Numeri 34:11 (Numbers 34:11)

Posted on June 1, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Nm 34:11 et de Sephama descendent termini in Rebla contra fontem Daphnim: inde pervenient contra Orientem ad mare Cenereth,

and from Sephama the boundaries shall descend into Rebla toward the fountain of Daphnim; from there they shall reach eastward to the Sea of Cenereth,

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 et and CONJ INVAR
2 de from PREP+ABL
3 Sephama Shepham INDECL
4 descendent shall descend 3PL.FUT.ACT.IND 3RD CONJ
5 termini the boundaries NOM.PL.M 2ND DECL
6 in into PREP+ACC
7 Rebla Riblah INDECL
8 contra toward PREP+ACC
9 fontem the fountain ACC.SG.M 3RD DECL
10 Daphnim of Daphnim INDECL
11 inde from there ADV INVAR
12 pervenient they shall reach 3PL.FUT.ACT.IND 4TH CONJ
13 contra toward PREP+ACC
14 Orientem the east ACC.SG.M 3RD DECL
15 ad to PREP+ACC
16 mare the sea ACC.SG.N 3RD DECL
17 Cenereth of Chinnereth INDECL

Syntax

First Main Clause: et de Sephama descendent termini in Rebla contra fontem Daphnim continues the description of the eastern boundary begun in the preceding verse. termini is the nominative plural subject, and descendent is the future active indicative verb.

Starting Point: de Sephama means “from Sephama.” The preposition de governs the syntactically ablative, indeclinable geographical name Sephama, identifying the point from which this segment of the boundary descends.

Destination: in Rebla expresses movement into or toward Rebla. in governs the accusative in a construction of motion, while Rebla is an indeclinable geographical name whose syntactic case is determined by the preposition.

Directional Landmark: contra fontem Daphnim means “toward the fountain of Daphnim.” contra governs the accusative fontem. The proper name Daphnim specifies the fountain in a genitival sense.

Second Main Clause: inde pervenient contra Orientem ad mare Cenereth means “from there they shall reach eastward to the Sea of Cenereth.” The understood subject of pervenient remains termini. inde refers to the point just reached and establishes the starting point of the next segment.

Directional Phrase: contra Orientem literally means “toward the east” and specifies the direction in which the boundaries proceed. contra governs the accusative Orientem.

Endpoint: ad mare Cenereth identifies the next geographical endpoint. ad governs the accusative mare, while Cenereth identifies the sea by name, yielding the sense “the Sea of Cenereth.”

Morphology

  1. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: Indeclinable coordinating conjunction; Function: Connects this continuation of the eastern boundary with the preceding verse; Translation: “and”; Notes: The conjunction preserves the continuous sequence of geographical boundary points.
  2. de — Lemma: de; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: Indeclinable preposition governing the ablative; Function: Introduces Sephama as the starting point; Translation: “from”; Notes: It marks the point from which the boundary descends toward the next location.
  3. Sephama — Lemma: Sephama; Part of Speech: Proper noun; Form: Indeclinable biblical geographical name functioning syntactically as ablative; Function: Object of the preposition de; Translation: “Sephama”; Notes: This is the same geographical endpoint named at the close of the preceding verse, now serving as the starting point of the next boundary segment.
  4. descendent — Lemma: descendo; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: Third person plural, future active indicative, third conjugation; Function: Main verb with termini as subject; Translation: “shall descend”; Notes: The verb describes the geographical course of the boundary as moving downward from Sephama toward Rebla.
  5. termini — Lemma: terminus; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Nominative plural masculine, second declension; Function: Subject of descendent and understood subject of pervenient; Translation: “the boundaries”; Notes: The plural continues the personified geographical description in which the boundary lines are said to move from one landmark to another.
  6. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: Indeclinable preposition governing the accusative; Function: Introduces Rebla as the destination of descendent; Translation: “into”; Notes: Because the phrase expresses movement toward a place, in takes the accusative rather than the ablative.
  7. Rebla — Lemma: Rebla; Part of Speech: Proper noun; Form: Indeclinable biblical geographical name functioning syntactically as accusative; Function: Object of the preposition in; Translation: “Rebla”; Notes: The name does not alter its visible form, but its accusative function follows from the directional use of in.
  8. contra — Lemma: contra; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: Indeclinable preposition governing the accusative; Function: Introduces fontem Daphnim as a directional landmark; Translation: “toward”; Notes: In this geographical context contra expresses orientation toward a named feature rather than opposition.
  9. fontem — Lemma: fons; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Accusative singular masculine, third declension; Function: Object of the preposition contra; Translation: “the fountain”; Notes: The noun denotes a spring or fountain serving as a landmark and is further specified by Daphnim.
  10. Daphnim — Lemma: Daphnim; Part of Speech: Proper noun; Form: Indeclinable biblical geographical name; Function: Dependent modifier of fontem, equivalent in sense to “of Daphnim”; Translation: “of Daphnim”; Notes: The relationship to fontem is genitival in sense, identifying which fountain is meant, without an expressed Latin case ending.
  11. inde — Lemma: inde; Part of Speech: Adverb; Form: Indeclinable adverb; Function: Marks the point from which the next portion of the boundary proceeds; Translation: “from there”; Notes: It refers back to the immediately preceding geographical location and advances the sequential boundary description.
  12. pervenient — Lemma: pervenio; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: Third person plural, future active indicative, fourth conjugation; Function: Main verb of the second clause, with termini understood as subject; Translation: “they shall reach”; Notes: The verb describes the boundaries arriving at the next stated geographical endpoint.
  13. contra — Lemma: contra; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: Indeclinable preposition governing the accusative; Function: Introduces Orientem as the direction of the boundary; Translation: “toward”; Notes: It specifies the eastward orientation of this segment of the territorial line.
  14. Orientem — Lemma: oriens; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Accusative singular masculine, third declension; Function: Object of the preposition contra; Translation: “the east”; Notes: From the participial idea of the sun “rising,” oriens is the standard geographical designation for the east.
  15. ad — Lemma: ad; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: Indeclinable preposition governing the accusative; Function: Introduces mare Cenereth as the endpoint; Translation: “to”; Notes: The preposition marks the geographical point reached by the boundaries after proceeding eastward.
  16. mare — Lemma: mare; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Accusative singular neuter, third declension; Function: Object of the preposition ad; Translation: “the sea”; Notes: The following name Cenereth specifies which body of water is intended.
  17. Cenereth — Lemma: Cenereth; Part of Speech: Proper noun; Form: Indeclinable biblical geographical name; Function: Identifies mare by name, yielding the sense “the Sea of Cenereth”; Translation: “of Cenereth”; Notes: The proper name specifies the sea serving as the next landmark on the eastern boundary and remains formally unchanged.

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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