Exodus 2:3

Posted on February 21, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Ex 2:3 Cumque iam celare non posset, sumpsit fiscellam scirpeam, et linivit eam bitumine ac pice: posuitque intus infantulum, et exposuit eum in carecto ripæ fluminis,

And when she could no longer hide him, she took a little basket of rushes and coated it with bitumen and pitch; and she placed the little child inside, and set him out in the reed-bed of the riverbank,

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Cumque and when CONJ
2 iam already ADV
3 celare to hide PRES.ACT.INF
4 non not ADV
5 posset she could 3SG.IMPERF.ACT.SUBJ
6 sumpsit she took 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
7 fiscellam a little basket ACC.SG.F
8 scirpeam of rushes ACC.SG.F
9 et and CONJ
10 linivit she coated 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
11 eam it ACC.SG.F
12 bitumine with bitumen ABL.SG.N
13 ac and CONJ
14 pice with pitch ABL.SG.F
15 posuitque and she placed 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND + -QUE
16 intus inside ADV
17 infantulum the little child ACC.SG.M
18 et and CONJ
19 exposuit she set out 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
20 eum him ACC.SG.M
21 in in / into PREP+ABL/ACC
22 carecto reed-bed ABL.SG.N
23 ripæ of the bank GEN.SG.F
24 fluminis of the river GEN.SG.N

Syntax

Temporal Clause:
Cumque iam celare non posset — “and when she could no longer hide (him).”
• celare = infinitive dependent on posset
• Imperfect subjunctive expresses circumstance

Main Clause 1:
sumpsit fiscellam scirpeam — “she took a little basket of rushes.”

Coordinated Action:
et linivit eam bitumine ac pice — “and coated it with bitumen and pitch.”

Main Clause 2 with Enclitic:
posuitque intus infantulum — “and she placed the little child inside.”

Main Clause 3:
et exposuit eum in carecto ripæ fluminis — “and set him out in the reed-bed of the riverbank.”

Function: Describes the decisive protective action of Moses’ mother, preparing a waterproof basket and placing Moses among the reeds of the Nile.

Morphology

  1. Cumque — Lemma: cum + que; Part of Speech: subordinating conjunction + enclitic; Form: indeclinable; Function: introduces temporal clause; Translation: “and when”; Notes: Links the episode to prior concealment.
  2. iam — Lemma: iam; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: indeclinable; Function: intensifies circumstance; Translation: “already / no longer”; Notes: Often expresses change of state.
  3. celare — Lemma: celo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: present active infinitive; Function: complement of “posset”; Translation: “to hide”; Notes: Refers to hiding Moses.
  4. non — Lemma: non; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: negation; Function: negates “posset”; Translation: “not”; Notes: Standard negation.
  5. posset — Lemma: possum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: 3rd person singular imperfect active subjunctive; Function: verb of temporal clause; Translation: “she could”; Notes: Imperfect subjunctive with cum = circumstantial.
  6. sumpsit — Lemma: sumo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: 3rd person singular perfect active indicative; Function: main verb; Translation: “she took”; Notes: Begins sequence of protective actions.
  7. fiscellam — Lemma: fiscella; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: object of “sumpsit”; Translation: “little basket”; Notes: Diminutive form.
  8. scirpeam — Lemma: scirpeus; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: modifies “fiscellam”; Translation: “of rushes”; Notes: Material-adjective.
  9. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: coordination; Translation: “and”; Notes: Links actions.
  10. linivit — Lemma: linio; Part of Speech: verb; Form: 3rd person singular perfect active indicative; Function: verb of coordinated clause; Translation: “coated”; Notes: Waterproofing action.
  11. eam — Lemma: is; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: direct object of “linivit”; Translation: “it”; Notes: Refers to the basket.
  12. bitumine — Lemma: bitumen; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular neuter; Function: ablative of instrument; Translation: “with bitumen”; Notes: Waterproofing substance.
  13. ac — Lemma: ac; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: links closely related items; Translation: “and”; Notes: Stronger than et.
  14. pice — Lemma: pix; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular feminine; Function: ablative of instrument; Translation: “with pitch”; Notes: Traditional sealing material.
  15. posuitque — Lemma: pono; Part of Speech: verb; Form: 3rd person singular perfect active indicative with enclitic -que; Function: introduces next sequential act; Translation: “and she placed”; Notes: -que attaches to posuit for close connection.
  16. intus — Lemma: intus; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: indeclinable; Function: locative sense; Translation: “inside”; Notes: Indicates interior placement.
  17. infantulum — Lemma: infantulus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: direct object of “posuit”; Translation: “the little child”; Notes: Diminutive expresses tenderness.
  18. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: connects final action; Translation: “and”; Notes: Series of coordinated actions.
  19. exposuit — Lemma: expono; Part of Speech: verb; Form: 3rd person singular perfect active indicative; Function: main verb; Translation: “she set out / exposed”; Notes: Technical term for placing a child out.
  20. eum — Lemma: is; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: object of “exposuit”; Translation: “him”; Notes: Refers to Moses.
  21. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: locational; Translation: “in”; Notes: Indicates place.
  22. carecto — Lemma: carectum; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular neuter; Function: object of “in”; Translation: “reed-bed”; Notes: Part of the Nile’s marsh vegetation.
  23. ripæ — Lemma: ripa; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive singular feminine; Function: genitive of location; Translation: “of the bank”; Notes: Specifies which reed-bed.
  24. fluminis — Lemma: flumen; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive singular neuter; Function: genitive of possession; Translation: “of the river”; Notes: Refers to the Nile.

 

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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