Exodus 2:9

Posted on February 21, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Ex 2:9 Ad quam locuta filia Pharaonis: Accipe, ait, puerum istum, et nutri mihi: ego dabo tibi mercedem tuam. Suscepit mulier, et nutrivit puerum: adultumque tradidit filiæ Pharaonis.

To whom the daughter of Pharao said: “Take this boy and nurse him for me; and I will give you your wage.” The woman took the child and nursed him, and when he was grown, she handed him over to the daughter of Pharao.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Ad to PREP+ACC
2 quam whom ACC.SG.F REL
3 locuta having spoken PERF.PASS.PART.NOM.SG.F (DEPONENT)
4 filia daughter NOM.SG.F
5 Pharaonis of Pharaoh GEN.SG.M
6 Accipe take 2SG.PRES.ACT.IMP
7 ait she said 3SG.PRES.ACT.IND
8 puerum the boy ACC.SG.M
9 istum this ACC.SG.M DEM
10 et and CONJ
11 nutri nurse 2SG.PRES.ACT.IMP
12 mihi for me DAT.SG
13 ego I NOM.SG
14 dabo I will give 1SG.FUT.ACT.IND
15 tibi to you DAT.SG
16 mercedem the wage ACC.SG.F
17 tuam your ACC.SG.F POSS
18 Suscepit she took 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
19 mulier the woman NOM.SG.F
20 et and CONJ
21 nutrivit nursed 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
22 puerum the boy ACC.SG.M
23 adultumque and grown ACC.SG.M PERF.PASS.PART + -QUE
24 tradidit she handed over 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
25 filiæ to the daughter DAT.SG.F
26 Pharaonis of Pharaoh GEN.SG.M

Syntax

Prepositional Phrase:
Ad quam locuta filia Pharaonis — “To whom the daughter of Pharaoh, having spoken…”
• Ablative absolute–like structure but governed by ad.
• locuta (deponent participle) describes the daughter’s action.

Direct Speech:
Accipe … puerum istum, et nutri mihi — Two imperatives: “Take this boy, and nurse him for me.”

Promise Clause:
ego dabo tibi mercedem tuam — “I will give you your wage.”
• mercedem tuam = compensation for nursing Moses.

Narrative Sequence:
Suscepit mulier — “The woman took (him).”
et nutrivit puerum — “and nursed the boy.”
adultumque tradidit filiæ Pharaonis — “and when he was grown, she handed him over to the daughter of Pharaoh.”

Function:
This verse describes the remarkable situation where Moses’ own mother is paid to nurse her son, before returning him to Pharaoh’s daughter.

Morphology

  1. Ad — Lemma: ad; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs accusative; Function: introduces the indirect object; Translation: “to”; Notes: Links to quam, referring back to Pharaoh’s daughter.
  2. quam — Lemma: qui; Part of Speech: relative pronoun; Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: object of ad; Translation: “whom”; Notes: Antecedent: Pharaoh’s daughter.
  3. locuta — Lemma: loquor; Part of Speech: participle (deponent); Form: nominative singular feminine perfect participle; Function: modifies filia; Translation: “having spoken”; Notes: Deponent → passive form, active meaning.
  4. filia — Lemma: filia; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular feminine; Function: subject of “ait”; Translation: “daughter”; Notes: The princess of Egypt.
  5. Pharaonis — Lemma: Pharao; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive singular masculine; Function: possessive; Translation: “of Pharaoh”; Notes: Title of the Egyptian king.
  6. Accipe — Lemma: accipio; Part of Speech: verb; Form: 2nd singular present active imperative; Function: direct command; Translation: “take”; Notes: Pharaoh’s daughter gives authority to Miriam’s mother.
  7. ait — Lemma: aio; Part of Speech: verb; Form: 3rd singular present active indicative; Function: introduces direct speech; Translation: “she said”; Notes: Common speech verb in narrative.
  8. puerum — Lemma: puer; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: object of accipe; Translation: “the boy”; Notes: Refers to Moses.
  9. istum — Lemma: iste; Part of Speech: demonstrative pronoun/adjective; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: modifies puerum; Translation: “this”; Notes: Indicates physical closeness.
  10. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: joins commands; Translation: “and”; Notes: Simple connector.
  11. nutri — Lemma: nutrio; Part of Speech: verb; Form: 2nd singular present active imperative; Function: second command; Translation: “nurse”; Notes: Implies long-term care of an infant.
  12. mihi — Lemma: ego; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: dative singular; Function: dative of advantage; Translation: “for me”; Notes: Indicates service performed on her behalf.
  13. ego — Lemma: ego; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: nominative singular; Function: explicit subject; Translation: “I”; Notes: Emphatic, contrasts with tibi.
  14. dabo — Lemma: do; Part of Speech: verb; Form: 1st singular future active indicative; Function: promise; Translation: “I will give”; Notes: Indicates contractual arrangement.
  15. tibi — Lemma: tu; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: dative singular; Function: indirect object; Translation: “to you”; Notes: Recipient of payment.
  16. mercedem — Lemma: merces; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: direct object of “dabo”; Translation: “wage”; Notes: Indicates formal compensation.
  17. tuam — Lemma: tuus; Part of Speech: possessive adjective; Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: modifies mercedem; Translation: “your”; Notes: Personalizes the payment.
  18. Suscepit — Lemma: suscipio; Part of Speech: verb; Form: 3rd singular perfect active indicative; Function: begins narrative action; Translation: “she took”; Notes: Accepts the child into care.
  19. mulier — Lemma: mulier; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular feminine; Function: subject of suscepit; Translation: “the woman”; Notes: Moses’ mother.
  20. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: joins actions; Translation: “and”; Notes: Connects sequential verbs.
  21. nutrivit — Lemma: nutrio; Part of Speech: verb; Form: 3rd singular perfect active indicative; Function: second narrative act; Translation: “nursed”; Notes: Implies raising the child through infancy.
  22. puerum — Lemma: puer; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: direct object of “nutrivit”; Translation: “the boy”; Notes: Moses during childhood.
  23. adultumque — Lemma: adultus + -que; Part of Speech: participle + enclitic; Form: accusative singular masculine perfect passive participle; Function: object/complement before “tradidit”; Translation: “grown”; Notes: Implies maturity sufficient for palace life.
  24. tradidit — Lemma: trado; Part of Speech: verb; Form: 3rd singular perfect active indicative; Function: final action; Translation: “she handed over”; Notes: Transfer of Moses to royal household.
  25. filiæ — Lemma: filia; Part of Speech: noun; Form: dative singular feminine; Function: indirect object; Translation: “to the daughter”; Notes: Identifies recipient as Pharaoh’s daughter.
  26. Pharaonis — Lemma: Pharao; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive singular masculine; Function: possessive modifier; Translation: “of Pharaoh”; Notes: Clarifies royal lineage.

 

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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