Numeri 22:22 (Numbers 22:22)

Posted on May 19, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Nm 22:22 Et iratus est Deus. Stetitque angelus Domini in via contra Balaam, qui insidebat asinæ, et duos pueros habebat secum.

And God became angry. And the angel of the LORD stood in the way against Balaam, who was sitting upon the donkey and had two servants with him.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Et and CONJ
2 iratus angered NOM.SG.M
3 est became 3SG.PRES.ACT.IND
4 Deus God NOM.SG.M
5 Stetitque and stood 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND+CONJ
6 angelus angel NOM.SG.M
7 Domini of the LORD GEN.SG.M
8 in in PREP+ABL
9 via way ABL.SG.F
10 contra against PREP+ACC
11 Balaam Balaam INDECL
12 qui who NOM.SG.M.REL
13 insidebat was sitting upon 3SG.IMP.ACT.IND
14 asinæ the donkey DAT.SG.F
15 et and CONJ
16 duos two ACC.PL.M
17 pueros servants ACC.PL.M
18 habebat had 3SG.IMP.ACT.IND
19 secum with himself ABL.SG.REFL

Syntax

Main Clause: Et iratus est Deus — narrative clause describing God’s anger.

Predicate Construction: iratus est — predicate adjective with copulative verb expressing emotional state.

Coordinated Clause: Stetitque angelus Domini in via contra Balaam — narrative clause describing the angel’s opposition to Balaam.

Prepositional Phrase: in via — locative phrase indicating where the angel stood.

Prepositional Phrase: contra Balaam — phrase expressing hostility or opposition.

Relative Clause: qui insidebat asinæ, et duos pueros habebat secum — clause describing Balaam’s situation while traveling.

Dative Construction: insidebat asinæ — verb governing the dative object.

Direct Object Phrase: duos pueros — object of habebat.

Morphology

  1. Et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: coordinating conjunction; Function: connects this event with the preceding narrative; Translation: “and”; Notes: Continues the storyline directly.
  2. iratus — Lemma: irascor; Part of Speech: participial adjective; Form: nominative singular masculine perfect participle used adjectivally; Function: predicate adjective with est; Translation: “angered”; Notes: Expresses divine wrath or displeasure.
  3. est — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular present active indicative; Function: copulative verb; Translation: “became”; Notes: Links the subject with the predicate adjective.
  4. Deus — Lemma: Deus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: subject of iratus est; Translation: “God”; Notes: Refers to the true God reacting against Balaam’s journey.
  5. Stetitque — Lemma: sto + que; Part of Speech: verb + enclitic conjunction; Form: third person singular perfect active indicative + enclitic coordinating conjunction; Function: main narrative verb; Translation: “and stood”; Notes: Describes the angel taking position in opposition.
  6. angelus — Lemma: angelus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: subject of Stetitque; Translation: “angel”; Notes: Refers to the divine messenger confronting Balaam.
  7. Domini — Lemma: Dominus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive singular masculine; Function: dependent genitive modifying angelus; Translation: “of the LORD”; Notes: Refers to YHWH and therefore translated as “LORD.”
  8. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governing the ablative case; Function: expresses location; Translation: “in”; Notes: Indicates where the angel stood.
  9. via — Lemma: via; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular feminine; Function: object of the preposition in; Translation: “way”; Notes: Refers to the road Balaam was traveling.
  10. contra — Lemma: contra; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governing the accusative case; Function: expresses opposition; Translation: “against”; Notes: Indicates hostility toward Balaam.
  11. Balaam — Lemma: Balaam; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: indeclinable; Function: object of the preposition contra; Translation: “Balaam”; Notes: Foreign proper name preserved without declension.
  12. qui — Lemma: qui; Part of Speech: relative pronoun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: subject of the relative clause; Translation: “who”; Notes: Refers back to Balaam.
  13. insidebat — Lemma: insideo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular imperfect active indicative; Function: verb of the relative clause; Translation: “was sitting upon”; Notes: Describes continuous action during the journey.
  14. asinæ — Lemma: asina; Part of Speech: noun; Form: dative singular feminine; Function: indirect object governed by insidebat; Translation: “the donkey”; Notes: The verb insideo can govern the dative in classical and biblical Latin usage.
  15. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: coordinating conjunction; Function: joins the two verbs in the relative clause; Translation: “and”; Notes: Connects Balaam’s riding with his companions.
  16. duos — Lemma: duo; Part of Speech: numeral adjective; Form: accusative plural masculine; Function: modifies pueros; Translation: “two”; Notes: Specifies the number of attendants.
  17. pueros — Lemma: puer; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural masculine; Function: direct object of habebat; Translation: “servants”; Notes: Refers to attendants accompanying Balaam.
  18. habebat — Lemma: habeo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular imperfect active indicative; Function: second verb of the relative clause; Translation: “had”; Notes: Describes Balaam’s continuing accompaniment.
  19. secum — Lemma: sui + cum; Part of Speech: reflexive pronoun with enclitic preposition; Form: ablative singular reflexive; Function: accompaniment phrase; Translation: “with himself”; Notes: Indicates close association with Balaam.

 

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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