Numeri 21:11 (Numbers 21:11)

Posted on May 18, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Nm 21:11 Unde egressi fixere tentoria in Ieabarim, in solitudine, quæ respicit Moab contra orientalem plagam.

From there, having departed, they pitched their tents in Ieabarim, in the wilderness which looks toward Moab against the eastern region.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Unde from there ADV
2 egressi having departed PERF.DEP.PTCP.NOM.PL.M
3 fixere they pitched 3PL.PERF.ACT.IND
4 tentoria tents ACC.PL.N
5 in in PREP+ABL
6 Ieabarim Ieabarim INDECL
7 in in PREP+ABL
8 solitudine wilderness ABL.SG.F
9 quæ which REL.NOM.SG.F
10 respicit looks toward 3SG.PRES.ACT.IND
11 Moab Moab INDECL
12 contra toward PREP+ACC
13 orientalem eastern ACC.SG.F
14 plagam region ACC.SG.F

Syntax

Participial Opening: egressi describes prior departure before the encampment action.

Main Clause: fixere tentoria expresses the completed action of pitching tents.

Object: tentoria serves as the direct object of fixere.

Primary Location Phrase: in Ieabarim identifies the encampment site.

Secondary Location Phrase: in solitudine further describes the geographical setting.

Relative Clause: quæ respicit Moab modifies solitudine and describes its orientation.

Directional Phrase: contra orientalem plagam specifies the eastern direction associated with the wilderness.

Morphology

  1. Unde — Lemma: unde; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: relative adverb of place; Function: introduces movement from a previous location; Translation: “from there”; Notes: connects the journey with the preceding encampment location.
  2. egressi — Lemma: egredior; Part of Speech: verb; Form: perfect deponent participle nominative plural masculine; Function: participial modifier of the implied subject; Translation: “having departed”; Notes: deponent verb with active meaning, indicating completed movement.
  3. fixere — Lemma: figo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person plural perfect active indicative; Function: main narrative verb; Translation: “they pitched”; Notes: contracted poetic or narrative form for fixerunt.
  4. tentoria — Lemma: tentorium; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural neuter; Function: direct object of fixere; Translation: “tents”; Notes: refers to the camp structures of the people.
  5. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: preposition governing the ablative; Function: introduces location phrase; Translation: “in”; Notes: with the ablative it expresses place where.
  6. Ieabarim — Lemma: Ieabarim; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: indeclinable proper noun; Function: object of in; Translation: “Ieabarim”; Notes: wilderness encampment area east of Moab.
  7. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: preposition governing the ablative; Function: introduces descriptive location phrase; Translation: “in”; Notes: adds geographical detail concerning the encampment.
  8. solitudine — Lemma: solitudo; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular feminine; Function: object of in; Translation: “wilderness”; Notes: denotes an uninhabited or barren region.
  9. quæ — Lemma: qui; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: relative nominative singular feminine; Function: introduces relative clause; Translation: “which”; Notes: refers back to solitudine.
  10. respicit — Lemma: respicio; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular present active indicative; Function: verb of the relative clause; Translation: “looks toward”; Notes: describes geographical orientation or facing direction.
  11. Moab — Lemma: Moab; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: indeclinable proper noun; Function: object toward which the wilderness faces; Translation: “Moab”; Notes: the territory east of the Jordan associated with the Moabites.
  12. contra — Lemma: contra; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: preposition governing the accusative; Function: introduces directional phrase; Translation: “toward”; Notes: indicates orientation facing a specific direction.
  13. orientalem — Lemma: orientalis; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: modifies plagam; Translation: “eastern”; Notes: specifies the direction of the region described.
  14. plagam — Lemma: plaga; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: object of contra; Translation: “region”; Notes: here refers to a geographical side or direction.

 

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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