Exodus 2:21

Posted on February 21, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Ex 2:21 Iuravit ergo Moyses quod habitaret cum eo. Accepitque Sephoram filiam eius uxorem:

And Moyses swore that he would live with him; and he took Sephora his daughter as a wife;

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Iuravit swore 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
2 ergo therefore ADV
3 Moyses Moses NOM.SG.M
4 quod that CONJ
5 habitaret would live 3SG.IMP.ACT.SUBJ
6 cum with PREP+ABL
7 eo him ABL.SG.M PRON
8 Accepitque and took 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND + -QUE
9 Sephoram Zipporah ACC.SG.F PROPER
10 filiam daughter ACC.SG.F
11 eius his GEN.SG PRON
12 uxorem as wife ACC.SG.F

Syntax

Main Clause:
Iuravit ergo Moyses quod habitaret cum eo — “And Moses swore that he would live with him.”
• Iuravit = solemn, binding act.
• quod introduces a substantive clause with subjunctive habitaret.
• cum eo = with Raguel.

Coordinated Perfect Action:
Accepitque Sephoram filiam eius uxorem
• Accepitque = Moses took her in marriage.
• Sephoram filiam eius = object phrase.
• uxorem = accusative of predicate—“as wife.”

Morphology

  1. Iuravit — Lemma: iuro; Part of Speech: verb; Form: 3rd singular perfect active indicative; Function: main verb; Translation: “swore”; Notes: Indicates formal, binding agreement.
  2. ergo — Lemma: ergo; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: indeclinable; Function: draws inference; Translation: “therefore”; Notes: Connects Moses’ oath to Raguel’s invitation.
  3. Moyses — Lemma: Moyses; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: subject; Translation: “Moses”; Notes: Continues the narrative focus.
  4. quod — Lemma: quod; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: introduces object clause; Translation: “that”; Notes: Classical “quod + subjunctive” after verbs of declaring or promising.
  5. habitaret — Lemma: habito; Part of Speech: verb; Form: 3rd singular imperfect active subjunctive; Function: verb of subordinate clause; Translation: “would live”; Notes: Subjunctive dependent on iuravit, expressing future obligation.
  6. cum — Lemma: cum; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: expresses association; Translation: “with”; Notes: Preposition for accompaniment.
  7. eo — Lemma: is; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: ablative singular masculine; Function: object of cum; Translation: “him”; Notes: Refers to Raguel.
  8. Accepitque — Lemma: accipio + -que; Part of Speech: verb + enclitic; Form: 3rd singular perfect active indicative; Function: main narrative verb; Translation: “and he took”; Notes: Perfect indicates decisive marriage action.
  9. Sephoram — Lemma: Sephora; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: object of accepit; Translation: “Sephora”; Notes: Daughter of Raguel whom Moses marries.
  10. filiam — Lemma: filia; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: apposition to Sephoram; Translation: “daughter”; Notes: Identifies her family relation.
  11. eius — Lemma: is; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: genitive singular; Function: possessive modifying filiam; Translation: “his”; Notes: Refers to Raguel as father.
  12. uxorem — Lemma: uxor; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: predicate accusative; Translation: “as wife”; Notes: Standard Latin idiom for marrying (accusative of person + uxorem).

 

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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