Numeri 21:32 (Numbers 21:32)

Posted on May 18, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Nm 21:32 Misitque Moyses qui explorarent Iazer: cuius ceperunt viculos, et possederunt habitatores.

And Moyses sent men who might explore Iazer; they captured its villages and dispossessed the inhabitants.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Misitque and sent 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND+CONJ
2 Moyses Moses NOM.SG.M
3 qui who REL.NOM.PL.M
4 explorarent might explore 3PL.IMP.ACT.SUBJ
5 Iazer Iazer INDECL
6 cuius whose REL.GEN.SG
7 ceperunt they captured 3PL.PERF.ACT.IND
8 viculos villages ACC.PL.M
9 et and CONJ
10 possederunt they dispossessed 3PL.PERF.ACT.IND
11 habitatores inhabitants ACC.PL.M

Syntax

Main Clause: Moyses misit describes Moyses sending representatives.

Relative Purpose Clause: qui explorarent Iazer explains the purpose of those sent, namely to explore Iazer.

Main Narrative Clause: ceperunt viculos narrates the capture of the villages.

Relative Construction: cuius viculos identifies the villages as belonging to Iazer.

Coordinate Clause: et possederunt habitatores describes the removal or displacement of the inhabitants.

Morphology

  1. Misitque — Lemma: mitto; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular perfect active indicative with enclitic conjunction; Function: main narrative verb; Translation: “and sent”; Notes: the enclitic -que closely links this action with the preceding narrative.
  2. Moyses — Lemma: Moyses; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: subject of Misitque; Translation: “Moyses”; Notes: leader of Israel directing the exploration effort.
  3. qui — Lemma: qui; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: relative nominative plural masculine; Function: subject of explorarent; Translation: “who”; Notes: refers to the men sent by Moyses.
  4. explorarent — Lemma: exploro; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person plural imperfect active subjunctive; Function: verb of relative purpose clause; Translation: “might explore”; Notes: expresses intended purpose or mission.
  5. Iazer — Lemma: Iazer; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: indeclinable proper noun; Function: direct object of explorarent; Translation: “Iazer”; Notes: territory or city east of the Jordan.
  6. cuius — Lemma: qui; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: relative genitive singular; Function: modifies viculos; Translation: “whose”; Notes: refers back to Iazer and its dependent villages.
  7. ceperunt — Lemma: capio; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person plural perfect active indicative; Function: main narrative verb; Translation: “they captured”; Notes: describes military seizure of settlements.
  8. viculos — Lemma: viculus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural masculine; Function: direct object of ceperunt; Translation: “villages”; Notes: refers to smaller settlements associated with Iazer.
  9. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: coordinating conjunction; Function: joins the two conquest actions; Translation: “and”; Notes: links capture with dispossession.
  10. possederunt — Lemma: possideo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person plural perfect active indicative; Function: second narrative verb; Translation: “they dispossessed”; Notes: here conveys taking possession by removing prior inhabitants.
  11. habitatores — Lemma: habitator; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural masculine; Function: direct object of possederunt; Translation: “inhabitants”; Notes: refers to the people living in the conquered villages.

 

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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