Numeri 32:27 (Numbers 32:27)

Posted on May 29, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Nm 32:27 nos autem famuli tui omnes expediti pergemus ad bellum, sicut tu domine loqueris.

But we, all your servants, armed, will go to war, just as you, lord, say.”

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 nos we NOM.PL.PERS
2 autem but CONJ.INVAR
3 famuli servants NOM.PL.M.APPOS
4 tui your NOM.PL.M.POSS
5 omnes all NOM.PL.M.ADJ
6 expediti armed NOM.PL.M.PERF.PASS.PTCP
7 pergemus we will go 1PL.FUT.ACT.IND
8 ad to PREP+ACC
9 bellum war ACC.SG.N
10 sicut just as CONJ.INVAR
11 tu you NOM.SG.PERS
12 domine lord VOC.SG.M
13 loqueris you say 2SG.PRES.DEP.IND

Syntax

Main Clause: nos autem famuli tui omnes expediti pergemus ad bellum contrasts the fighting men with the family members and livestock who will remain in the cities. nos is the subject, pergemus is the main verb, and ad bellum expresses the destination or purpose of their going.

Apposition: famuli tui stands in apposition to nos and identifies the speakers as “your servants.” The possessive adjective tui modifies famuli and refers to Moyses.

Subject Modifier: omnes emphasizes that all the servants who are obligated to fight will participate.

Participial Modifier: expediti agrees with the masculine plural subject and describes the men as armed and equipped for military service.

Prepositional Phrase: ad bellum modifies pergemus. The preposition ad governs the accusative bellum and expresses movement toward or participation in war.

Comparative Clause: sicut tu domine loqueris expresses conformity with Moyses’ command: “just as you, lord, say.” tu is the subject of loqueris, while domine is a vocative directly addressing Moyses.

Morphology

  1. nos — Lemma: nos; Part of Speech: Personal pronoun; Form: Nominative plural, first person; Function: Emphatic subject of pergemus; Translation: “we”; Notes: The explicit pronoun contrasts the fighting men with the families and livestock mentioned in the preceding verse.
  2. autem — Lemma: autem; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: Invariable connective particle; Function: Marks contrast between the men who will depart and those who will remain; Translation: “but”; Notes: In context it distinguishes the armed men’s action from the arrangements just described for their dependants and livestock.
  3. famuli — Lemma: famulus; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Nominative plural masculine, second declension; Function: Apposition to nos; Translation: “servants”; Notes: The speakers again present themselves as servants under Moyses’ authority.
  4. tui — Lemma: tuus; Part of Speech: Possessive adjective; Form: Nominative plural masculine, positive degree; Function: Modifier of famuli; Translation: “your”; Notes: It refers to Moyses, whom the speakers directly address later as domine.
  5. omnes — Lemma: omnis; Part of Speech: Adjective; Form: Nominative plural masculine, positive degree, third declension; Function: Modifier emphasizing the whole group represented by nos famuli tui; Translation: “all”; Notes: It stresses that the fighting obligation will be undertaken collectively rather than by only part of the group.
  6. expediti — Lemma: expedio; Part of Speech: Perfect passive participle; Form: Nominative plural masculine, perfect passive participle, fourth conjugation; Function: Predicative participial modifier of the subject; Translation: “armed”; Notes: In military usage it describes men equipped and ready for active service, without impediments preventing them from marching.
  7. pergemus — Lemma: pergo; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: First person plural, future active indicative, third conjugation; Function: Main verb of the sentence; Translation: “we will go”; Notes: The future expresses the tribes’ renewed commitment to proceed with the Israelite forces.
  8. ad — Lemma: ad; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: Invariable preposition governing the accusative; Function: Introduces ad bellum; Translation: “to”; Notes: It expresses the purpose or destination toward which the armed men will proceed.
  9. bellum — Lemma: bellum; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Accusative singular neuter, second declension; Function: Object of the preposition ad; Translation: “war”; Notes: It refers to the military campaign west of the Jordan in which the tribes have promised to participate.
  10. sicut — Lemma: sicut; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: Invariable subordinating conjunction; Function: Introduces a comparative clause expressing conformity; Translation: “just as”; Notes: It indicates that their proposed action accords with the instruction Moyses has given.
  11. tu — Lemma: tu; Part of Speech: Personal pronoun; Form: Nominative singular, second person; Function: Subject of loqueris; Translation: “you”; Notes: The explicit pronoun emphasizes Moyses as the person whose instruction they undertake to follow.
  12. domine — Lemma: dominus; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Vocative singular masculine, second declension; Function: Direct address to Moyses; Translation: “lord”; Notes: Here domine addresses the human leader Moyses respectfully and therefore is translated “lord,” not “LORD.”
  13. loqueris — Lemma: loquor; Part of Speech: Deponent verb; Form: Second person singular, present deponent indicative, third conjugation; Function: Verb of the comparative clause introduced by sicut; Translation: “you say”; Notes: Although passive in form, loquor is deponent and has active meaning; here it refers to the instructions Moyses has just given.

 

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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