Exodus 14:9

Posted on March 5, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Ex 14:9 Cumque persequerentur Ægyptii vestigia præcedentium, repererunt eos in castris super mare: omnis equitatus et currus Pharaonis, et universus exercitus erant in Phihahiroth contra Beelsephon.

And when the Egyptians were pursuing the footsteps of those going before, they found them in the camp beside the sea: all the horsemen and the chariots of Pharao, and the whole army, were in Phihahiroth opposite Beelsephon.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Cumque and when CONJ + ENCLITIC -QUE
2 persequerentur they were pursuing 3PL.IMP.DEP.SUBJ
3 Ægyptii the Egyptians NOUN.NOM.PL.M
4 vestigia footsteps NOUN.ACC.PL.N
5 præcedentium of those going ahead PART.PRES.ACT.GEN.PL.M/F/N
6 repererunt they found 3PL.PERF.ACT.IND
7 eos them PRON.ACC.PL.M
8 in in PREP+ABL
9 castris the camp NOUN.ABL.PL.N
10 super upon / beside PREP+ACC
11 mare the sea NOUN.ACC.SG.N
12 omnis all ADJ.NOM.SG.F/M/N (here M)
13 equitatus cavalry NOUN.NOM.SG.M
14 et and CONJ
15 currus chariots NOUN.NOM.PL.M
16 Pharaonis of Pharaoh NOUN.GEN.SG.M
17 et and CONJ
18 universus the whole ADJ.NOM.SG.M
19 exercitus army NOUN.NOM.SG.M
20 erant were 3PL.IMP.ACT.IND
21 in in PREP+ABL
22 Phihahiroth Pi-hahiroth INDECL.NOUN.ABL.SG
23 contra opposite PREP+ACC
24 Beelsephon Baal-zephon INDECL.NOUN.ACC.SG

Syntax

Temporal clause: Cumque persequerentur Ægyptii — subjunctive imperfect typical of temporal cum-clause.
Object phrase: vestigia præcedentium — direct object; participial genitive.
Main clause: repererunt eos — verb + direct object.
Locative description: in castris super mare — double location.
Nominative list: omnis equitatus et currus Pharaonis et universus exercitus — compound subject of erant.
Final locatives: in Phihahiroth contra Beelsephon — exact geographic positioning.

Morphology

  1. Cumque — Lemma: cum + que; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: cum + enclitic -que; Function: temporal conjunction; Translation: “and when”; Notes: introduces circumstantial background.
  2. persequerentur — Lemma: persequor; Part of Speech: deponent verb; Form: imperfect subjunctive third plural; Function: verb of temporal clause; Translation: “they were pursuing”; Notes: deponent with active meaning.
  3. Ægyptii — Lemma: Ægyptius; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative plural masculine; Function: subject of persequerentur; Translation: “the Egyptians”; Notes: military force.
  4. vestigia — Lemma: vestigium; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural neuter; Function: direct object; Translation: “footsteps”; Notes: metaphor for pursuit.
  5. præcedentium — Lemma: præcedo; Part of Speech: participle; Form: present active participle genitive plural; Function: modifies vestigia; Translation: “of those going ahead”; Notes: refers to Israelites.
  6. repererunt — Lemma: reperio; Part of Speech: verb; Form: perfect active indicative third plural; Function: main verb; Translation: “they found”; Notes: decisive military discovery.
  7. eos — Lemma: is; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: accusative plural masculine; Function: direct object; Translation: “them”; Notes: the Israelites.
  8. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: locative; Translation: “in”; Notes: spatial description.
  9. castris — Lemma: castra; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative plural neuter; Function: object of in; Translation: “camp”; Notes: Israelite encampment.
  10. super — Lemma: super; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs accusative; Function: spatial relation; Translation: “upon / beside”; Notes: geographical precision.
  11. mare — Lemma: mare; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular neuter; Function: object of super; Translation: “sea”; Notes: the Yam Suph.
  12. omnis — Lemma: omnis; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: modifies equitatus; Translation: “all”; Notes: totality.
  13. equitatus — Lemma: equitatus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: subject of erant; Translation: “cavalry”; Notes: elite mounted troops.
  14. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: coordination; Translation: “and”; Notes: joins subjects.
  15. currus — Lemma: currus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative plural masculine; Function: subject; Translation: “chariots”; Notes: war chariots of Pharaoh.
  16. Pharaonis — Lemma: Pharao; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive singular masculine; Function: modifies currus; Translation: “of Pharaoh”; Notes: royal ownership.
  17. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: adds the final subject; Translation: “and”; Notes: cumulative effect.
  18. universus — Lemma: universus; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: modifies exercitus; Translation: “the whole”; Notes: complete military force.
  19. exercitus — Lemma: exercitus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: subject; Translation: “army”; Notes: Egyptian forces.
  20. erant — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: imperfect active indicative third plural; Function: main verb; Translation: “were”; Notes: describes placement.
  21. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: locative; Translation: “in”; Notes: spatial placement.
  22. Phihahiroth — Lemma: Phihahiroth; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: indeclinable ablative singular; Function: object of in; Translation: “Phihahiroth”; Notes: location.
  23. contra — Lemma: contra; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs accusative; Function: directional; Translation: “opposite”; Notes: locative contrast.
  24. Beelsephon — Lemma: Beelsephon; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: indeclinable accusative singular; Function: object of contra; Translation: “Beelsephon”; Notes: geographical marker.

 

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.