Exodus 20:9

Posted on March 11, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Ex 20:9 Sex diebus operaberis, et facies omnia opera tua.

For six days you shall labor and you shall do all your works.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Sex six NUM.INDECL
2 diebus days ABL.PL.M 5TH DECL
3 operaberis you shall work 2SG.FUT.DEP.IND
4 et and CONJ INDECL
5 facies you shall do 2SG.FUT.ACT.IND
6 omnia all ACC.PL.N ADJ POS
7 opera works ACC.PL.N 3RD DECL
8 tua your ACC.PL.N POSS

Syntax

Temporal Phrase: Sex diebus — ablative of time within which (“in six days”).

Main Verbs: operaberis and facies — two coordinated future commandments describing permitted labor.

Object Phrase: omnia opera tua — “all your works,” the total labor done within six days.

Morphology

  1. Sex — Lemma: sex; Part of Speech: numeral; Form: invariable; Function: modifies diebus; Translation: “six”; Notes: Cardinals are indeclinable.
  2. diebus — Lemma: dies; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative plural masculine, 5th declension; Function: ablative of time within; Translation: “days”; Notes: Used to express a time period during which action occurs.
  3. operaberis — Lemma: operor; Part of Speech: deponent verb; Form: future indicative passive in form but active in meaning, 2nd person singular; Function: main verb of command; Translation: “you shall work”; Notes: Deponent: passive form, active meaning.
  4. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: invariable; Function: connects verbs; Translation: “and”; Notes: Simple connective.
  5. facies — Lemma: facio; Part of Speech: verb; Form: future indicative active 2nd person singular; Function: coordinated main verb; Translation: “you shall do”; Notes: Regular future of command.
  6. omnia — Lemma: omnis; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: accusative plural neuter; Function: modifies opera; Translation: “all”; Notes: Neuter plural used substantively with opera.
  7. opera — Lemma: opus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural neuter, 3rd declension; Function: direct object of facies; Translation: “works”; Notes: Refers to tasks or labor.
  8. tua — Lemma: tuus; Part of Speech: possessive adjective; Form: accusative plural neuter; Function: modifies opera; Translation: “your”; Notes: Agrees with opera.

 

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.