Numeri 20:8 (Numbers 20:8)

Posted on May 17, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Nm 20:8 Tolle virgam, et congrega populum, tu et Aaron frater tuus, et loquimini ad petram coram eis, et illa dabit aquas. Cumque eduxeris aquam de petra, bibet omnis multitudo et iumenta eius.

“Take the rod, and gather the people together, you and Aaron your brother, and speak to the rock before them, and it will give waters. And when you have brought forth water from the rock, the whole multitude and their cattle will drink.”

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Tolle take 2SG.PRES.ACT.IMP.MOOD
2 virgam rod ACC.SG.F
3 et and CONJ
4 congrega gather together 2SG.PRES.ACT.IMP.MOOD
5 populum people ACC.SG.M
6 tu you NOM.SG
7 et and CONJ
8 Aaron Aaron NOM.SG.M
9 frater brother NOM.SG.M
10 tuus your NOM.SG.M
11 et and CONJ
12 loquimini speak 2PL.PRES.DEP.IMP.MOOD
13 ad to PREP+ACC
14 petram rock ACC.SG.F
15 coram before PREP+ABL
16 eis them ABL.PL
17 et and CONJ
18 illa it NOM.SG.F
19 dabit will give 3SG.FUT.ACT.IND
20 aquas waters ACC.PL.F
21 Cumque and when CONJ
22 eduxeris you have brought forth 2SG.FUTP.ACT.IND
23 aquam water ACC.SG.F
24 de from PREP+ABL
25 petra rock ABL.SG.F
26 bibet will drink 3SG.FUT.ACT.IND
27 omnis whole NOM.SG.F
28 multitudo multitude NOM.SG.F
29 et and CONJ
30 iumenta cattle NOM.PL.N
31 eius its GEN.SG

Syntax

Imperative Clause: Tolle virgam begins the divine command with a direct imperative addressed to Moyses.

Imperative Clause: congrega populum commands the gathering of the covenant community.

Appositional Phrase: tu et Aaron frater tuus identifies the two leaders responsible for carrying out the command.

Imperative Clause: loquimini ad petram coram eis commands Moyses and Aaron to address the rock publicly before the people.

Main Clause: illa dabit aquas expresses the promised divine result of obedience.

Temporal Clause: Cumque eduxeris aquam de petra establishes the future circumstance following the miracle.

Main Clause: bibet omnis multitudo et iumenta eius describes the provision received by both the people and their livestock.

Morphology

  1. Tolle — Lemma: tollo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: second person singular present active imperative; Function: imperative command; Translation: “take”; Notes: introduces the divine instruction with direct urgency.
  2. virgam — Lemma: virga; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: direct object of Tolle; Translation: “rod”; Notes: symbolizes delegated authority and divine power.
  3. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: coordinating conjunction; Translation: “and”; Notes: links successive commands together.
  4. congrega — Lemma: congrego; Part of Speech: verb; Form: second person singular present active imperative; Function: imperative command; Translation: “gather together”; Notes: commands public assembly before the miracle.
  5. populum — Lemma: populus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: direct object of congrega; Translation: “people”; Notes: refers collectively to Israel.
  6. tu — Lemma: tu; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: nominative singular second person personal pronoun; Function: explicit subject for emphasis; Translation: “you”; Notes: stresses Moyses’ personal participation in the command.
  7. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: coordinating conjunction; Translation: “and”; Notes: joins Moyses and Aaron together.
  8. Aaron — Lemma: Aaron; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: coordinated subject; Translation: “Aaron”; Notes: included as co-participant in the divine instruction.
  9. frater — Lemma: frater; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: apposition to Aaron; Translation: “brother”; Notes: clarifies familial relationship to Moyses.
  10. tuus — Lemma: tuus; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: nominative singular masculine possessive; Function: modifies frater; Translation: “your”; Notes: emphasizes kinship within shared leadership.
  11. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: coordinating conjunction; Translation: “and”; Notes: connects the next imperative action.
  12. loquimini — Lemma: loquor; Part of Speech: verb; Form: second person plural present deponent imperative; Function: imperative command; Translation: “speak”; Notes: the deponent form carries active meaning while addressing both Moyses and Aaron.
  13. ad — Lemma: ad; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governing accusative; Function: introduces direction of speech; Translation: “to”; Notes: marks the rock as the addressed object.
  14. petram — Lemma: petra; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: object of ad; Translation: “rock”; Notes: becomes the divinely appointed source of water.
  15. coram — Lemma: coram; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governing ablative; Function: introduces phrase of presence; Translation: “before”; Notes: indicates public visibility of the act.
  16. eis — Lemma: is; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: ablative plural; Function: object of coram; Translation: “them”; Notes: refers to the assembled people.
  17. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: coordinating conjunction; Translation: “and”; Notes: introduces the promised consequence.
  18. illa — Lemma: ille; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: nominative singular feminine demonstrative pronoun; Function: subject of dabit; Translation: “it”; Notes: refers back to the rock.
  19. dabit — Lemma: do; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular future active indicative; Function: main verb of promise; Translation: “will give”; Notes: expresses certain future provision.
  20. aquas — Lemma: aqua; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural feminine; Function: direct object of dabit; Translation: “waters”; Notes: the plural emphasizes abundance.
  21. Cumque — Lemma: cum; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable with enclitic conjunction; Function: introduces temporal clause; Translation: “and when”; Notes: connects the fulfillment of the miracle with the following result.
  22. eduxeris — Lemma: educo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: second person singular future perfect active indicative; Function: verb of temporal clause; Translation: “you have brought forth”; Notes: the future perfect emphasizes completed action prior to the next event.
  23. aquam — Lemma: aqua; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: direct object of eduxeris; Translation: “water”; Notes: identifies the miraculous provision.
  24. de — Lemma: de; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governing ablative; Function: introduces separative phrase; Translation: “from”; Notes: marks origin from the rock.
  25. petra — Lemma: petra; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular feminine; Function: object of de; Translation: “rock”; Notes: source of the miraculous water.
  26. bibet — Lemma: bibo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular future active indicative; Function: main verb; Translation: “will drink”; Notes: singular agreement follows the collective noun multitudo.
  27. omnis — Lemma: omnis; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: nominative singular feminine positive; Function: modifies multitudo; Translation: “whole”; Notes: stresses total inclusion of the people.
  28. multitudo — Lemma: multitudo; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular feminine; Function: subject of bibet; Translation: “multitude”; Notes: collective singular representing the assembled community.
  29. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: coordinating conjunction; Translation: “and”; Notes: joins the people with their livestock.
  30. iumenta — Lemma: iumentum; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative plural neuter; Function: coordinated subject; Translation: “cattle”; Notes: refers to beasts of burden and livestock dependent on the water.
  31. eius — Lemma: is; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: genitive singular; Function: possessive genitive modifying iumenta; Translation: “its”; Notes: refers back to the collective multitude.

 

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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