Numeri 8:19 (Numbers 8:19)

Posted on May 5, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Nm 8:19 tradidique eos dono Aaron et filiis eius de medio populi, ut serviant mihi pro Israel in tabernaculo fœderis, et orent pro eis ne sit in populo plaga, si ausi fuerint accedere ad Sanctuarium.

and I have given them as a gift to Aaron and to his sons from the midst of the people, so that they may serve Me on behalf of Israel in the tabernacle of the covenant, and may pray for them, lest there be a plague among the people, if they should dare to approach the Sanctuary.”

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 tradidique and I have given 1SG.PERF.ACT.IND+CONJ
2 eos them ACC.PL.M
3 dono as a gift DAT.SG.N
4 Aaron to Aaron INDECL
5 et and CONJ
6 filiis to sons DAT.PL.M
7 eius his GEN.SG.M
8 de from PREP+ABL
9 medio midst ABL.SG.N
10 populi of the people GEN.SG.M
11 ut so that CONJ
12 serviant they may serve 3PL.PRES.ACT.SUBJ
13 mihi for Me DAT.SG
14 pro on behalf of PREP+ABL
15 Israel Israel INDECL
16 in in PREP+ABL
17 tabernaculo tabernacle ABL.SG.N
18 fœderis of the covenant GEN.SG.N
19 et and CONJ
20 orent they may pray 3PL.PRES.ACT.SUBJ
21 pro for PREP+ABL
22 eis them ABL.PL.M
23 ne lest CONJ
24 sit there be 3SG.PRES.ACT.SUBJ
25 in among PREP+ABL
26 populo the people ABL.SG.M
27 plaga plague NOM.SG.F
28 si if CONJ
29 ausi having dared NOM.PL.M.PERF.DEP.PTCP
30 fuerint they should have been 3PL.FUTP.ACT.IND
31 accedere to approach PRES.ACT.INF
32 ad to PREP+ACC
33 Sanctuarium the Sanctuary ACC.SG.N

Syntax

Main Clause: tradidique governs the direct object eos and the double-dative expression dono + Aaron + et filiis eius, expressing “I have given them as a gift to Aaron and his sons.”

Phrase: de medio populi is an ablative prepositional phrase marking separation or source, specifying that they are taken out from the midst of the people.

Purpose Clause: ut serviant mihi pro Israel in tabernaculo fœderis expresses purpose; serviant is a present subjunctive, with mihi as the dative of service, pro Israel indicating representation, and in tabernaculo fœderis locating the ministry.

Coordinated Purpose Clause: et orent pro eis continues the purpose construction, with orent parallel to serviant and pro eis indicating intercession on behalf of others.

Negative Purpose / Preventive Clause: ne sit in populo plaga states the intended prevention, with plaga as the subject and in populo giving the sphere in which the plague would occur.

Conditional Clause: si ausi fuerint accedere ad Sanctuarium gives the circumstance under which such a plague would come; ausi fuerint forms a periphrastic future-perfect sense with deponent force, while accedere ad Sanctuarium supplies the complementary infinitive and goal.

