Exodus 1:11

Posted on February 20, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Ex 1:11 Præposuit itaque eis magistros operum, ut affligerent eos oneribus: ædificaveruntque urbes tabernaculorum Pharaoni, Phithom, et Ramesses.

And so he set over them supervisors of works, so that they might afflict them with burdens; and they built storage-cities for Pharao, Phithom and Ramesses.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Præposuit he set over 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
2 itaque therefore ADV
3 eis over them DAT.PL.M
4 magistros overseers ACC.PL.M
5 operum of works GEN.PL.N
6 ut so that CONJ
7 affligerent they afflict 3PL.IMPERF.ACT.SUBJ
8 eos them ACC.PL.M
9 oneribus with burdens ABL.PL.N
10 ædificaveruntque and they built 3PL.PERF.ACT.IND + -QUE
11 urbes cities ACC.PL.F
12 tabernaculorum of stores GEN.PL.N
13 Pharaoni for Pharaoh DAT.SG.M
14 Phithom Pithom ACC.SG.INVAR
15 et and CONJ
16 Ramesses Raamses ACC.SG.INVAR

Syntax

Main Clause: Præposuit itaque eis magistros operum — subject implied (the king), verb “he set over,” object “supervisors of works,” dative “eis” (“over them”).
Purpose Clause: ut affligerent eos oneribus — “so that they might afflict them with burdens.”
Coordinated Clause: ædificaveruntque urbes tabernaculorum Pharaoni — “and they built storage-cities for Pharaoh,” -que joins clauses.
Appositive Listing: Phithom et Ramesses — names the cities built.

Morphology

  1. Præposuit — Lemma: præpono; Part of Speech: verb; Form: 3rd person singular perfect active indicative; Function: main verb; Translation: “he set over”; Notes: Pharaoh appoints taskmasters.
  2. itaque — Lemma: itaque; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: indeclinable; Function: inferential marker; Translation: “therefore/and so”; Notes: Concludes previous reasoning.
  3. eis — Lemma: is; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: dative plural masculine; Function: indirect object; Translation: “to them/over them”; Notes: Refers to Israelites.
  4. magistros — Lemma: magister; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural masculine; Function: direct object; Translation: “supervisors”; Notes: Taskmasters.
  5. operum — Lemma: opus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive plural neuter; Function: genitive of specification; Translation: “of works”; Notes: Hard labor projects.
  6. ut — Lemma: ut; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: introduces purpose clause; Translation: “so that”; Notes: Requires subjunctive.
  7. affligerent — Lemma: affligo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: 3rd person plural imperfect active subjunctive; Function: verb of purpose clause; Translation: “they might afflict”; Notes: Imperfect expresses ongoing oppression.
  8. eos — Lemma: is; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: accusative plural masculine; Function: direct object; Translation: “them”; Notes: Israelites.
  9. oneribus — Lemma: onus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative plural neuter; Function: ablative of means; Translation: “with burdens”; Notes: Hard manual labor.
  10. ædificaveruntque — Lemma: ædifico; Part of Speech: verb; Form: 3rd person plural perfect active indicative + enclitic -que; Function: connects coordinated clause; Translation: “and they built”; Notes: -que after verb instead of after the second noun.
  11. urbes — Lemma: urbs; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural feminine; Function: direct object; Translation: “cities”; Notes: Settlement centers for storage.
  12. tabernaculorum — Lemma: tabernaculum; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive plural neuter; Function: genitive describing the kind of cities; Translation: “of storehouses”; Notes: Often rendered “store-cities” or “supply depots.”
  13. Pharaoni — Lemma: Pharao; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: dative singular masculine; Function: indirect object; Translation: “for Pharaoh”; Notes: Dative of advantage.
  14. Phithom — Lemma: Phithom; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: accusative singular indeclinable; Function: appositive naming a city; Translation: “Pithom”; Notes: Egyptian store-city.
  15. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: connects names; Translation: “and”; Notes: Simple connector.
  16. Ramesses — Lemma: Ramesses; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: accusative singular indeclinable; Function: appositive naming a city; Translation: “Ramesses”; Notes: Another store-city built.

 

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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