Exodus 9:4

Posted on February 28, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Ex 9:4 Et faciet Dominus mirabile inter possessiones Israel, et possessiones Ægyptiorum, ut nihil omnino pereat ex eis quæ pertinent ad filios Israel.

And the LORD will make a wonder between the possessions of Israel and the possessions of the Egyptians, so that nothing at all may perish of those things which belong to the sons of Israel.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Et and CONJ
2 faciet will make 3SG.FUT.ACT.IND
3 Dominus the LORD NOM.SG.M
4 mirabile a wonder ACC.SG.N
5 inter between PREP+ACC
6 possessiones possessions ACC.PL.F
7 Israel Israel ACC.SG.M (INVAR.)
8 et and CONJ
9 possessiones possessions ACC.PL.F
10 Ægyptiorum of the Egyptians GEN.PL.M
11 ut so that CONJ
12 nihil nothing NOM/ACC.SG.N (INDECL.)
13 omnino at all ADV
14 pereat may perish 3SG.PRES.ACT.SUBJ
15 ex from PREP+ABL
16 eis them ABL.PL.M/F
17 quæ which NOM.PL.N (REL)
18 pertinent belong 3PL.PRES.ACT.IND
19 ad to PREP+ACC
20 filios sons ACC.PL.M
21 Israel Israel ACC.SG.M (INVAR.)

Syntax

Main Clause:
Et faciet Dominus mirabile — “And the LORD will make a wonder”
• Dominus — subject
• faciet — future active verb
• mirabile — direct object

Prepositional Contrast:
inter possessiones Israel et possessiones Ægyptiorum
• inter — “between”
• Two accusative objects forming a contrast: Israel vs. Egyptians

Purpose Clause:
ut nihil omnino pereat — “so that nothing at all may perish”
• pereat — subjunctive required by ut
• nihil omnino — emphatic negation (“nothing at all”)

Relative Clause:
quæ pertinent ad filios Israel — “which belong to the sons of Israel”
• quæ — neuter plural relative pronoun
• pertinent — main verb of clause
• ad filios Israel — expresses possession by means of ad + acc.

Morphology

  1. Et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: coordinating; Function: links with previous verse; Translation: “and”; Notes: Standard narrative connector.
  2. faciet — Lemma: facio; Part of Speech: verb; Form: future active indicative 3rd singular; Function: main verb; Translation: “will make”; Notes: Predicts divine intervention.
  3. Dominus — Lemma: Dominus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: subject; Translation: “the LORD”; Notes: Refers to YHWH.
  4. mirabile — Lemma: mirabile; Part of Speech: adjective (substantive); Form: accusative singular neuter; Function: direct object; Translation: “a wonder”; Notes: Sign or miracle distinguishing Israel.
  5. inter — Lemma: inter; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs accusative; Function: expresses separation/contrast; Translation: “between”; Notes: Often used for distinctions.
  6. possessiones — Lemma: possessio; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural feminine; Function: first object of inter; Translation: “possessions”; Notes: Refers to livestock or property.
  7. Israel — Lemma: Israel; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: indeclinable; Function: genitive by position; Translation: “Israel”; Notes: Hebrew name left uninflected.
  8. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: coordinating; Function: links contrasted objects; Translation: “and”; Notes: Parallel structure.
  9. possessiones — Lemma: possessio; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural feminine; Function: second object of inter; Translation: “possessions”; Notes: Forms the contrast.
  10. Ægyptiorum — Lemma: Ægyptius; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive plural masculine; Function: possessive; Translation: “of the Egyptians”; Notes: Shows ownership.
  11. ut — Lemma: ut; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: introduces purpose clause; Function: expresses purpose; Translation: “so that”; Notes: Requires subjunctive.
  12. nihil — Lemma: nihil; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: nominative/accusative singular neuter; Function: subject of pereat; Translation: “nothing”; Notes: Strong negation.
  13. omnino — Lemma: omnino; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: intensifier; Function: strengthens nihil; Translation: “at all”; Notes: Emphatic.
  14. pereat — Lemma: pereo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: present active subjunctive 3rd singular; Function: verb of purpose clause; Translation: “may perish”; Notes: Expresses intended divine protection.
  15. ex — Lemma: ex; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: expresses source; Translation: “from”; Notes: Refers to items listed.
  16. eis — Lemma: is; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: ablative plural; Function: object of ex; Translation: “them”; Notes: Refers to possessions.
  17. quæ — Lemma: qui; Part of Speech: relative pronoun; Form: nominative plural neuter; Function: subject of pertinent; Translation: “which”; Notes: Introduces relative clause.
  18. pertinent — Lemma: pertineo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: present active indicative 3rd plural; Function: main verb of clause; Translation: “belong”; Notes: Idiomatic with ad + acc.
  19. ad — Lemma: ad; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs accusative; Function: expresses relation; Translation: “to”; Notes: Shows destination/possession.
  20. filios — Lemma: filius; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural masculine; Function: complement of ad; Translation: “sons”; Notes: Collective reference to Israel.
  21. Israel — Lemma: Israel; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: indeclinable; Function: specifies filios; Translation: “Israel”; Notes: Hebrew proper name.

 

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.
This entry was posted in Exodus. Bookmark the permalink.

Comments are closed.