Numeri 20:21 (Numbers 20:21)

Posted on May 17, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Nm 20:21 nec voluit acquiescere deprecanti, ut concederet transitum per fines suos. quam ob rem divertit ab eo Israel.

And he was unwilling to yield to the one pleading with him, so as to grant passage through his borders. For this reason Israel turned away from him.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 nec and not CONJ
2 voluit he wished 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
3 acquiescere to yield PRES.ACT.INF
4 deprecanti to the one pleading DAT.SG.M.PRES.DEP.PTCP
5 ut so that CONJ
6 concederet he might grant 3SG.IMP.ACT.SUBJ
7 transitum passage ACC.SG.M
8 per through PREP+ACC
9 fines borders ACC.PL.M
10 suos his ACC.PL.M
11 quam which ACC.SG.F.REL
12 ob because of PREP+ACC
13 rem reason ACC.SG.F
14 divertit turned away 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
15 ab from PREP+ABL
16 eo him ABL.SG.M
17 Israel Israel INDECL

Syntax

Main Clause: nec voluit acquiescere deprecanti describes Edom’s refusal to comply with Israel’s request.

Infinitive Construction: voluit acquiescere combines a finite verb of will with a complementary infinitive.

Dative Phrase: deprecanti functions as the indirect object toward whom yielding would have been shown.

Purpose Clause: ut concederet transitum per fines suos expresses the action that Edom refused to allow.

Object: transitum functions as the direct object of concederet.

Phrase: per fines suos functions as a territorial phrase identifying the requested route.

Idiomatic Phrase: quam ob rem introduces the consequence resulting from Edom’s refusal.

Main Clause: divertit ab eo Israel narrates Israel’s withdrawal and change of direction.

Phrase: ab eo functions as a separative phrase expressing movement away from Edom.

Morphology

  1. nec — Lemma: nec; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: negative coordinating conjunction; Translation: “and not”; Notes: continues the narrative with emphatic denial.
  2. voluit — Lemma: volo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular perfect active indicative; Function: main narrative verb; Translation: “he wished”; Notes: expresses deliberate refusal of Israel’s request.
  3. acquiescere — Lemma: acquiesco; Part of Speech: verb; Form: present active infinitive; Function: complementary infinitive with voluit; Translation: “to yield”; Notes: here conveys consent or agreement.
  4. deprecanti — Lemma: deprecor; Part of Speech: participle; Form: dative singular masculine present deponent participle; Function: indirect object of acquiescere; Translation: “to the one pleading”; Notes: refers to Israel or its messengers making earnest appeal.
  5. ut — Lemma: ut; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: introduces purpose clause; Translation: “so that”; Notes: expresses the intended result of yielding.
  6. concederet — Lemma: concedo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular imperfect active subjunctive; Function: verb of purpose clause; Translation: “he might grant”; Notes: expresses the permission Edom refused to provide.
  7. transitum — Lemma: transitus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: direct object of concederet; Translation: “passage”; Notes: refers to transit through Edomite territory.
  8. per — Lemma: per; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governing accusative; Function: introduces route phrase; Translation: “through”; Notes: indicates movement across territory.
  9. fines — Lemma: finis; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural masculine; Function: object of per; Translation: “borders”; Notes: refers to territorial boundaries or lands.
  10. suos — Lemma: suus; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: accusative plural masculine reflexive possessive; Function: modifies fines; Translation: “his”; Notes: refers reflexively to Edom’s own territory.
  11. quam — Lemma: qui; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: accusative singular feminine relative pronoun; Function: part of idiomatic expression; Translation: “which”; Notes: forms the idiom quam ob rem, meaning “for which reason.”
  12. ob — Lemma: ob; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governing accusative; Function: introduces causal phrase; Translation: “because of”; Notes: expresses reason or cause.
  13. rem — Lemma: res; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: object of ob; Translation: “reason”; Notes: part of a fixed idiomatic phrase.
  14. divertit — Lemma: diverto; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular perfect active indicative; Function: main narrative verb; Translation: “turned away”; Notes: describes Israel’s change of route in response to Edom’s refusal.
  15. ab — Lemma: ab; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governing ablative; Function: introduces separative phrase; Translation: “from”; Notes: expresses movement away from a person or place.
  16. eo — Lemma: is; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: ablative singular masculine; Function: object of ab; Translation: “him”; Notes: refers to Edom as the opposing party.
  17. Israel — Lemma: Israel; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: indeclinable; Function: subject of divertit; Translation: “Israel”; Notes: identifies the covenant people redirecting their journey.

 

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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