Leviticus 22:15

Posted on April 22, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Lv 22:15 Nec contaminabunt sanctificata filiorum Israel, quæ offerunt Domino:

Nor shall they defile the holy things of the sons of Israel, which they offer to the LORD;

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Nec nor CONJ
2 contaminabunt they will defile 3PL.FUT.ACT.IND
3 sanctificata holy things ACC.PL.N
4 filiorum of sons GEN.PL.M
5 Israel Israel GEN.INDECL
6 quæ which NOM.PL.N.REL
7 offerunt they offer 3PL.PRES.ACT.IND
8 Domino to the LORD DAT.SG.M

Syntax

Coordinated Prohibition: Nec contaminabunt — continuation of a negative command expressed with the future indicative.
Direct Object: sanctificata — the consecrated items subject to protection.
Genitive Modifier: filiorum Israel — identifies the owners/offerers.
Relative Clause: quæ offerunt Domino — specifies the sacred items by their cultic action and recipient.

Morphology

  1. Nec — Lemma: nec; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: coordinates a further negative command; Translation: “nor”; Notes: Extends a prohibition already in force.
  2. contaminabunt — Lemma: contamino; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: third person plural future active indicative; Function: states a forbidden action; Translation: “they will defile”; Notes: Future indicative used in legislative style.
  3. sanctificata — Lemma: sanctifico; Part of Speech: Verb (substantive participle); Form: accusative neuter plural; Function: direct object of contaminabunt; Translation: “holy things”; Notes: Items set apart for sacred use.
  4. filiorum — Lemma: filius; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: genitive masculine plural; Function: modifies sanctificata; Translation: “of sons”; Notes: Indicates the community responsible for the offerings.
  5. Israel — Lemma: Israel; Part of Speech: Proper noun; Form: indeclinable genitive; Function: completes the genitive phrase; Translation: “Israel”; Notes: Covenant people as the offerers.
  6. quæ — Lemma: qui; Part of Speech: Relative pronoun; Form: nominative neuter plural; Function: subject of offerunt; Translation: “which”; Notes: Refers back to sanctificata.
  7. offerunt — Lemma: offero; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: third person plural present active indicative; Function: describes ongoing cultic action; Translation: “they offer”; Notes: Present tense marks habitual worship.
  8. Domino — Lemma: dominus; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: dative masculine singular; Function: indirect object of offerunt; Translation: “to the LORD”; Notes: Refers to YHWH as the recipient of offerings.

 

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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