Exodus 12:37

Posted on March 3, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Ex 12:37 Profectique sunt filii Israel de Ramesse in Socoth, sexcenta fere millia peditum virorum, absque parvulis.

And the sons of Israel set out from Ramesse to Socoth, about six hundred thousand men on foot, apart from the little ones.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Profectique and set out NOM.PL.M.PPP + ENCLITIC
2 sunt they 3PL.PERF.IND.DEP
3 filii sons NOM.PL.M
4 Israel Israel NOM.SG.M.INVAR
5 de from PREP+ABL
6 Ramesse Rameses ABL.SG.F
7 in into / to PREP+ACC
8 Socoth Succoth ACC.SG.F.INVAR
9 sexcenta six hundred ACC.PL.N.NUM
10 fere about ADV
11 millia thousand ACC.PL.N
12 peditum of foot-soldiers GEN.PL.M
13 virorum of men GEN.PL.M
14 absque apart from PREP+ABL
15 parvulis little ones ABL.PL.M

Syntax

Main clause:
Profectique sunt filii Israel — “And the sons of Israel set out”
• Profectique = perfect participle + enclitic, forming part of the verb
• sunt = auxiliary
• filii Israel = subject

Prepositional movement phrase:
de Ramesse in Socoth — “from Ramesse to Socoth”
• de + ablative = origin
• in + accusative = direction

Numerical object phrase:
sexcenta fere millia peditum virorum — “about six hundred thousand men on foot”
• millia = head noun
• sexcenta = numeral modifying millia
• peditum virorum = genitive of kind

Prepositional exclusion phrase:
absque parvulis — “apart from the little ones”

Morphology

  1. Profectique — Lemma: proficiscor + -que; Part of Speech: participle with enclitic; Form: nominative plural masculine perfect passive participle (deponent in sense) joined with -que; Function: part of compound verb; Translation: “and set out”; Notes: deponent meaning gives active sense.
  2. sunt — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: perfect indicative third plural (auxiliary); Function: completes deponent perfect; Translation: “they”; Notes: used with deponent participle.
  3. filii — Lemma: filius; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative plural masculine; Function: subject; Translation: “sons”; Notes: tribal term.
  4. Israel — Lemma: Israel; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: nominative singular masculine (indeclinable); Function: genitive-like apposition; Translation: “Israel”; Notes: identifies the nation.
  5. de — Lemma: de; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: origin; Translation: “from”; Notes: standard in movement expressions.
  6. Ramesse — Lemma: Ramesse; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: ablative singular feminine; Function: object of de; Translation: “Ramesse”; Notes: city in Egypt.
  7. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs accusative here; Function: direction; Translation: “to”; Notes: motion toward.
  8. Socoth — Lemma: Socoth; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: accusative singular feminine (indeclinable); Function: destination; Translation: “Socoth”; Notes: first encampment.
  9. sexcenta — Lemma: sexcenti; Part of Speech: numeral adjective; Form: accusative plural neuter; Function: modifies millia; Translation: “six hundred”; Notes: neuter to agree with millia.
  10. fere — Lemma: fere; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: indeclinable; Function: approximating modifier; Translation: “about”; Notes: indicates estimation.
  11. millia — Lemma: mille; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural neuter; Function: object of implied verb of motion; Translation: “thousand”; Notes: takes genitive of specification.
  12. peditum — Lemma: pedes; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive plural masculine; Function: genitive of type; Translation: “of foot-soldiers”; Notes: indicates infantry.
  13. virorum — Lemma: vir; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive plural masculine; Function: modifies peditum; Translation: “of men”; Notes: clarifies adults only.
  14. absque — Lemma: absque; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: exclusion; Translation: “apart from”; Notes: strong separation.
  15. parvulis — Lemma: parvulus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative plural masculine; Function: object of absque; Translation: “little ones”; Notes: refers to small children.

 

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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