Numeri 32:29 (Numbers 32:29)

Posted on May 29, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Nm 32:29 Si transierint filii Gad, et filii Ruben vobiscum Iordanem omnes armati ad bellum coram Domino, et vobis fuerit Terra subiecta: date eis Galaad in possessionem.

“If the sons of Gad and the sons of Ruben cross the Jordan with you, all armed for battle before the LORD, and the Land is subjected to you, give them Galaad as a possession.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Si if CONJ.INVAR
2 transierint they cross 3PL.FUTP.ACT.IND
3 filii sons NOM.PL.M
4 Gad of Gad INDECL
5 et and CONJ.INVAR
6 filii sons NOM.PL.M
7 Ruben of Reuben INDECL
8 vobiscum with you ABL.PL.PERS
9 Iordanem the Jordan ACC.SG.M.OBJ
10 omnes all NOM.PL.M
11 armati armed NOM.PL.M.PERF.PASS.PTCP
12 ad for PREP+ACC
13 bellum battle ACC.SG.N
14 coram before PREP+ABL
15 Domino the LORD ABL.SG.M
16 et and CONJ.INVAR
17 vobis to you DAT.PL.PERS
18 fuerit has been 3SG.FUTP.ACT.IND
19 Terra the Land NOM.SG.F
20 subiecta subjected NOM.SG.F.PERF.PASS.PTCP
21 date give 2PL.PRES.ACT.IMP.MOOD
22 eis to them DAT.PL.M.PERS.IOBJ
23 Galaad Galaad INDECL.OBJ
24 in as PREP+ACC
25 possessionem a possession ACC.SG.F

Syntax

Conditional Clause: Si transierint filii Gad, et filii Ruben vobiscum Iordanem omnes armati ad bellum coram Domino states the first condition attached to the grant of Galaad. filii Gad and filii Ruben form the coordinated subject of transierint, while Iordanem is its direct object.

Accompaniment: vobiscum means “with you” and indicates that the sons of Gad and Ruben must cross the Jordan together with the rest of Israel.

Participial Phrase: omnes armati agrees with the masculine plural subject and emphasizes that all the men concerned are to cross in an armed condition.

Prepositional Phrases: ad bellum expresses the purpose of their crossing, “for battle,” while coram Domino places their military service before the LORD and under his authority.

Second Conditional Clause: et vobis fuerit Terra subiecta adds the second condition. Terra is the subject, subiecta fuerit forms the future perfect passive, and vobis is the dative complement indicating those to whom the Land will have been subjected.

Main Command: date eis Galaad in possessionem states what the leaders must do once the conditions have been fulfilled. date is the imperative verb, eis is the indirect object, and Galaad is the direct object.

Predicative Phrase: in possessionem expresses the capacity or purpose in which Galaad is to be given: it is to become their possession.

