Exodus 20:20

Posted on March 11, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Ex 20:20 Et ait Moyses ad populum: Nolite timere: ut enim probaret vos venit Deus, et ut terror illius esset in vobis, et non peccaretis.

And Moyses said to the people: “Do not fear, for God has come to test you, and so that His terror may be in you, and that you may not sin.”

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Et and CONJ INDECL
2 ait said 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
3 Moyses Moses NOM.SG.M 3RD DECL
4 ad to PREP+ACC
5 populum people ACC.SG.M 2ND DECL
6 Nolite do not 2PL.PRES.ACT.IMP.MOOD
7 timere to fear PRES.ACT.INF
8 ut that CONJ INDECL
9 enim for CONJ INDECL
10 probaret might test 3SG.IMP.ACT.SUBJ
11 vos you ACC.PL.PERS
12 venit has come 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
13 Deus God NOM.SG.M 2ND DECL
14 et and CONJ INDECL
15 ut that CONJ INDECL
16 terror terror NOM.SG.M 3RD DECL
17 illius of him GEN.SG.M PRON.DEM
18 esset might be 3SG.IMP.ACT.SUBJ
19 in in PREP+ABL
20 vobis in you ABL.PL.PERS
21 et and CONJ INDECL
22 non not ADV INDECL
23 peccaretis you might sin 2PL.IMP.ACT.SUBJ

Syntax

Narrative frame: Et ait Moyses ad populum — coordinating conjunction Et continues the narrative; finite verb ait (“said”) takes subject Moyses and prepositional phrase ad populum indicating the addressees.

Main prohibition: Nolite timere — negative imperative: Nolite (“do not”) + complementary infinitive timere (“to fear”), addressed to the plural “you” (the people).

Purpose clause 1: ut enim probaret vos venit Deus — conjunction ut + explanatory particle enim + imperfect subjunctive probaret (“he might test”) with object vos; main verb venit (“has come”) with subject Deus; expresses the divine purpose for His coming.

Purpose clause 2: et ut terror illius esset in vobis — coordinated ut-clause with subject terror, genitive modifier illius (“of him”), and imperfect subjunctive esset; prepositional phrase in vobis locates the divine fear within the people.

Purpose/result clause 3: et non peccaretis — negative imperfect subjunctive peccaretis with non, coordinated by et; expresses intended ethical outcome (“that you may not sin”).

Morphology

  1. Et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: invariable coordinating conjunction; Function: links this sentence with the preceding narrative; Translation: “and”; Notes: Very common narrative connector in biblical Latin, often simply continuing the sequence of events.
  2. ait — Lemma: aio; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular perfect active indicative; Function: main verb of the narrative frame; Translation: “said”; Notes: A defective verb used especially for reporting speech; perfect tense presents the act of saying as a completed event.
  3. Moyses — Lemma: Moyses; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: nominative singular masculine, 3rd declension form; Function: grammatical subject of ait; Translation: “Moses”; Notes: Latin form of the Hebrew name Moshe; here the mediator speaking to the people.
  4. ad — Lemma: ad; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs accusative; Function: introduces the direction of speech toward the addressee; Translation: “to”; Notes: Regular preposition for “toward, to” with persons.
  5. populum — Lemma: populus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular masculine, 2nd declension; Function: object of the preposition ad; Translation: “people”; Notes: Specifically the people of Israel gathered before the mountain.
  6. Nolite — Lemma: nolo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: second person plural present active imperative; Function: negative command addressed to the people; Translation: “do not”; Notes: Standard Latin pattern for prohibitions: Nolite + infinitive (timere).
  7. timere — Lemma: timeo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: present active infinitive; Function: complementary infinitive governed by Nolite; Translation: “to fear”; Notes: Expresses the action which is being forbidden to the audience.
  8. ut — Lemma: ut; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: invariable subordinating conjunction; Function: introduces a purpose clause with subjunctive verb (probaret); Translation: “that,” “in order that”; Notes: Typical marker for final clauses in Latin.
  9. enim — Lemma: enim; Part of Speech: conjunction/particle; Form: invariable postpositive; Function: adds an explanatory nuance to the first purpose clause; Translation: “for”; Notes: Must appear after the first word or phrase of its clause, as here after ut.
  10. probaret — Lemma: probo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular imperfect active subjunctive; Function: verb of the first purpose clause introduced by ut; Translation: “might test”; Notes: Imperfect subjunctive is the normal tense in classical purpose clauses referring to past main verbs.
  11. vos — Lemma: vos; Part of Speech: personal pronoun; Form: accusative plural, second person; Function: direct object of probaret; Translation: “you”; Notes: Refers to all the people whom God is testing.
  12. venit — Lemma: venio; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular perfect active indicative; Function: main verb of the explanatory clause; Translation: “has come”; Notes: Perfect aspect highlights God’s completed arrival at the scene.
  13. Deus — Lemma: Deus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular masculine, 2nd declension (with special forms); Function: subject of venit; Translation: “God”; Notes: Refers to the God who appeared at Sinai; not preceded by Dominus in this verse.
  14. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: invariable coordinating conjunction; Function: links the first and second purpose clauses; Translation: “and”; Notes: Shows there is an additional divine purpose beyond testing.
  15. ut — Lemma: ut; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: invariable; Function: introduces the second purpose clause; Translation: “that,” “so that”; Notes: Again governs a subjunctive verb (esset).
  16. terror — Lemma: terror; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular masculine, 3rd declension; Function: subject of esset; Translation: “terror,” “fear”; Notes: Refers to awe-filled fear of God, not mere panic.
  17. illius — Lemma: ille; Part of Speech: demonstrative pronoun; Form: genitive singular masculine; Function: possessive genitive modifying terror; Translation: “of him,” “of God”; Notes: Specifies that the terror is God’s own terror upon the people.
  18. esset — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular imperfect active subjunctive; Function: copular verb of the second purpose clause; Translation: “might be”; Notes: Subjunctive governed by ut, describing intended ongoing state.
  19. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: introduces a prepositional phrase of location; Translation: “in”; Notes: Indicates interior presence rather than external proximity.
  20. vobis — Lemma: vos; Part of Speech: personal pronoun; Form: ablative plural, second person; Function: object of the preposition in; Translation: “you”; Notes: The terror of God is meant to dwell “in you,” shaping their inner disposition.
  21. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: invariable; Function: coordinates the final negative clause with the previous purpose clause; Translation: “and”; Notes: Connects the inner fear of God with the ethical result.
  22. non — Lemma: non; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: invariable negative adverb; Function: negates the verb peccaretis; Translation: “not”; Notes: Standard negator in Latin finite clauses.
  23. peccaretis — Lemma: pecco; Part of Speech: verb; Form: second person plural imperfect active subjunctive; Function: verb of the final purpose/result clause; Translation: “you might sin”; Notes: Imperfect subjunctive (with ut and non implied from context) expresses the intended ongoing avoidance of sin.

 

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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