Numeri 22:10 (Numbers 22:10)

Posted on May 19, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Nm 22:10 Respondit: Balac filius Sephor rex Moabitarum misit ad me,

He answered: “Balac son of Sephor, king of the Moabites, sent to me,

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Respondit he answered 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
2 Balac Balak INDECL
3 filius son NOM.SG.M
4 Sephor Zippor INDECL
5 rex king NOM.SG.M
6 Moabitarum of the Moabites GEN.PL.M
7 misit sent 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
8 ad to PREP+ACC
9 me me ACC.SG

Syntax

Main Clause: Respondit — narrative clause introducing Balaam’s response.

Quoted Clause: Balac filius Sephor rex Moabitarum misit ad me — direct statement identifying the sender of the delegation.

Subject: Balac filius Sephor rex Moabitarum — expanded subject phrase identifying Balac by lineage and royal title.

Appositional Elements: filius Sephor and rex Moabitarum — appositional phrases further defining Balac.

Prepositional Phrase: ad me — phrase expressing direction toward Balaam.

Morphology

  1. Respondit — Lemma: respondeo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular perfect active indicative; Function: main narrative verb; Translation: “he answered”; Notes: Introduces Balaam’s spoken reply to God.
  2. Balac — Lemma: Balac; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: indeclinable; Function: subject of misit; Translation: “Balac”; Notes: Name of the Moabite king requesting Balaam’s assistance.
  3. filius — Lemma: filius; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: apposition to Balac; Translation: “son”; Notes: Identifies Balac according to paternal lineage.
  4. Sephor — Lemma: Sephor; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: indeclinable; Function: dependent identifier linked to filius; Translation: “Sephor”; Notes: Name of Balac’s father.
  5. rex — Lemma: rex; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: additional apposition to Balac; Translation: “king”; Notes: Specifies Balac’s political authority.
  6. Moabitarum — Lemma: Moabita; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive plural masculine; Function: dependent genitive modifying rex; Translation: “of the Moabites”; Notes: Identifies the people over whom Balac ruled.
  7. misit — Lemma: mitto; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular perfect active indicative; Function: main verb of the quoted statement; Translation: “sent”; Notes: Refers to the sending of the delegation to Balaam.
  8. ad — Lemma: ad; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governing the accusative case; Function: introduces direction toward a person; Translation: “to”; Notes: Indicates the destination of the mission.
  9. me — Lemma: ego; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: accusative singular; Function: object of the preposition ad; Translation: “me”; Notes: Refers to Balaam as recipient of Balac’s message.

 

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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