Numeri 25:1 (Numbers 25:1)

Posted on May 22, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Nm 25:1 Morabatur autem eo tempore Israel in Settim, et fornicatus est populus cum filiabus Moab,

Now Israel was staying at Settim during that time, and the people committed fornication with the daughters of Moab,

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Morabatur was staying 3SG.IMP.DEP.IND
2 autem however CONJ
3 eo in that ABL.SG.N.DEM
4 tempore time ABL.SG.N
5 Israel Israel INDECL.NOUN
6 in in PREP+ABL
7 Settim Shittim INDECL.NOUN
8 et and CONJ
9 fornicatus committed fornication NOM.SG.M.PERF.DEP.PTCP
10 est was 3SG.PRES.ACT.IND
11 populus people NOM.SG.M
12 cum with PREP+ABL
13 filiabus daughters ABL.PL.F
14 Moab Moab INDECL.NOUN

Syntax

Main Clause 1: Israel functions as the subject of Morabatur, expressing the ongoing dwelling or staying of Israel at a specific location.

Temporal Phrase: eo tempore is an ablative expression of time indicating “during that time.”

Locative Phrase: in Settim functions as a prepositional phrase indicating location.

Main Clause 2: populus is the subject of the compound verbal expression fornicatus est, describing completed immoral action.

Prepositional Phrase: cum filiabus Moab expresses association and identifies the women involved in the action.

Morphology

  1. Morabatur — Lemma: moror; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular imperfect deponent indicative active in meaning; Function: main finite verb describing continuous past action; Translation: “was staying”; Notes: deponent verb using passive morphology with active sense, emphasizing prolonged residence.
  2. autem — Lemma: autem; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable coordinating conjunction; Function: connective particle linking narrative progression; Translation: “however”; Notes: often introduces transition or slight contrast in Latin narrative flow.
  3. eo — Lemma: is; Part of Speech: demonstrative pronoun; Form: ablative singular neuter; Function: modifies tempore in temporal ablative expression; Translation: “that”; Notes: points to a specific previously understood period of time.
  4. tempore — Lemma: tempus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular neuter, 3rd declension; Function: ablative of time when; Translation: “time”; Notes: commonly used in temporal ablative constructions without a preposition.
  5. Israel — Lemma: Israel; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: indeclinable singular; Function: grammatical subject of Morabatur; Translation: “Israel”; Notes: Hebrew proper name treated as indeclinable in Latin.
  6. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: introduces locative phrase; Translation: “in”; Notes: with ablative it denotes location or position.
  7. Settim — Lemma: Settim; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: indeclinable singular; Function: object of the preposition in; Translation: “Settim”; Notes: place name referring to Shittim east of the Jordan.
  8. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable coordinating conjunction; Function: joins the two narrative clauses; Translation: “and”; Notes: standard connective continuing the narrative sequence.
  9. fornicatus — Lemma: fornicor; Part of Speech: verb; Form: nominative singular masculine perfect deponent participle; Function: participial component of perfect deponent verb construction; Translation: “having committed fornication”; Notes: forms a compound perfect tense together with est.
  10. est — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular present active indicative; Function: auxiliary verb completing perfect deponent construction; Translation: “was”; Notes: combines with fornicatus to express completed past action.
  11. populus — Lemma: populus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular masculine, 2nd declension; Function: subject of fornicatus est; Translation: “people”; Notes: collective singular noun referring to the nation as a unit.
  12. cum — Lemma: cum; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: introduces association phrase; Translation: “with”; Notes: expresses accompaniment or association.
  13. filiabus — Lemma: filia; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative plural feminine, 1st declension; Function: object of preposition cum; Translation: “daughters”; Notes: refers to the women of Moab involved in the narrative.
  14. Moab — Lemma: Moab; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: indeclinable singular; Function: dependent genitival relation modifying filiabus; Translation: “Moab”; Notes: ethnic-geographical name functioning adjectivally in sense.

 

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.
This entry was posted in Numeri. Bookmark the permalink.

Comments are closed.