Numeri 32:14 (Numbers 32:14)

Posted on May 29, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Nm 32:14 Et ecce, inquit, vos surrexistis pro patribus vestris, incrementa, et alumni hominum peccatorum, ut augeretis furorem Domini contra Israel.

And behold, he said, you have risen up in place of your fathers, an increase and offspring of sinful men, to increase the fury of the LORD against Israel.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Et and CONJ.INVAR
2 ecce behold INTJ.INVAR
3 inquit he said 3SG.PRES.ACT.IND
4 vos you NOM.PL.PERS
5 surrexistis have risen up 2PL.PERF.ACT.IND
6 pro in place of PREP+ABL
7 patribus fathers ABL.PL.M
8 vestris your ABL.PL.M.POSS
9 incrementa an increase NOM.PL.N.APPOS
10 et and CONJ.INVAR
11 alumni offspring NOM.PL.M.APPOS
12 hominum of men GEN.PL.M
13 peccatorum sinful GEN.PL.M
14 ut to CONJ.INVAR
15 augeretis you might increase 2PL.IMPF.ACT.SUBJ
16 furorem the fury ACC.SG.M.OBJ
17 Domini of the LORD GEN.SG.M
18 contra against PREP+ACC
19 Israel Israel ACC.SG.M.INDECL

Syntax

Narrative Introduction: Et ecce, inquit introduces a forceful continuation of Moyses’ speech. Et links the statement with the preceding warning, ecce draws attention to the accusation, and the parenthetical verb inquit identifies Moyses as the speaker.

Main Clause: vos surrexistis pro patribus vestris is the principal clause. The emphatic pronoun vos is the subject, surrexistis is the verb, and pro patribus vestris indicates that the present generation has arisen in place of its fathers.

Prepositional Phrase: pro patribus vestris modifies surrexistis. The preposition pro governs the ablative and here means “in place of” or “in succession to.”

Appositional Description: incrementa, et alumni hominum peccatorum stands in apposition to vos. The expressions characterize the hearers as an increase and offspring of sinful men, continuing the disobedience of the preceding generation.

Genitive Phrase: hominum peccatorum depends on alumni. The adjective peccatorum agrees with hominum and describes the men as sinful.

Purpose or Result Clause: ut augeretis furorem Domini contra Israel expresses the outcome attributed to their conduct: an increase of the LORD’s fury against Israel. The conjunction ut introduces the clause, and augeretis is an imperfect subjunctive in secondary sequence.

Direct Object: furorem Domini is the direct object of augeretis. The genitive Domini identifies the fury as belonging to the LORD.

Prepositional Phrase: contra Israel modifies furorem or augeretis and identifies Israel as the object against which the divine fury is directed.

Morphology

  1. Et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: Invariable coordinating conjunction; Function: Connects the accusation with the preceding statement; Translation: “and”; Notes: It continues Moyses’ warning without a break in the argument.
  2. ecce — Lemma: ecce; Part of Speech: Interjection; Form: Invariable; Function: Draws emphatic attention to the hearers and their conduct; Translation: “behold”; Notes: It gives the accusation an immediate and forceful tone.
  3. inquit — Lemma: inquam; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: Third person singular, present active indicative, defective verb; Function: Parenthetical verb identifying the speaker; Translation: “he said”; Notes: The present is used conventionally within direct discourse to mark the speaker’s words.
  4. vos — Lemma: vos; Part of Speech: Personal pronoun; Form: Nominative plural, second person; Function: Emphatic subject of surrexistis; Translation: “you”; Notes: The expressed pronoun sharply contrasts the present generation with its fathers.
  5. surrexistis — Lemma: surgo; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: Second person plural, perfect active indicative, third conjugation; Function: Main verb of the principal clause; Translation: “have risen up”; Notes: It describes the new generation as having appeared in succession to the former one.
  6. pro — Lemma: pro; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: Invariable preposition governing the ablative; Function: Introduces pro patribus vestris; Translation: “in place of”; Notes: It expresses succession or substitution rather than action on behalf of someone.
  7. patribus — Lemma: pater; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Ablative plural masculine, third declension; Function: Object of the preposition pro; Translation: “fathers”; Notes: It refers to the preceding generation that rebelled against the LORD.
  8. vestris — Lemma: vester; Part of Speech: Possessive adjective; Form: Ablative plural masculine, positive degree; Function: Modifier of patribus; Translation: “your”; Notes: It connects the present hearers directly with the former generation.
  9. incrementa — Lemma: incrementum; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Nominative plural neuter, second declension; Function: Appositional description of vos; Translation: “an increase”; Notes: Used figuratively, it portrays the hearers as an added growth or continuation of the sinful generation.
  10. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: Invariable coordinating conjunction; Function: Connects incrementa and alumni; Translation: “and”; Notes: It joins two parallel descriptions of the present generation.
  11. alumni — Lemma: alumnus; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Nominative plural masculine, second declension; Function: Appositional description of vos; Translation: “offspring”; Notes: The noun can denote those reared or nurtured by others and here characterizes them as the descendants and continuators of sinful men.
  12. hominum — Lemma: homo; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Genitive plural masculine, third declension; Function: Genitive dependent on alumni; Translation: “of men”; Notes: It identifies the people from whom the present generation has arisen.
  13. peccatorum — Lemma: peccator; Part of Speech: Adjective; Form: Genitive plural masculine, positive degree; Function: Modifier of hominum; Translation: “sinful”; Notes: It describes the former generation by its disobedient conduct toward the LORD.
  14. ut — Lemma: ut; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: Invariable subordinating conjunction; Function: Introduces the purpose or result clause; Translation: “to”; Notes: It presents the increase of divine fury as the consequence attributed to their conduct.
  15. augeretis — Lemma: augeo; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: Second person plural, imperfect active subjunctive, second conjugation; Function: Verb of the subordinate clause; Translation: “you might increase”; Notes: The imperfect subjunctive follows the historical verb surrexistis in secondary sequence.
  16. furorem — Lemma: furor; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Accusative singular masculine, third declension; Function: Direct object of augeretis; Translation: “the fury”; Notes: It denotes the intensity of divine anger provoked by continued rebellion.
  17. Domini — Lemma: Dominus; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Genitive singular masculine, second declension; Function: Possessive genitive modifying furorem; Translation: “of the LORD”; Notes: It identifies the fury as the righteous anger of YHWH.
  18. contra — Lemma: contra; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: Invariable preposition governing the accusative; Function: Introduces contra Israel; Translation: “against”; Notes: It identifies the people toward whom the divine fury would be directed.
  19. Israel — Lemma: Israel; Part of Speech: Proper noun; Form: Accusative singular masculine, indeclinable; Function: Object of the preposition contra; Translation: “Israel”; Notes: The singular proper name denotes the nation collectively.

 

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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