Exodus 27:18

Posted on March 18, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Ex 27:18 In longitudine occupabit atrium cubitos centum, in latitudine quinquaginta, altitudo quinque cubitorum erit. fietque de bysso retorta, et habebit bases æneas.

In length the court shall occupy one hundred cubits, in width fifty, its height shall be five cubits; and it shall be made of twisted linen, and it shall have bronze bases.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 In in PREP+ABL
2 longitudine length ABL.SG.F 3RD DECL
3 occupabit shall occupy 3SG.FUT.ACT.IND
4 atrium court ACC.SG.N 2ND DECL
5 cubitos cubits ACC.PL.M 4TH DECL
6 centum one hundred INVAR.NUM
7 in in PREP+ABL
8 latitudine width ABL.SG.F 3RD DECL
9 quinquaginta fifty INVAR.NUM
10 altitudo height NOM.SG.F 3RD DECL
11 quinque five INVAR.NUM
12 cubitorum of cubits GEN.PL.M 4TH DECL
13 erit shall be 3SG.FUT.ACT.IND
14 fietque and it shall be made 3SG.FUT.PASS.IND+ENCLITIC
15 de of / from PREP+ABL
16 bysso linen ABL.SG.F 2ND DECL
17 retorta twisted ABL.SG.F PTCP
18 et and CONJ
19 habebit it shall have 3SG.FUT.ACT.IND
20 bases bases ACC.PL.F 3RD DECL
21 æneas bronze ACC.PL.F ADJ

Syntax

First measurement clause: In longitudine occupabit atrium cubitos centum — the prepositional phrase In longitudine sets the dimension “in length”; the subject is atrium, the verb occupabit indicates extent, and cubitos centum gives the measured distance.

Second measurement (elliptical) clause: in latitudine quinquaginta — again in latitudine introduces dimension “in width,” while quinquaginta supplies the value, with “cubits” understood from the previous phrase.

Height clause: altitudo quinque cubitorum erit — here altitudo is the subject, erit the copular verb, and quinque cubitorum expresses the height as “five cubits.”

Material clause: fietque de bysso retorta — the verb fiet in the passive (“shall be made”) with the ablative of material de bysso retorta describes the court’s hangings as made of twisted linen, and -que links this to the preceding description.

Possession clause: et habebit bases æneas — the (understood) subject “it” takes the verb habebit, with bases æneas as its object phrase, indicating that the structure will have bronze bases.

Morphology

  1. In — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: introduces the dimensional phrase “in length”; Translation: “in”; Notes: used here for specification, not motion.
  2. longitudine — Lemma: longitudo; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular feminine, 3rd declension; Function: object of In, indicating the dimension along which the court extends; Translation: “length”; Notes: ablative of respect/dimension.
  3. occupabit — Lemma: occupo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: future indicative active, 3rd person singular; Function: main verb expressing extent; Translation: “shall occupy”; Notes: takes atrium as subject and cubitos centum as the extent.
  4. atrium — Lemma: atrium; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular neuter, 2nd declension; Function: internal object/space governed by occupabit (the court that occupies the measured space); Translation: “court”; Notes: syntactically object, but semantically the thing extending over the distance.
  5. cubitos — Lemma: cubitus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural masculine, 4th declension; Function: accusative of extent of space; Translation: “cubits”; Notes: expresses the measured length.
  6. centum — Lemma: centum; Part of Speech: numeral; Form: invariable; Function: modifies cubitos as a cardinal number; Translation: “one hundred”; Notes: numerical specification of the length.
  7. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: introduces the second dimensional phrase; Translation: “in”; Notes: parallels the earlier In longitudine.
  8. latitudine — Lemma: latitudo; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular feminine, 3rd declension; Function: object of in, marking the width dimension; Translation: “width”; Notes: another ablative of respect/dimension.
  9. quinquaginta — Lemma: quinquaginta; Part of Speech: numeral; Form: invariable; Function: acts as a predicate measure with implied cubitos; Translation: “fifty”; Notes: second measurement, elliptical for “fifty cubits.”
  10. altitudo — Lemma: altitudo; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular feminine, 3rd declension; Function: subject of erit; Translation: “height”; Notes: introduces the vertical dimension of the court.
  11. quinque — Lemma: quinque; Part of Speech: numeral; Form: invariable; Function: modifies cubitorum; Translation: “five”; Notes: cardinal numeral specifying the height.
  12. cubitorum — Lemma: cubitus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive plural masculine, 4th declension; Function: genitive of measure with quinque; Translation: “of cubits”; Notes: expresses the unit of the fivefold height.
  13. erit — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: future indicative active, 3rd person singular; Function: copular verb linking altitudo and the measurement; Translation: “shall be”; Notes: simple future of “to be.”
  14. fietque — Lemma: fio; Part of Speech: verb (with enclitic); Form: future indicative passive, 3rd person singular, with enclitic -que; Function: begins a new clause, “and it shall be made”; Translation: “and it shall be made”; Notes: passive counterpart of facietur, with -que linking to the preceding statement.
  15. de — Lemma: de; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: introduces material; Translation: “of / from”; Notes: commonly used in Latin for material composition.
  16. bysso — Lemma: byssus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular feminine, 2nd declension; Function: object of de, indicating the material; Translation: “fine linen”; Notes: denotes high-quality linen thread used in sacred textiles.
  17. retorta — Lemma: retorqueo; Part of Speech: participle; Form: ablative singular feminine, perfect passive participle; Function: agrees with bysso, further describing the linen; Translation: “twisted”; Notes: indicates spun, plied threads, adding to the richness of the fabric.
  18. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: coordinating; Function: connects the material clause with the possession clause; Translation: “and”; Notes: simple additive connector.
  19. habebit — Lemma: habeo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: future indicative active, 3rd person singular; Function: main verb of possession; Translation: “it shall have”; Notes: subject is the court/structure understood from context.
  20. bases — Lemma: basis; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural feminine, 3rd declension; Function: direct object of habebit; Translation: “bases”; Notes: refers to the sockets or foundations for the columns.
  21. æneas — Lemma: aeneus; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: accusative plural feminine; Function: modifies bases, indicating their material; Translation: “bronze”; Notes: continues the bronze–silver contrast in the tabernacle’s construction.

 

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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