Leviticus 1:4

Posted on April 1, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Lv 1:4 ponetque manum super caput hostiæ, et acceptabilis erit, atque in expiationem eius proficiens.

and he shall place his hand upon the head of the victim, and it shall be acceptable, and it shall advance for his atonement.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 ponetque and he shall place VERB, 3SG.FUT.ACT.IND + ENCLITIC -QUE
2 manum hand NOUN, ACC.SG.F, 4TH DECL (IRREG.)
3 super upon PREP+ACC
4 caput head NOUN, ACC.SG.N, 3RD DECL
5 hostiæ of the victim NOUN, GEN.SG.F, 1ST DECL
6 et and CONJ
7 acceptabilis acceptable ADJ, NOM.SG.F, POS
8 erit shall be VERB, 3SG.FUT.ACT.IND
9 atque and also CONJ
10 in into PREP+ACC
11 expiationem atonement NOUN, ACC.SG.F, 3RD DECL
12 eius his PRON, GEN.SG.M/N, POSS
13 profiens advancing PTCP, PRES.ACT.NOM.SG.F

Syntax

Main Clause: ponetque manum super caput hostiæ — the officiant performs the ritual act of placing his hand upon the victim.
Result Clause: et acceptabilis erit — the offering becomes acceptable.
Further Result: atque in expiationem eius profiens — the action advances toward effecting atonement for him.
Prepositional Phrase: in expiationem — expresses the ritual goal of the sacrifice.
Participial Phrase: profiens — describes ongoing efficacy of the offering in achieving expiation.

Morphology

  1. ponetque — Lemma: pono; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular future active indicative with enclitic -que; Function: main ritual action; Translation: and he shall place; Notes: -que tightly links this verb to the prior sequence of instructions.
  2. manum — Lemma: manus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: direct object; Translation: hand; Notes: irregular 4th-declension feminine noun of high ritual significance.
  3. super — Lemma: super; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs accusative; Function: spatial relation; Translation: upon; Notes: marks physical placement essential to the rite.
  4. caput — Lemma: caput; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular neuter; Function: object of super; Translation: head; Notes: denotes the site of symbolic identification with the victim.
  5. hostiæ — Lemma: hostia; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive singular feminine; Function: dependent genitive; Translation: of the victim; Notes: specifies the type of sacrificial animal.
  6. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: invariable; Function: coordinates clauses; Translation: and; Notes: adds sequential ritual results.
  7. acceptabilis — Lemma: acceptabilis; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: nominative singular feminine; Function: predicate adjective; Translation: acceptable; Notes: agrees with the implied feminine subject (oblatio/hostia).
  8. erit — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular future active indicative; Function: expresses ritual result; Translation: shall be; Notes: future tense gives legal certainty.
  9. atque — Lemma: atque; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: invariable; Function: intensifying connector; Translation: and also; Notes: stronger than et, marking heightened consequence.
  10. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs accusative; Function: indicates purpose/result; Translation: into; Notes: in + acc frequently signals goal.
  11. expiationem — Lemma: expiatio; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: complement of in; Translation: atonement; Notes: central cultic concept linked with purification.
  12. eius — Lemma: is; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: genitive singular masculine/neuter; Function: possessive; Translation: his; Notes: denotes beneficiary of the atoning rite.
  13. profiens — Lemma: proficio; Part of Speech: participle; Form: present active participle nominative singular feminine; Function: modifies the implied sacrifice; Translation: advancing; Notes: expresses the ongoing ritual effectiveness leading to atonement.

 

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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