Exodus 5:14

Posted on February 24, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Ex 5:14 Flagellatique sunt qui præerant operibus filiorum Israel, ab exactoribus Pharaonis, dicentibus: Quare non impletis mensuram laterum sicut prius, nec heri, nec hodie?

And those who were over the works of the sons of Israel were beaten by the taskmasters of Pharao, who were saying: “Why do you not complete the measure of bricks as before, neither yesterday nor today?”

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Flagellatique and were beaten PERF.PASS.PART.NOM.PL.M + -QUE
2 sunt were 3PL.PRES.ACT.IND
3 qui who REL.PRON.NOM.PL.M
4 præerant were over 3PL.IMPFT.ACT.IND
5 operibus the works DAT.PL.N
6 filiorum of the sons GEN.PL.M
7 Israel Israel GEN.SG.M
8 ab by PREP+ABL
9 exactoribus the taskmasters ABL.PL.M
10 Pharaonis of Pharaoh GEN.SG.M
11 dicentibus saying PRES.ACT.PART.ABL.PL.M
12 Quare why ADV.INTERROG
13 non not ADV
14 impletis you complete 2PL.PRES.ACT.IND
15 mensuram the measure ACC.SG.F
16 laterum of bricks GEN.PL.M
17 sicut as CONJ
18 prius before ADV
19 nec nor CONJ
20 heri yesterday ADV
21 nec nor CONJ
22 hodie today ADV

Syntax

Passive periphrastic: Flagellatique sunt — perfect passive narrative (“they were beaten”).
Relative clause: qui præerant operibus filiorum Israel — identifies the ones beaten: supervisors over Israelite labor.
Agent phrase: ab exactoribus Pharaonis — ablative of agent with deponent/ passive-periphrastic structure.
Circumstantial participle: dicentibus — indicates the manner of beating, introducing the interrogative charge.
Direct question: Quare non impletis mensuram laterum…? — the accusation.
Temporal negations: nec heri, nec hodie — stresses continuous failure to meet the quota.

Morphology

  1. Flagellatique — Lemma: flagello; Part of Speech: participle; Form: nominative plural masculine perfect passive participle with enclitic -que; Function: part of passive verb phrase; Translation: and were beaten; Notes: -que links to previous narrative sequence.
  2. sunt — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person plural present active indicative; Function: auxiliary with perfect passive participle; Translation: were; Notes: forms perfect passive periphrasis.
  3. qui — Lemma: qui; Part of Speech: relative pronoun; Form: nominative plural masculine; Function: introduces relative clause; Translation: who; Notes: refers to Israelite supervisors.
  4. præerant — Lemma: præsum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person plural imperfect active indicative; Function: verb of relative clause; Translation: were over; Notes: governs dative.
  5. operibus — Lemma: opus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: dative plural neuter; Function: dative after præsum; Translation: the works; Notes: refers to forced labor operations.
  6. filiorum — Lemma: filius; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive plural masculine; Function: modifies operibus; Translation: of the sons; Notes: genealogical marker.
  7. Israel — Lemma: Israel; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: genitive singular masculine; Function: modifies filiorum; Translation: of Israel; Notes: Covenant designation.
  8. ab — Lemma: ab; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: introduces agent; Translation: by; Notes: used with passive voices.
  9. exactoribus — Lemma: exactor; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative plural masculine; Function: ablative of agent; Translation: the taskmasters; Notes: Egyptian enforcers.
  10. Pharaonis — Lemma: Pharao; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive singular masculine; Function: modifies exactoribus; Translation: of Pharaoh; Notes: specifies authority.
  11. dicentibus — Lemma: dico; Part of Speech: participle; Form: present active participle ablative plural masculine; Function: ablative absolute describing action during beating; Translation: saying; Notes: introduces direct question.
  12. Quare — Lemma: quare; Part of Speech: interrogative adverb; Form: adverbial; Function: introduces accusatory question; Translation: why; Notes: rhetorical force.
  13. non — Lemma: non; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: negation; Function: negates impletis; Translation: not; Notes: standard negative.
  14. impletis — Lemma: impleo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: second person plural present active indicative; Function: main verb of the accusation; Translation: you complete; Notes: sense: “you fail to complete.”
  15. mensuram — Lemma: mensura; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: direct object of impletis; Translation: the measure; Notes: quota of bricks.
  16. laterum — Lemma: later; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive plural masculine; Function: modifies mensuram; Translation: of bricks; Notes: material specification.
  17. sicut — Lemma: sicut; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: comparative; Function: introduces standard of comparison; Translation: as; Notes: common in narrative.
  18. prius — Lemma: prior; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: comparative; Function: temporal comparison; Translation: before; Notes: refers to former production standard.
  19. nec — Lemma: nec; Part of Speech: conjunction; Function: negative additive; Translation: nor; Notes: paired with nec for repeated denial.
  20. heri — Lemma: heri; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: temporal; Function: specifies past day; Translation: yesterday; Notes: adverb of time.
  21. nec — Lemma: nec; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: negative additive; Function: links final contrast; Translation: nor; Notes: repeated for emphasis.
  22. hodie — Lemma: hodie; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: temporal; Function: final time indicator; Translation: today; Notes: pairs with heri for dual temporal accusation.

 

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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