Numeri 23:30 (Numbers 23:30)

Posted on May 20, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Nm 23:30 Fecit Balac ut Balaam dixerat: imposuitque vitulos et arietes per singulas aras.

Balac did as Balaam had said; and he placed calves and rams upon each altar.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Fecit did 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
2 Balac Balak NOM.SG.M.INDECL
3 ut as CONJ
4 Balaam Balaam NOM.SG.M.INDECL
5 dixerat had said 3SG.PLUP.ACT.IND
6 imposuitque and he placed 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND+CONJ
7 vitulos calves ACC.PL.M.2ND DECL
8 et and CONJ
9 arietes rams ACC.PL.M.3RD DECL
10 per upon each PREP+ACC
11 singulas individual ACC.PL.F.ADJ
12 aras altars ACC.PL.F.1ST DECL

Syntax

Main Narrative Clause: Fecit Balac introduces Balac’s obedience to Balaam’s instructions.

Comparative Clause: ut Balaam dixerat expresses conformity with Balaam’s prior command.

Main Coordinated Clause: imposuitque vitulos et arietes describes the sacrificial action performed by Balac.

Direct Objects: vitulos et arietes function as the objects of imposuitque.

Distributive Prepositional Phrase: per singulas aras expresses distribution across each altar individually.

Adjectival Modifier: singulas emphasizes one-by-one placement upon every altar.

Morphology

  1. Fecit — Lemma: facio; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular perfect active indicative; Function: main narrative verb; Translation: “did”; Notes: The perfect tense records Balac’s completed obedience.
  2. Balac — Lemma: Balac; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: nominative singular masculine indeclinable; Function: subject of Fecit; Translation: “Balac”; Notes: The indeclinable name identifies the Moabite king carrying out the ritual.
  3. ut — Lemma: ut; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: subordinating conjunction; Function: introduces the comparative clause; Translation: “as”; Notes: The conjunction expresses conformity with Balaam’s instructions.
  4. Balaam — Lemma: Balaam; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: nominative singular masculine indeclinable; Function: subject of dixerat; Translation: “Balaam”; Notes: The indeclinable name identifies the speaker whose instructions were followed.
  5. dixerat — Lemma: dico; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular pluperfect active indicative; Function: verb of the comparative clause; Translation: “had said”; Notes: The pluperfect tense indicates action completed prior to Balac’s obedience.
  6. imposuitque — Lemma: impono; Part of Speech: verb with enclitic conjunction; Form: third person singular perfect active indicative with enclitic -que; Function: coordinated narrative verb; Translation: “and he placed”; Notes: The enclitic -que tightly joins this action to the preceding clause.
  7. vitulos — Lemma: vitulus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural masculine second declension; Function: direct object of imposuitque; Translation: “calves”; Notes: The calves form part of the sacrificial offerings.
  8. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: coordinating conjunction; Function: joins the sacrificial objects; Translation: “and”; Notes: The conjunction links the two categories of sacrificial animals.
  9. arietes — Lemma: aries; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural masculine third declension; Function: second direct object of imposuitque; Translation: “rams”; Notes: The rams complete the sacrificial set prescribed by Balaam.
  10. per — Lemma: per; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: preposition governing the accusative; Function: introduces distributive relation; Translation: “upon each”; Notes: The preposition expresses distribution over the altars individually.
  11. singulas — Lemma: singulus; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: accusative plural feminine; Function: modifies aras; Translation: “individual”; Notes: The distributive adjective emphasizes one altar at a time.
  12. aras — Lemma: ara; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural feminine first declension; Function: object of the preposition per; Translation: “altars”; Notes: The altars are the locations where the sacrificial animals were placed.

 

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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