Leviticus 21:11

Posted on January 3, 2025 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

11 et ad omnem mortuum non ingredietur omnino. super patre quoque suo, et matre non contaminabitur.

and he shall not enter at all to any dead person. Even over his own father and mother he shall not be defiled.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 et and CONJ
2 ad to PREP+ACC
3 omnem any ACC.SG.M (ADJ)
4 mortuum dead person ACC.SG.M (PTCP)
5 non not ADV
6 ingredietur he shall enter 3SG.FUT.DEP.IND
7 omnino at all ADV
8 super over PREP+ABL
9 patre father ABL.SG.M (3RD DECL)
10 quoque even ADV
11 suo his own ABL.SG.M (POSS)
12 et and CONJ
13 matre mother ABL.SG.F (3RD DECL)
14 non not ADV
15 contaminabitur he shall be defiled 3SG.FUT.PASS.IND

Syntax

Absolute Prohibition: ad omnem mortuum non ingredietur omnino — future deponent indicative with negation, intensified by omnino to express total exclusion.

Intensifying Exception-Clause: super patre quoque suo et matre non contaminabitur — prepositional phrase with super (ablative) specifying mourning context, followed by a future passive stating the forbidden ritual result.

Morphology

  1. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: invariable; Function: coordination; Translation: “and”; Notes: Continues the legal sequence.
  2. ad — Lemma: ad; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs accusative; Function: direction/approach; Translation: “to”; Notes: Indicates movement toward a referent.
  3. omnem — Lemma: omnis; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: accusative masculine singular; Function: modifies mortuum; Translation: “any”; Notes: Emphasizes total scope.
  4. mortuum — Lemma: morior; Part of Speech: participle (substantive); Form: accusative masculine singular perfect passive participle; Function: object of ad; Translation: “dead person”; Notes: Corpse as a source of ritual impurity.
  5. non — Lemma: non; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: invariable; Function: negation; Translation: “not”; Notes: Governs the deponent future.
  6. ingredietur — Lemma: ingredior; Part of Speech: deponent verb; Form: third person singular future indicative; Function: main verb; Translation: “he shall enter”; Notes: Deponent form with active meaning.
  7. omnino — Lemma: omnino; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: invariable; Function: intensifier; Translation: “at all”; Notes: Strengthens the prohibition.
  8. super — Lemma: super; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: reference/context; Translation: “over”; Notes: Used for mourning relations.
  9. patre — Lemma: pater; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative masculine singular; Function: object of super; Translation: “father”; Notes: Closest kin normally allowing exceptions.
  10. quoque — Lemma: quoque; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: invariable; Function: additive emphasis; Translation: “even”; Notes: Highlights severity.
  11. suo — Lemma: suus; Part of Speech: possessive adjective; Form: ablative masculine singular; Function: modifies patre; Translation: “his own”; Notes: Reflexive possession.
  12. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: invariable; Function: coordination; Translation: “and”; Notes: Links kin terms.
  13. matre — Lemma: mater; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative feminine singular; Function: object of super (elliptical); Translation: “mother”; Notes: Second closest kin.
  14. non — Lemma: non; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: invariable; Function: negation; Translation: “not”; Notes: Governs the passive future.
  15. contaminabitur — Lemma: contamino; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular future passive indicative; Function: main verb (result); Translation: “he shall be defiled”; Notes: Ritual consequence forbidden to the high priest.

 

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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