Numeri 33:10 (Numbers 33:10)

Posted on May 30, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Nm 33:10 Sed et inde egressi, fixerunt tentoria super Mare rubrum. Profectique de Mari rubro,

But setting out from there also, they pitched their tents by the Red Sea. And setting out from the Red Sea,

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Sed but CONJ.INVAR
2 et also ADV.INVAR
3 inde from there ADV.INVAR
4 egressi setting out NOM.PL.M.PERF.DEP.PTCP
5 fixerunt they pitched 3PL.PERF.ACT.IND
6 tentoria tents ACC.PL.N.OBJ
7 super by PREP+ACC
8 Mare Sea ACC.SG.N
9 rubrum Red ACC.SG.N.ADJ
10 Profectique and setting out NOM.PL.M.PERF.DEP.PTCP
11 de from PREP+ABL
12 Mari the Sea ABL.SG.N
13 rubro Red ABL.SG.N.ADJ

Syntax

Main Clause: Sed et inde egressi, fixerunt tentoria super Mare rubrum continues the itinerary from Elim. The sons of Israel remain the understood subject. egressi is a perfect deponent participle describing their departure, while fixerunt is the finite main verb and tentoria its direct object.

Connective and Departure: Sed et inde egressi marks another movement from the preceding station. Sed connects this stage with the preceding narrative, et has the additive sense “also,” and inde means “from there,” referring contextually to Elim. egressi agrees with the understood masculine plural subject.

Direct Object: fixerunt tentoria literally describes the Israelites as “fixing” or “pitching tents.” tentoria is the accusative plural direct object of fixerunt, and the expression idiomatically means that they pitched their tents or established an encampment.

Prepositional Phrase: super Mare rubrum identifies the location of the encampment in relation to the Red Sea. super governs the accusative Mare rubrum here and has the spatial sense “by,” “beside,” or “near.” rubrum agrees with the neuter singular Mare.

Continuing Participial Construction: Profectique de Mari rubro begins the next stage of the itinerary but does not complete it within the supplied text. Profectique means “and setting out,” and de Mari rubro identifies the Red Sea as the point of departure. The finite verb or subsequent destination belongs to the continuation and is therefore not supplied here.

Morphology

  1. Sed — Lemma: sed; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: Invariable coordinating conjunction; Function: Connects this stage of the itinerary with the preceding account; Translation: “but”; Notes: Here sed functions as a narrative connective introducing a further movement after the encampment at Elim.
  2. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: Adverb; Form: Invariable additive particle; Function: Adds this departure to the preceding stages of the journey; Translation: “also”; Notes: In the combination Sed et, it has an additive force rather than simply coordinating two equivalent words or clauses.
  3. inde — Lemma: inde; Part of Speech: Adverb; Form: Invariable adverb of place; Function: Modifies egressi and specifies the point of departure; Translation: “from there”; Notes: It refers contextually to Elim, the encampment named immediately before this stage of the itinerary.
  4. egressi — Lemma: egredior; Part of Speech: Perfect participle of a deponent verb; Form: Nominative plural masculine, perfect deponent participle, third conjugation; Function: Circumstantial participle agreeing with the understood subject, the sons of Israel; Translation: “setting out”; Notes: Since egredior is deponent, the participle is passive in morphological form but active in meaning.
  5. fixerunt — Lemma: figo; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: Third person plural, perfect active indicative, third conjugation; Function: Main verb with tentoria as its direct object; Translation: “they pitched”; Notes: The basic sense of figo is to fix, fasten, or plant; with tentoria, it naturally describes pitching or setting up tents.
  6. tentoria — Lemma: tentorium; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Accusative plural neuter, second declension; Function: Direct object of fixerunt; Translation: “tents”; Notes: The expression fixerunt tentoria denotes establishing an encampment by pitching tents.
  7. super — Lemma: super; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: Invariable preposition governing the accusative here; Function: Introduces the geographical phrase super Mare rubrum; Translation: “by”; Notes: In this geographical context, super expresses proximity to the Red Sea rather than literal position vertically above it.
  8. Mare — Lemma: mare; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Accusative singular neuter, third declension; Function: Object of super; Translation: “Sea”; Notes: Together with rubrum, it forms the geographical designation “Red Sea.”
  9. rubrum — Lemma: ruber; Part of Speech: Adjective; Form: Accusative singular neuter, positive degree, first and second declension adjective; Function: Modifies Mare; Translation: “Red”; Notes: Its case, number, and gender agree with the neuter singular Mare.
  10. Profectique — Lemma: proficiscor; Part of Speech: Perfect participle of a deponent verb with enclitic conjunction; Form: Nominative plural masculine, perfect deponent participle, third conjugation, with enclitic -que; Function: Introduces the next departure in the itinerary and agrees with the understood subject, the sons of Israel; Translation: “and setting out”; Notes: proficiscor is deponent and has active meaning; the attached -que coordinates this new departure with the preceding encampment.
  11. de — Lemma: de; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: Invariable preposition governing the ablative; Function: Introduces the place from which the Israelites departed; Translation: “from”; Notes: It marks the Red Sea encampment as the starting point of the next stage of the journey.
  12. Mari — Lemma: mare; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Ablative singular neuter, third declension; Function: Object of the preposition de; Translation: “the Sea”; Notes: Its ablative form is required by de and contrasts with the accusative Mare earlier in the verse.
  13. rubro — Lemma: ruber; Part of Speech: Adjective; Form: Ablative singular neuter, positive degree, first and second declension adjective; Function: Modifies Mari; Translation: “Red”; Notes: It agrees with Mari in case, number, and gender, completing the expression de Mari rubro, “from the Red Sea.”

 

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.