Morphology

  1. Si — Lemma: si; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: Invariable subordinating conjunction; Function: Introduces the conditional protasis; Translation: “if”; Notes: It makes the grant of Galaad dependent upon fulfilment of the military conditions specified by Moyses.
  2. transierint — Lemma: transeo; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: Third person plural, future perfect active indicative, irregular compound of eo; Function: Main verb of the first conditional clause; Translation: “they cross”; Notes: The future perfect looks to the completion of the crossing as a prerequisite for the subsequent grant.
  3. filii — Lemma: filius; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Nominative plural masculine, second declension; Function: Part of the coordinated subject of transierint; Translation: “the sons”; Notes: Here it denotes the members or descendants of the tribe named immediately afterward.
  4. Gad — Lemma: Gad; Part of Speech: Proper noun; Form: Indeclinable; Function: Genitival specification of filii; Translation: “of Gad”; Notes: It identifies the first of the two tribes bound by the agreement.
  5. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: Invariable coordinating conjunction; Function: Connects the two tribal groups; Translation: “and”; Notes: It coordinates the sons of Gad with the sons of Ruben.
  6. filii — Lemma: filius; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Nominative plural masculine, second declension; Function: Second element of the coordinated subject of transierint; Translation: “the sons”; Notes: It denotes the members or descendants of Ruben participating in the agreement.
  7. Ruben — Lemma: Ruben; Part of Speech: Proper noun; Form: Indeclinable; Function: Genitival specification of filii; Translation: “of Ruben”; Notes: It identifies the second tribe required to fulfil the military condition.
  8. vobiscum — Lemma: vos; Part of Speech: Personal pronoun with postpositive preposition; Form: Ablative plural, second person, with cum; Function: Ablative of accompaniment modifying transierint; Translation: “with you”; Notes: The form combines vobis with postpositive cum, indicating participation alongside the other Israelites.
  9. Iordanem — Lemma: Iordanes; Part of Speech: Proper noun; Form: Accusative singular masculine, third declension; Function: Direct object of transierint; Translation: “the Jordan”; Notes: The accusative marks the river as the geographical obstacle or boundary being crossed.
  10. omnes — Lemma: omnis; Part of Speech: Adjective; Form: Nominative plural masculine, positive degree, third declension; Function: Modifier of the coordinated subject; Translation: “all”; Notes: It emphasizes that the military obligation applies to the whole body of men specified by the agreement.
  11. armati — Lemma: armo; Part of Speech: Perfect passive participle; Form: Nominative plural masculine, perfect passive participle, first conjugation; Function: Predicative participial modifier of the subject; Translation: “armed”; Notes: It describes the men as equipped and prepared for military service when they cross the Jordan.
  12. ad — Lemma: ad; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: Invariable preposition governing the accusative; Function: Introduces ad bellum; Translation: “for”; Notes: It expresses the military purpose for which the men cross the Jordan.
  13. bellum — Lemma: bellum; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Accusative singular neuter, second declension; Function: Object of ad; Translation: “battle”; Notes: It refers to the campaign in which Gad and Ruben have promised to participate.
  14. coram — Lemma: coram; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: Invariable preposition governing the ablative; Function: Introduces coram Domino; Translation: “before”; Notes: It presents the military undertaking as performed in the LORD’s presence and under his authority.
  15. Domino — Lemma: Dominus; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Ablative singular masculine, second declension; Function: Object of coram; Translation: “the LORD”; Notes: Here Dominus refers to YHWH, before whom the campaign is undertaken.
  16. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: Invariable coordinating conjunction; Function: Connects the two conditions; Translation: “and”; Notes: It adds the subjection of the Land as a further condition for granting Galaad.
  17. vobis — Lemma: vos; Part of Speech: Personal pronoun; Form: Dative plural, second person; Function: Dative complement with subiecta fuerit; Translation: “to you”; Notes: It identifies those to whom the conquered Land will have been subjected.
  18. fuerit — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: Third person singular, future perfect active indicative; Function: Auxiliary with subiecta forming the future perfect passive of subiicio; Translation: “has been”; Notes: Together with subiecta, it looks forward to the completed subjection of the Land.
  19. Terra — Lemma: terra; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Nominative singular feminine, first declension; Function: Subject of subiecta fuerit; Translation: “the Land”; Notes: It denotes the territory to be brought under Israelite control through the campaign.
  20. subiecta — Lemma: subiicio; Part of Speech: Perfect passive participle; Form: Nominative singular feminine, perfect passive participle, third conjugation; Function: Forms the future perfect passive with fuerit and agrees with Terra; Translation: “subjected”; Notes: It describes the Land as having been brought under the control of those addressed.
  21. date — Lemma: do; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: Second person plural, present active imperative, first conjugation; Function: Main verb of the conditional sentence’s apodosis; Translation: “give”; Notes: The command instructs Israel’s leaders to grant Galaad once the stated conditions have been fulfilled.
  22. eis — Lemma: is; Part of Speech: Personal pronoun; Form: Dative plural masculine; Function: Indirect object of date; Translation: “to them”; Notes: It refers to the sons of Gad and Ruben who are to receive Galaad after fulfilling their obligation.
  23. Galaad — Lemma: Galaad; Part of Speech: Proper noun; Form: Indeclinable, functioning as accusative; Function: Direct object of date; Translation: “Galaad”; Notes: It names the territory that is to be assigned to Gad and Ruben.
  24. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: Invariable preposition governing the accusative; Function: Introduces in possessionem; Translation: “as”; Notes: With possessionem, it expresses the status or purpose for which Galaad is given.
  25. possessionem — Lemma: possessio; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Accusative singular feminine, third declension; Function: Object of in in a predicative expression; Translation: “a possession”; Notes: It denotes Galaad as territory to be held by Gad and Ruben as their allotted possession.

 

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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