Leviticus 21:3

Posted on April 21, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Lv 21:3 et sorore virgine quæ non est nupta viro:

and for a virgin sister who has not been married to a man,

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 et and CONJ
2 sorore sister ABL.SG.F (3RD DECL)
3 virgine virgin ABL.SG.F (3RD DECL)
4 quæ who NOM.SG.F (REL)
5 non not ADV
6 est is 3SG.PRES.ACT.IND
7 nupta married NOM.SG.F (PTCP.PERF.PASS)
8 viro to a man ABL.SG.M (2ND DECL)

Syntax

Coordinated Extension: et sorore virgine — coordination continuing the list of permitted relatives, governed implicitly by super from the preceding clause.

Restrictive Relative Clause: quæ non est nupta viro — relative clause qualifying sorore, with a copular construction and perfect passive participle indicating unmarried status.

Ablative Complement: viro — ablative with nupta, expressing marital relation (“married to”).

Morphology

  1. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: invariable; Function: coordination; Translation: “and”; Notes: Continues the enumerated list.
  2. sorore — Lemma: soror; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative feminine singular; Function: object of implied super; Translation: “sister”; Notes: Sibling relationship on the female side.
  3. virgine — Lemma: virgo; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative feminine singular; Function: appositional modifier of sorore; Translation: “virgin”; Notes: Specifies unmarried status.
  4. quæ — Lemma: qui; Part of Speech: relative pronoun; Form: nominative feminine singular; Function: subject of the relative clause; Translation: “who”; Notes: Refers back to sorore.
  5. non — Lemma: non; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: invariable; Function: negation; Translation: “not”; Notes: Negates the marital state.
  6. est — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular present active indicative; Function: copula; Translation: “is”; Notes: Links subject and predicate.
  7. nupta — Lemma: nubo; Part of Speech: participle; Form: nominative feminine singular perfect passive participle; Function: predicate participle; Translation: “married”; Notes: Used adjectivally with est.
  8. viro — Lemma: vir; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative masculine singular; Function: ablative complement with nupta; Translation: “to a man”; Notes: Standard construction for marriage in Latin.

 

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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