velociter transeamus.

And the sons of Israel said: “We will walk by the well-worn road, and if we drink your waters, we and our cattle, we will give what is just. There will be no difficulty concerning payment, only let us pass through quickly.”

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Dixeruntque and said 3PL.PERF.ACT.IND
2 filii sons NOM.PL.M
3 Israel Israel INDECL
4 Per by PREP+ACC
5 tritam well-worn ACC.SG.F
6 gradiemur we will walk 1PL.FUT.DEP.IND
7 viam road ACC.SG.F
8 et and CONJ
9 si if CONJ
10 biberimus we drink 1PL.FUTP.ACT.IND
11 aquas waters ACC.PL.F
12 tuas your ACC.PL.F
13 nos we NOM.PL
14 et and CONJ
15 pecora cattle NOM.PL.N
16 nostra our NOM.PL.N
17 dabimus we will give 1PL.FUT.ACT.IND
18 quod what ACC.SG.N.REL
19 iustum just ACC.SG.N
20 nulla no NOM.SG.F
21 erit will be 3SG.FUT.ACT.IND
22 in in PREP+ABL
23 pretio payment ABL.SG.N
24 difficultas difficulty NOM.SG.F
25 tantum only ADV
26 velociter quickly ADV
27 transeamus let us pass through 1PL.PRES.ACT.SUBJ

Syntax

Main Clause: Dixeruntque filii Israel introduces Israel’s renewed response to Edom.

Subject: filii Israel functions as the speakers making the appeal.

Main Clause of Direct Speech: Per tritam gradiemur viam promises orderly travel along the established road.

Phrase: per tritam viam functions as a route phrase indicating travel along a recognized pathway.

Conditional Clause: si biberimus aquas tuas nos et pecora nostra presents a possible circumstance involving water consumption.

Compound Subject: nos et pecora nostra functions together as the subjects of biberimus.

Main Clause: dabimus quod iustum est promises fair compensation.

Relative Clause: quod iustum functions substantivally as the object of dabimus.

Main Clause: nulla erit in pretio difficultas assures Edom that payment will not become troublesome.

Exhortative Clause: tantum velociter transeamus expresses the single request that Israel be allowed rapid passage.

Morphology

  1. Dixeruntque — Lemma: dico; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person plural perfect active indicative with enclitic conjunction; Function: main narrative verb; Translation: “and said”; Notes: the enclitic -que closely links this reply with Edom’s refusal.
  2. filii — Lemma: filius; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative plural masculine; Function: subject of Dixeruntque; Translation: “sons”; Notes: refers collectively to the people of Israel.
  3. Israel — Lemma: Israel; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: indeclinable; Function: modifies filii; Translation: “Israel”; Notes: identifies the covenant nation.
  4. Per — Lemma: per; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governing accusative; Function: introduces route phrase; Translation: “by”; Notes: expresses movement along a route.
  5. tritam — Lemma: tritus; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: accusative singular feminine positive; Function: modifies viam; Translation: “well-worn”; Notes: describes the road as established and frequently traveled.
  6. gradiemur — Lemma: gradior; Part of Speech: verb; Form: first person plural future deponent indicative; Function: main verb of direct speech; Translation: “we will walk”; Notes: the deponent form carries active meaning of orderly movement.
  7. viam — Lemma: via; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: object of per; Translation: “road”; Notes: refers to the public roadway through Edom.
  8. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: coordinating conjunction; Translation: “and”; Notes: joins the promise with the following condition.
  9. si — Lemma: si; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: introduces conditional clause; Translation: “if”; Notes: presents a hypothetical circumstance.
  10. biberimus — Lemma: bibo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: first person plural future perfect active indicative; Function: verb of conditional clause; Translation: “we drink”; Notes: the future perfect expresses an action completed before compensation follows.
  11. aquas — Lemma: aqua; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural feminine; Function: direct object of biberimus; Translation: “waters”; Notes: refers collectively to available water sources.
  12. tuas — Lemma: tuus; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: accusative plural feminine possessive; Function: modifies aquas; Translation: “your”; Notes: identifies the water as belonging to Edom.
  13. nos — Lemma: nos; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: nominative plural first person personal pronoun; Function: explicit subject of biberimus; Translation: “we”; Notes: placed for emphasis together with the livestock.
  14. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: coordinating conjunction; Translation: “and”; Notes: joins Israel with its livestock.
  15. pecora — Lemma: pecus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative plural neuter; Function: coordinated subject of biberimus; Translation: “cattle”; Notes: refers to domesticated livestock accompanying Israel.
  16. nostra — Lemma: noster; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: nominative plural neuter possessive; Function: modifies pecora; Translation: “our”; Notes: identifies the livestock as belonging to Israel.
  17. dabimus — Lemma: do; Part of Speech: verb; Form: first person plural future active indicative; Function: main verb; Translation: “we will give”; Notes: promises future payment or compensation.
  18. quod — Lemma: qui; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: accusative singular neuter relative pronoun; Function: substantive object of dabimus; Translation: “what”; Notes: introduces the object to be paid.
  19. iustum — Lemma: iustus; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: accusative singular neuter positive; Function: modifies quod; Translation: “just”; Notes: emphasizes fairness and proper compensation.
  20. nulla — Lemma: nullus; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: nominative singular feminine; Function: modifies difficultas; Translation: “no”; Notes: strongly denies the possibility of dispute.
  21. erit — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular future active indicative; Function: copulative verb; Translation: “will be”; Notes: projects assurance into the future.
  22. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governing ablative; Function: introduces relational phrase; Translation: “concerning”; Notes: here indicates sphere or matter under discussion.
  23. pretio — Lemma: pretium; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular neuter; Function: object of in; Translation: “payment”; Notes: refers to compensation or price given.
  24. difficultas — Lemma: difficultas; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular feminine; Function: subject of erit; Translation: “difficulty”; Notes: refers to dispute or inconvenience.
  25. tantum — Lemma: tantum; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: indeclinable; Function: restrictive adverb; Translation: “only”; Notes: narrows the request to a single matter.
  26. velociter — Lemma: velociter; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: indeclinable; Function: modifies transeamus; Translation: “quickly”; Notes: emphasizes rapid passage without delay.
  27. transeamus — Lemma: transeo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: first person plural present active subjunctive; Function: hortatory subjunctive; Translation: “let us pass through”; Notes: expresses the final earnest request for permission.

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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