Exodus 36:5

Posted on March 27, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

5 dixerunt Moysi: Plus offert populus quam necessarium est.

they said to Moyses: “The people offer more than is necessary.”

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 dixerunt said 3PL.PERF.ACT.IND
2 Moysi to Moses DAT.SG.M, NOUN
3 Plus more ACC.SG.N, ADV/INDECL
4 offert offers 3SG.PRES.ACT.IND
5 populus the people NOM.SG.M, NOUN
6 quam than CONJ
7 necessarium necessary ACC.SG.N, ADJ
8 est is 3SG.PRES.ACT.IND

Syntax

Main Reporting Clause:
dixerunt Moysi — “they said to Moses.”
• dixerunt = main verb.
• Moysi = indirect object.

Quoted Statement:
Plus offert populus quam necessarium est — content clause functioning as direct speech.
• populus = subject.
• offert = present indicative verb.
• Plus = comparative adverbial object (“more”).
• quam necessarium est = comparative clause meaning “than is necessary.”

Morphology

  1. dixerunt — Lemma: dico; Part of Speech: verb; Form: 3rd person plural perfect active indicative; Function: main reporting verb; Translation: said; Notes: introduces direct discourse.
  2. Moysi — Lemma: Moyses; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: dative singular masculine; Function: indirect object of dixerunt; Translation: to Moses; Notes: Hebrew name retained in Latin declension.
  3. Plus — Lemma: plus; Part of Speech: comparative substantive/adverbial form; Form: accusative singular neuter (indeclinable as comparative); Function: object of offert; Translation: more; Notes: comparative without explicit second term.
  4. offert — Lemma: offero; Part of Speech: verb; Form: 3rd person singular present active indicative; Function: main verb of quoted clause; Translation: offers; Notes: present tense expresses ongoing activity.
  5. populus — Lemma: populus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: subject of offert; Translation: the people; Notes: singular collective noun.
  6. quam — Lemma: quam; Part of Speech: comparative conjunction; Form: invariable; Function: introduces comparison; Translation: than; Notes: standard comparative construction.
  7. necessarium — Lemma: necessarius; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: accusative singular neuter; Function: predicate in comparative clause; Translation: necessary; Notes: neuter used substantively.
  8. est — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: 3rd person singular present active indicative; Function: copula of comparative clause; Translation: is; Notes: links necessarium to the implicit subject “it.”

 

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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