Exodus 25:24

Posted on March 16, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

24 Et inaurabis eam auro purissimo: faciesque illi labium aureum per circuitum,

And you shall gild it with the purest gold, and you shall make for it a border of gold all around,

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Et and CONJ
2 inaurabis you shall gild 2SG.FUT.ACT.IND
3 eam it ACC.SG.F.PRON
4 auro with gold ABL.SG.N.NOUN.2ND DECL
5 purissimo the purest ABL.SG.N.ADJ.SUPER
6 faciesque and you shall make 2SG.FUT.ACT.IND
7 illi for it DAT.SG.F.PRON.DEM
8 labium border ACC.SG.N.NOUN.2ND DECL
9 aureum golden ACC.SG.N.ADJ
10 per around PREP+ACC
11 circuitum circuit / all around ACC.SG.M.NOUN.4TH DECL

Syntax

First command: Et inaurabis eam auro purissimo — verb inaurabis, object eam (the table), and instrumental ablative phrase auro purissimo describe gilding with the purest gold.
Second coordinated command: faciesque illi labium aureum — verb faciesque, dative illi (“for it”), and object phrase labium aureum specify making a golden border.
Prepositional phrase of extent: per circuitum expresses that the border runs all around the table, encircling it completely.

Morphology

  1. Et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: coordinates this command with the previous one; Translation: and; Notes: simple connective adding another instruction.
  2. inaurabis — Lemma: inauro; Part of Speech: verb; Form: second person singular future active indicative; Function: main verb of the first command; Translation: you shall gild; Notes: future indicative used imperatively.
  3. eam — Lemma: is, ea, id; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: direct object of inaurabis; Translation: it; Notes: refers back to the table (mensa), which is feminine.
  4. auro — Lemma: aurum; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular neuter; Function: ablative of means or material; Translation: with gold; Notes: denotes the substance used to gild.
  5. purissimo — Lemma: purus; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: ablative singular neuter superlative; Function: agrees with auro; Translation: the purest; Notes: stresses exceptional quality of the gold.
  6. faciesque — Lemma: facio + que; Part of Speech: verb (with enclitic conjunction); Form: second person singular future active indicative; Function: main verb of the second command; Translation: and you shall make; Notes: -que joins this action closely to the first.
  7. illi — Lemma: ille; Part of Speech: pronoun (demonstrative); Form: dative singular feminine; Function: indirect object; Translation: for it; Notes: dative refers again to the table (mensa).
  8. labium — Lemma: labium; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular neuter; Function: direct object of faciesque; Translation: border; Notes: literally “lip,” here the raised rim or molding of the table.
  9. aureum — Lemma: aureus; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: accusative singular neuter; Function: agrees with labium; Translation: golden; Notes: describes the border’s material/appearance.
  10. per — Lemma: per; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs the accusative; Function: introduces phrase of extension; Translation: around; Notes: here indicates “over the whole extent, all around.”
  11. circuitum — Lemma: circuitus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular masculine (4th declension); Function: object of per; Translation: circuit / all around; Notes: expresses the encircling line of the border.

 

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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