Numeri 25:9 (Numbers 25:9)

Posted on May 22, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Nm 25:9 et occisi sunt vigintiquattuor millia hominum.

and twenty-four thousand men were slain.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 et and CONJ
2 occisi slain NOM.PL.M.PERF.PASS.PTCP
3 sunt were 3PL.PRES.ACT.IND
4 vigintiquattuor twenty-four INDECL.NUM
5 millia thousands NOM.PL.N
6 hominum of men GEN.PL.M

Syntax

Main Clause: occisi sunt forms the principal verbal expression, describing the completed killing of a large number of people.

Subject: vigintiquattuor millia hominum functions as the subject of occisi sunt.

Numerical Construction: vigintiquattuor millia expresses the numerical quantity, while hominum functions as a partitive genitive specifying the group counted.

Morphology

  1. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable coordinating conjunction; Function: connects the statement to the preceding narrative; Translation: “and”; Notes: continues the sequence of events and consequences.
  2. occisi — Lemma: occido; Part of Speech: verb; Form: nominative plural masculine perfect passive participle, 3rd conjugation; Function: participial component of passive perfect construction; Translation: “slain”; Notes: emphasizes the completed state resulting from violent judgment.
  3. sunt — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person plural present active indicative; Function: auxiliary verb completing passive perfect construction; Translation: “were”; Notes: combines with occisi to form a completed passive action.
  4. vigintiquattuor — Lemma: vigintiquattuor; Part of Speech: numeral; Form: indeclinable cardinal numeral; Function: modifies millia; Translation: “twenty-four”; Notes: compound numeral expressing exact quantity.
  5. millia — Lemma: mille; Part of Speech: numeral noun; Form: nominative plural neuter; Function: subject within numerical expression; Translation: “thousands”; Notes: plural form functions substantivally and governs a genitive.
  6. hominum — Lemma: homo; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive plural masculine, 3rd declension; Function: partitive genitive modifying millia; Translation: “of men”; Notes: specifies the people included in the total number slain.

 

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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