Exodus 12:23

Posted on March 3, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Ex 12:23 Transibit enim Dominus percutiens Ægyptios: cumque viderit sanguinem in superliminari, et in utroque poste, transcendet ostium domus, et non sinet percussorem ingredi domos vestras et lædere.

For the LORD will pass through striking the Egyptians; and when He sees the blood on the upper beam and on each doorpost, He will pass over the door of the house, and will not allow the destroyer to enter your houses and harm.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Transibit will pass through 3SG.FUT.ACT.IND
2 enim for ADV
3 Dominus the LORD NOM.SG.M
4 percutiens striking NOM.SG.M.PTCP.PRES.ACT
5 Ægyptios the Egyptians ACC.PL.M
6 cumque and when CONJ
7 viderit shall have seen 3SG.FUT.PERF.ACT.IND
8 sanguinem blood ACC.SG.M
9 in on PREP+ABL
10 superliminari upper beam ABL.SG.N
11 et and CONJ
12 in on PREP+ABL
13 utroque each ABL.SG.M/NEUT
14 poste doorpost ABL.SG.M
15 transcendet will pass over 3SG.FUT.ACT.IND
16 ostium door ACC.SG.N
17 domus of the house GEN.SG.F
18 et and CONJ
19 non not ADV
20 sinet will allow 3SG.FUT.ACT.IND
21 percussorem the destroyer ACC.SG.M
22 ingredi to enter PRES.ACT.INF
23 domos houses ACC.PL.F
24 vestras your ACC.PL.F.ADJ
25 et and CONJ
26 lædere to harm PRES.ACT.INF

Syntax

Main clause:
Transibit enim Dominus percutiens Ægyptios
• Dominus = subject (YHWH)
• Transibit = main verb (“will pass through”)
• percutiens = attendant participle (“striking”)
• Ægyptios = direct object

Temporal clause:
cumque viderit sanguinem… — “and when He shall have seen the blood…”
• viderit = future perfect verb
• sanguinem = object
• in superliminari… in utroque poste = two ablative locatives

Result clause:
transcendet ostium domus — “He will pass over the door of the house”
• transcendet = main verb
• ostium domus = object (“the door of the house”)

Preventive clause:
et non sinet percussorem ingredi domos vestras et lædere
• sinet = main verb
• percussorem = object (“the destroyer”)
• ingredi… lædere = complementary infinitives
• domos vestras = object of ingredi

Morphology

  1. Transibit — Lemma: transeo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: future active indicative third singular; Function: main verb; Translation: “will pass through”; Notes: denotes divine action.
  2. enim — Lemma: enim; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: indeclinable; Function: explanatory connector; Translation: “for”; Notes: explains prior command.
  3. Dominus — Lemma: Dominus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: subject; Translation: “the LORD”; Notes: refers to YHWH.
  4. percutiens — Lemma: percutio; Part of Speech: participle; Form: nominative singular masculine present active participle; Function: describes simultaneous action; Translation: “striking”; Notes: attendant circumstance.
  5. Ægyptios — Lemma: Ægyptius; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural masculine; Function: object of action; Translation: “Egyptians”; Notes: recipients of plague.
  6. cumque — Lemma: cum + que; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: temporal connector; Translation: “and when”; Notes: merges cum with -que.
  7. viderit — Lemma: video; Part of Speech: verb; Form: future perfect active indicative third singular; Function: verb of condition; Translation: “shall have seen”; Notes: action preceding main future event.
  8. sanguinem — Lemma: sanguis; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: object of viderit; Translation: “blood”; Notes: Passover sign.
  9. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: locative; Translation: “on / in”; Notes: spatial marking.
  10. superliminari — Lemma: superliminare; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular neuter; Function: location; Translation: “upper beam”; Notes: top of doorway.
  11. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: coordination; Translation: “and”; Notes: joins elements.
  12. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: locative; Translation: “on”; Notes: repeated for emphasis.
  13. utroque — Lemma: uterque; Part of Speech: distributive pronoun; Form: ablative singular masculine/neuter; Function: modifies poste; Translation: “each”; Notes: both doorposts.
  14. poste — Lemma: postis; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular masculine; Function: object of in; Translation: “doorpost”; Notes: frame structure.
  15. transcendet — Lemma: transcendo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: future active indicative third singular; Function: main verb; Translation: “will pass over”; Notes: origin of “Passover.”
  16. ostium — Lemma: ostium; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular neuter; Function: object; Translation: “door”; Notes: point of entry.
  17. domus — Lemma: domus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive singular feminine; Function: modifies ostium; Translation: “of the house”; Notes: household.
  18. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: links clauses; Translation: “and”; Notes: additive.
  19. non — Lemma: non; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: indeclinable; Function: negation; Translation: “not”; Notes: prohibits allowance.
  20. sinet — Lemma: sino; Part of Speech: verb; Form: future active indicative third singular; Function: main verb; Translation: “will allow”; Notes: divine protection.
  21. percussorem — Lemma: percussor; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: object; Translation: “destroyer”; Notes: agent of plague.
  22. ingredi — Lemma: ingredior; Part of Speech: deponent verb; Form: present infinitive; Function: complementary to sinet; Translation: “to enter”; Notes: forbidden action.
  23. domos — Lemma: domus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural feminine; Function: object of ingredi; Translation: “houses”; Notes: Israelite homes.
  24. vestras — Lemma: vester; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: accusative plural feminine; Function: modifies domos; Translation: “your”; Notes: possessive.
  25. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: joins infinitives; Translation: “and”; Notes: additive action.
  26. lædere — Lemma: lædo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: present active infinitive; Function: complementary to sinet; Translation: “to harm”; Notes: expresses consequence.

 

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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