Numeri 23:17 (Numbers 23:17)

Posted on May 20, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Nm 23:17 Reversus invenit eum stantem iuxta holocaustum suum, et principes Moabitarum cum eo. Ad quem Balac: Quid, inquit, locutus est Dominus?

Having returned, he found him standing beside his holocaust, and the princes of the Moabites with him. To whom Balac said: “What,” he said, “has the LORD spoken?”

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Reversus having returned NOM.SG.M.PERF.DEP.PTCP
2 invenit he found 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
3 eum him ACC.SG.M.PERS.PRON
4 stantem standing ACC.SG.M.PRES.ACT.PTCP
5 iuxta beside PREP+ACC
6 holocaustum holocaust ACC.SG.N.2ND DECL
7 suum his ACC.SG.N.POSS.PRON
8 et and CONJ
9 principes princes ACC.PL.M.3RD DECL
10 Moabitarum of the Moabites GEN.PL.M.1ST DECL
11 cum with PREP+ABL
12 eo him ABL.SG.M.PERS.PRON
13 Ad to PREP+ACC
14 quem whom ACC.SG.M.REL.PRON
15 Balac Balak NOM.SG.M.INDECL
16 Quid what ACC.SG.N.INT.PRON
17 inquit he said 3SG.PRES.ACT.IND
18 locutus spoken NOM.SG.M.PERF.DEP.PTCP
19 est has 3SG.PRES.ACT.IND
20 Dominus the LORD NOM.SG.M.2ND DECL

Syntax

Participial Introduction: Reversus introduces Balaam’s return before the main narrative action.

Main Clause: invenit eum stantem describes Balaam finding Balac remaining in place.

Participial Construction: stantem functions as a supplementary participle modifying eum.

Locational Phrase: iuxta holocaustum suum specifies where Balac was standing.

Coordinated Object Phrase: et principes Moabitarum cum eo adds the Moabite princes as accompanying Balac.

Relative Introductory Phrase: Ad quem introduces Balac’s direct speech toward Balaam.

Direct Question: Quid locutus est Dominus asks about the content of the LORD’s revelation.

Compound Verb Construction: locutus est forms the perfect tense of the deponent verb loquor.

Morphology

  1. Reversus — Lemma: revertor; Part of Speech: deponent participle; Form: nominative singular masculine perfect deponent participle; Function: participial introduction modifying the implied subject; Translation: “having returned”; Notes: The participle marks Balaam’s completed return before the following action.
  2. invenit — Lemma: invenio; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular perfect active indicative; Function: main narrative verb; Translation: “he found”; Notes: The perfect tense presents Balaam’s discovery as completed action.
  3. eum — Lemma: is; Part of Speech: personal pronoun; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: direct object of invenit; Translation: “him”; Notes: The pronoun refers to Balac.
  4. stantem — Lemma: sto; Part of Speech: participle; Form: accusative singular masculine present active participle; Function: supplementary participle modifying eum; Translation: “standing”; Notes: The participle describes Balac’s continuing posture beside the sacrifice.
  5. iuxta — Lemma: iuxta; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: preposition governing the accusative; Function: introduces the nearby location; Translation: “beside”; Notes: The preposition indicates close physical position.
  6. holocaustum — Lemma: holocaustum; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular neuter second declension; Function: object of the preposition iuxta; Translation: “holocaust”; Notes: The noun refers to the burnt sacrificial offering.
  7. suum — Lemma: suus; Part of Speech: possessive pronoun; Form: accusative singular neuter agreeing with holocaustum; Function: modifies holocaustum; Translation: “his”; Notes: The possessive identifies the offering as belonging to Balac.
  8. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: coordinating conjunction; Function: joins Balac with the accompanying princes; Translation: “and”; Notes: The conjunction expands the scene to include the Moabite leaders.
  9. principes — Lemma: princeps; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural masculine third declension; Function: second object associated with invenit; Translation: “princes”; Notes: The term refers to leading officials or nobles of Moab.
  10. Moabitarum — Lemma: Moabita; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive plural masculine first declension; Function: possessive genitive modifying principes; Translation: “of the Moabites”; Notes: The genitive identifies the national affiliation of the princes.
  11. cum — Lemma: cum; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: preposition governing the ablative; Function: introduces accompaniment; Translation: “with”; Notes: The preposition expresses association or company.
  12. eo — Lemma: is; Part of Speech: personal pronoun; Form: ablative singular masculine; Function: object of the preposition cum; Translation: “him”; Notes: The pronoun again refers to Balac.
  13. Ad — Lemma: ad; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: preposition governing the accusative; Function: introduces the relative phrase connected with speech; Translation: “to”; Notes: The preposition marks the direction of Balac’s words.
  14. quem — Lemma: qui; Part of Speech: relative pronoun; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: object of the preposition Ad; Translation: “whom”; Notes: The pronoun refers to Balaam as the recipient of Balac’s question.
  15. Balac — Lemma: Balac; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: nominative singular masculine indeclinable; Function: subject of inquit; Translation: “Balac”; Notes: The indeclinable name functions as the speaking subject.
  16. Quid — Lemma: quis; Part of Speech: interrogative pronoun; Form: accusative singular neuter; Function: direct object of locutus est; Translation: “what”; Notes: The pronoun asks about the content of the LORD’s message.
  17. inquit — Lemma: inquam; Part of Speech: defective verb; Form: third person singular present active indicative; Function: parenthetical speech marker; Translation: “he said”; Notes: The verb interrupts the quotation in classical narrative style.
  18. locutus — Lemma: loquor; Part of Speech: deponent participle; Form: nominative singular masculine perfect deponent participle; Function: part of the compound perfect verb construction; Translation: “spoken”; Notes: The participle combines with est to form the perfect tense.
  19. est — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular present active indicative; Function: auxiliary verb in the perfect deponent construction; Translation: “has”; Notes: The auxiliary completes the perfect tense of the deponent verb.
  20. Dominus — Lemma: Dominus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular masculine second declension; Function: subject of locutus est; Translation: “the LORD”; Notes: In this context Dominus refers to YHWH and is therefore translated as “LORD.”

 

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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