Morphology

  1. tradidique — Lemma: trado; Part of Speech: verb with enclitic conjunction; Form: first person singular perfect active indicative with enclitic -que; Function: main finite verb introducing the statement and linking it to what precedes; Translation: and I have given; Notes: The perfect presents the act as completed, while -que tightly joins this clause to the previous discourse.
  2. eos — Lemma: is; Part of Speech: personal pronoun; Form: accusative plural masculine; Function: direct object of tradidique; Translation: them; Notes: It refers back to the Levites as those handed over for sacred service.
  3. dono — Lemma: donum; Part of Speech: noun; Form: dative singular neuter; Function: predicative dative in a double-dative construction; Translation: as a gift; Notes: This dative expresses the role or purpose in which the Levites are given.
  4. Aaron — Lemma: Aaron; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: indeclinable, here used in the dative relation; Function: indirect object receiving the gift; Translation: to Aaron; Notes: The indeclinable Hebrew name depends syntactically on the giving verb despite lacking overt case ending.
  5. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: invariable; Function: coordinates Aaron with filiis; Translation: and; Notes: It extends the recipients from Aaron alone to Aaron together with his sons.
  6. filiis — Lemma: filius; Part of Speech: noun; Form: dative plural masculine; Function: indirect object coordinated with Aaron; Translation: to sons; Notes: The dative marks those who benefit from or receive the Levites’ service.
  7. eius — Lemma: is; Part of Speech: possessive pronoun; Form: genitive singular masculine; Function: modifies filiis; Translation: his; Notes: It specifies the filial relationship to Aaron.
  8. de — Lemma: de; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs the ablative; Function: introduces a phrase of source or separation; Translation: from; Notes: It marks extraction from a larger body.
  9. medio — Lemma: medium; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular neuter; Function: object of de in the prepositional phrase; Translation: midst; Notes: The phrase emphasizes that the Levites are taken out from within the covenant community itself.
  10. populi — Lemma: populus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive singular masculine; Function: dependent genitive modifying medio; Translation: of the people; Notes: It identifies the collective body from which the Levites are separated.
  11. ut — Lemma: ut; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: invariable; Function: introduces a purpose clause; Translation: so that; Notes: The following subjunctives explain the divinely intended result of the gift.
  12. serviant — Lemma: servio; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person plural present active subjunctive; Function: verb of the purpose clause; Translation: they may serve; Notes: servio commonly takes a dative, which appears here in mihi.
  13. mihi — Lemma: ego; Part of Speech: personal pronoun; Form: dative singular first person; Function: dative complement with serviant; Translation: for Me; Notes: The dative shows that the service is rendered directly to God.
  14. pro — Lemma: pro; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs the ablative; Function: introduces representation or substitution; Translation: on behalf of; Notes: It highlights the mediating role of the Levites.
  15. Israel — Lemma: Israel; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: indeclinable, here functioning after pro; Function: object of the preposition; Translation: Israel; Notes: Though indeclinable in form, it serves as the people represented in cultic ministry.
  16. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs the ablative here; Function: introduces a locative phrase; Translation: in; Notes: With the ablative it marks location rather than motion.
  17. tabernaculo — Lemma: tabernaculum; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular neuter; Function: object of in; Translation: tabernacle; Notes: It names the sacred place where the delegated service occurs.
  18. fœderis — Lemma: fœdus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive singular neuter; Function: modifies tabernaculo; Translation: of the covenant; Notes: The genitive qualifies the tabernacle by its covenantal character.
  19. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: invariable; Function: coordinates orent with serviant; Translation: and; Notes: It adds a second purpose alongside liturgical service.
  20. orent — Lemma: oro; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person plural present active subjunctive; Function: coordinated verb within the purpose clause; Translation: they may pray; Notes: The subjunctive continues the dependency established by ut.
  21. pro — Lemma: pro; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs the ablative; Function: introduces the beneficiaries of intercession; Translation: for; Notes: Here it carries the sense of acting in another’s interest.
  22. eis — Lemma: is; Part of Speech: personal pronoun; Form: ablative plural masculine; Function: object of pro; Translation: them; Notes: The pronoun refers to the people for whom priestly intercession is made.
  23. ne — Lemma: ne; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: invariable; Function: introduces a negative purpose or preventive clause; Translation: lest; Notes: It expresses the danger that the intercession is meant to avert.
  24. sit — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular present active subjunctive; Function: verb of the negative purpose clause; Translation: there be; Notes: The subjunctive is required after ne in a preventive sense.
  25. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs the ablative here; Function: introduces the sphere in which the plague would occur; Translation: among; Notes: The locative nuance fits communal setting rather than physical enclosure alone.
  26. populo — Lemma: populus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular masculine; Function: object of in; Translation: the people; Notes: It identifies the covenant community threatened by judgment.
  27. plaga — Lemma: plaga; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular feminine; Function: subject of sit; Translation: plague; Notes: The word suggests punitive affliction arising from violated holiness.
  28. si — Lemma: si; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: invariable; Function: introduces a conditional clause; Translation: if; Notes: It defines the condition under which the threatened plague would come.
  29. ausi — Lemma: audeo; Part of Speech: participle; Form: nominative plural masculine perfect deponent participle; Function: predicative participle with fuerint; Translation: having dared; Notes: Although audeo is semideponent in classical description, this perfect participial form carries active sense.
  30. fuerint — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person plural future perfect active indicative; Function: auxiliary completing the periphrastic verbal idea with ausi; Translation: they should have been; Notes: Together with ausi it yields “if they should have dared,” a forward-looking condition.
  31. accedere — Lemma: accedo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: present active infinitive; Function: complementary infinitive dependent on ausi fuerint; Translation: to approach; Notes: The infinitive expresses the action ventured by the subject.
  32. ad — Lemma: ad; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs the accusative; Function: introduces the goal of approach; Translation: to; Notes: It marks movement toward a sacred object or place.
  33. Sanctuarium — Lemma: Sanctuarium; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular neuter; Function: object of ad; Translation: the Sanctuary; Notes: The final word sharpens the issue of holiness, since unlawful nearness to the sanctuary brings danger.

 

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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