Numeri 21:5 (Numbers 21:5)

Posted on May 18, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Nm 21:5 locutusque contra Deum et Moysen, ait: Cur eduxisti nos de Ægypto, ut moreremur in solitudine? Deest panis, non sunt aquæ: anima nostra iam nauseat super cibo isto levissimo.

and speaking against God and Moyses, he said: “Why have you brought us out of Egypt, so that we should die in the wilderness? Bread is lacking, waters are not present; our soul now is disgusted with this very light food.”

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 locutusque and speaking PERF.DEP.PTCP.NOM.SG.M+CONJ
2 contra against PREP+ACC
3 Deum God ACC.SG.M
4 et and CONJ
5 Moysen Moses ACC.SG.M
6 ait said 3SG.PRES.ACT.IND
7 Cur why ADV
8 eduxisti have you brought out 2SG.PERF.ACT.IND
9 nos us ACC.PL
10 de from PREP+ABL
11 Ægypto Egypt ABL.SG.F
12 ut so that CONJ
13 moreremur we should die 1PL.IMP.DEP.SUBJ
14 in in PREP+ABL
15 solitudine wilderness ABL.SG.F
16 Deest is lacking 3SG.PRES.ACT.IND
17 panis bread NOM.SG.M
18 non not ADV
19 sunt are 3PL.PRES.ACT.IND
20 aquæ waters NOM.PL.F
21 anima soul NOM.SG.F
22 nostra our NOM.SG.F
23 iam now ADV
24 nauseat is disgusted 3SG.PRES.ACT.IND
25 super with PREP+ABL
26 cibo food ABL.SG.M
27 isto this ABL.SG.M
28 levissimo very light ABL.SG.M.SUPER

Syntax

Participial Opening: locutusque contra Deum et Moysen introduces the people’s complaint as speech directed against both God and Moyses.

Main Verb of Speech: ait introduces the direct speech that follows.

Question Clause: Cur eduxisti nos de Ægypto asks why the addressee brought the people out from Ægypt.

Object: nos is the direct object of eduxisti.

Source Phrase: de Ægypto identifies the place from which the people were brought out.

Purpose Clause: ut moreremur in solitudine expresses the bitterly stated result or purpose attributed by the speakers to the exodus.

Existence and Lack Clauses: Deest panis and non sunt aquæ state the perceived absence of bread and water.

Complaint Clause: anima nostra iam nauseat super cibo isto levissimo expresses the people’s disgust toward the food.

Morphology

  1. locutusque — Lemma: loquor; Part of Speech: verb; Form: perfect deponent participle nominative singular masculine with enclitic conjunction; Function: participial action introducing the speech; Translation: “and speaking”; Notes: deponent in form but active in meaning, joined closely to the narrative by -que.
  2. contra — Lemma: contra; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: preposition governing the accusative; Function: introduces the object of opposition; Translation: “against”; Notes: marks the speech as hostile or accusatory.
  3. Deum — Lemma: Deus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: object of contra; Translation: “God”; Notes: identifies God as one target of the complaint.
  4. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: coordinating conjunction; Function: joins the two objects of contra; Translation: “and”; Notes: links God and Moyses as the ones opposed in the people’s speech.
  5. Moysen — Lemma: Moyses; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: second object of contra; Translation: “Moyses”; Notes: the Latin accusative form marks Moyses as the target of accusation.
  6. ait — Lemma: aio; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular present active indicative; Function: main verb introducing direct speech; Translation: “said”; Notes: commonly introduces quoted speech in biblical narrative.
  7. Cur — Lemma: cur; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: interrogative adverb; Function: introduces the question; Translation: “why”; Notes: gives the sentence an accusatory interrogative force.
  8. eduxisti — Lemma: educo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: second person singular perfect active indicative; Function: main verb of the question; Translation: “have you brought out”; Notes: refers to the completed act of bringing the people out of Ægypt.
  9. nos — Lemma: nos; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: accusative plural personal pronoun; Function: direct object of eduxisti; Translation: “us”; Notes: identifies the complaining group as the ones brought out.
  10. de — Lemma: de; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: preposition governing the ablative; Function: introduces the source phrase; Translation: “from”; Notes: marks separation from the place of origin.
  11. Ægypto — Lemma: Ægyptus; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: ablative singular feminine; Function: object of de; Translation: “Egypt”; Notes: denotes the land from which Israel had departed.
  12. ut — Lemma: ut; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: subordinating conjunction; Function: introduces a purpose or result clause; Translation: “so that”; Notes: governs the subjunctive verb moreremur.
  13. moreremur — Lemma: morior; Part of Speech: verb; Form: first person plural imperfect deponent subjunctive; Function: verb of the subordinate clause; Translation: “we should die”; Notes: deponent verb with active meaning, expressing the feared or alleged outcome.
  14. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: preposition governing the ablative; Function: introduces location phrase; Translation: “in”; Notes: with the ablative, it indicates place where.
  15. solitudine — Lemma: solitudo; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular feminine; Function: object of in; Translation: “wilderness”; Notes: describes the barren setting of the people’s complaint.
  16. Deest — Lemma: desum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular present active indicative; Function: verb of lack; Translation: “is lacking”; Notes: takes panis as the thing absent.
  17. panis — Lemma: panis; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: subject of Deest; Translation: “bread”; Notes: represents ordinary food perceived as absent.
  18. non — Lemma: non; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: negative adverb; Function: negates sunt; Translation: “not”; Notes: denies the presence of water.
  19. sunt — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person plural present active indicative; Function: existential verb; Translation: “are”; Notes: agrees with the plural subject aquæ.
  20. aquæ — Lemma: aqua; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative plural feminine; Function: subject of sunt; Translation: “waters”; Notes: plural form emphasizes water supply or available waters.
  21. anima — Lemma: anima; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular feminine; Function: subject of nauseat; Translation: “soul”; Notes: expresses the inward life or appetite of the people collectively.
  22. nostra — Lemma: noster; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: nominative singular feminine possessive adjective; Function: modifies anima; Translation: “our”; Notes: agrees with anima in case, gender, and number.
  23. iam — Lemma: iam; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: temporal adverb; Function: modifies nauseat; Translation: “now”; Notes: suggests the complaint has reached a present point of disgust.
  24. nauseat — Lemma: nauseo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular present active indicative; Function: main verb of the complaint clause; Translation: “is disgusted”; Notes: conveys revulsion or loathing toward the food.
  25. super — Lemma: super; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: preposition governing the ablative; Function: introduces the object of disgust; Translation: “with”; Notes: here expresses the thing concerning which the disgust is felt.
  26. cibo — Lemma: cibus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular masculine; Function: object of super; Translation: “food”; Notes: refers to the food being rejected by the people.
  27. isto — Lemma: iste; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: ablative singular masculine demonstrative; Function: modifies cibo; Translation: “this”; Notes: carries a dismissive force in the complaint.
  28. levissimo — Lemma: levis; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: ablative singular masculine superlative adjective; Function: modifies cibo; Translation: “very light”; Notes: intensifies the contemptuous description of the food as insubstantial.

 

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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