Exodus 1:12

Posted on February 20, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Ex 1:12 Quantoque opprimebant eos, tanto magis multiplicabantur, et crescebant:

And the more they oppressed them, the more they multiplied and grew.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Quantoque and the more ADV + -QUE
2 opprimebant they oppressed 3PL.IMPERF.ACT.IND
3 eos them ACC.PL.M
4 tanto the more ADV
5 magis more ADV.COMP
6 multiplicabantur they multiplied 3PL.IMPERF.PASS.IND
7 et and CONJ
8 crescebant they grew 3PL.IMPERF.ACT.IND

Syntax

Correlative Construction:
Quantoque opprimebant eos — “the more they oppressed them” (first half),
tanto magis multiplicabantur — “the more they multiplied” (second half).
Coordinated Predicate: et crescebant — adds parallel growth verb.
Function: Shows inverse proportionality between oppression and Israelite growth.

Morphology

  1. Quantoque — Lemma: quanto; Part of Speech: adverb + enclitic -que; Form: correlative adverb; Function: introduces comparative clause; Translation: “and the more”; Notes: Paired with “tanto.”
  2. opprimebant — Lemma: opprimo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: 3rd person plural imperfect active indicative; Function: verb of comparative clause; Translation: “they oppressed”; Notes: Imperfect conveys ongoing action.
  3. eos — Lemma: is; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: accusative plural masculine; Function: direct object; Translation: “them”; Notes: Refers to Israelites.
  4. tanto — Lemma: tanto; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: correlative adverb; Function: second half of quanto—tanto pair; Translation: “the more”; Notes: Correlates with quanto.
  5. magis — Lemma: magis; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: comparative adverb; Function: modifies “multiplicabantur”; Translation: “more”; Notes: Adds intensity.
  6. multiplicabantur — Lemma: multiplico; Part of Speech: verb; Form: 3rd person plural imperfect passive indicative; Function: main verb of result clause; Translation: “they were multiplied”; Notes: Passive form with intransitive meaning.
  7. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: connects predicates; Translation: “and”; Notes: Neutral connector.
  8. crescebant — Lemma: cresco; Part of Speech: verb; Form: 3rd person plural imperfect active indicative; Function: coordinated main verb; Translation: “they grew”; Notes: Describes natural, continuous increase.

 

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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