Exodus 1:22

Posted on February 20, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Ex 1:22 Præcepit ergo Pharao omni populo suo, dicens: Quidquid masculini sexus natum fuerit, in flumen proiicite: quidquid feminini, reservate.

Therefore Pharao commanded all his people, saying: “Whatever of the male sex shall be born, cast it into the river; whatever of the female, preserve.”

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Præcepit commanded 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
2 ergo therefore ADV
3 Pharao Pharaoh NOM.SG.M
4 omni to all DAT.SG.N
5 populo the people DAT.SG.M
6 suo his DAT.SG.M POSS
7 dicens saying PRES.ACT.PART.NOM.SG.M
8 Quidquid whatever NOM.SG.N INDEF.REL
9 masculini of the male GEN.SG.M
10 sexus sex GEN.SG.M
11 natum born NOM.SG.N PERF.PASS.PART
12 fuerit shall have been 3SG.FUT.PERF.ACT.IND
13 in into PREP+ACC
14 flumen the river ACC.SG.N
15 proiicite cast 2PL.PRES.ACT.IMPERATIVE
16 quidquid whatever NOM.SG.N INDEF.REL
17 feminini of the female GEN.SG.F
18 reservate preserve 2PL.PRES.ACT.IMPERATIVE

Syntax

Main Clause:
Præcepit ergo Pharao omni populo suo — “Therefore Pharaoh commanded all his people.”
• Pharao = subject
• omni populo suo = dative indirect object, “to all his people”

Participial Clause:
dicens = introduces direct speech

First Indefinite Relative Clause (male infants):
Quidquid masculini sexus natum fuerit — “Whatever of the male sex shall be born”
• Future perfect expresses new occurrences of birth.

Main Imperative:
in flumen proiicite — “cast into the river.”

Second Indefinite Relative Clause (female infants):
quidquid feminini — “whatever of the female (sex)”

Imperative:
reservate — “preserve.”

Function: Pharaoh escalates his decree to include all Egyptians, intensifying oppression and institutionalizing infanticide.

Morphology

  1. Præcepit — Lemma: præcipio; Part of Speech: verb; Form: 3rd person singular perfect active indicative; Function: main verb; Translation: “commanded”; Notes: Pharaoh issues a royal decree.
  2. ergo — Lemma: ergo; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: inferential; Function: draws consequence; Translation: “therefore”; Notes: Connects to previous divine favor.
  3. Pharao — Lemma: Pharao; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: subject; Translation: “Pharaoh”; Notes: Agent of the decree.
  4. omni — Lemma: omnis; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: dative singular neuter/masculine; Function: modifies “populo”; Translation: “to all”; Notes: Dative of indirect object.
  5. populo — Lemma: populus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: dative singular masculine; Function: indirect object; Translation: “to the people”; Notes: Recipients of the order.
  6. suo — Lemma: suus; Part of Speech: possessive adjective; Form: dative singular masculine; Function: modifies “populo”; Translation: “his”; Notes: Refers to Pharaoh’s people (Egyptians).
  7. dicens — Lemma: dico; Part of Speech: participle; Form: present active participle nominative singular masculine; Function: introduces direct speech; Translation: “saying”; Notes: Attached syntactically to “Pharao.”
  8. Quidquid — Lemma: quidquid; Part of Speech: indefinite relative pronoun; Form: nominative singular neuter; Function: introduces conditional class of infants; Translation: “whatever”; Notes: Generic, unrestricted category.
  9. masculini — Lemma: masculinus; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: genitive singular masculine; Function: modifies “sexus”; Translation: “of the male”; Notes: Specifies sex category.
  10. sexus — Lemma: sexus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive singular masculine; Function: genitive dependent; Translation: “sex”; Notes: Genitive of specification.
  11. natum — Lemma: nascor; Part of Speech: participle; Form: nominative singular neuter perfect passive participle; Function: predicate to “quidquid”; Translation: “born”; Notes: Refers to newborn boys.
  12. fuerit — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: 3rd person singular future perfect active indicative; Function: forms future perfect passive; Translation: “shall have been”; Notes: Anticipates future births.
  13. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs accusative; Function: indicates direction; Translation: “into”; Notes: Oppressive act.
  14. flumen — Lemma: flumen; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular neuter; Function: object of “in”; Translation: “river”; Notes: Nile.
  15. proiicite — Lemma: proicio; Part of Speech: verb; Form: 2nd person plural present active imperative; Function: command; Translation: “cast”; Notes: Violent, direct order.
  16. quidquid — Lemma: quidquid; Part of Speech: indefinite relative pronoun; Form: nominative singular neuter; Function: introduces second category; Translation: “whatever”; Notes: Refers to female infants.
  17. feminini — Lemma: femininus; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: genitive singular feminine; Function: modifies implied “sexus”; Translation: “of the female”; Notes: Parallel to “masculini sexus.”
  18. reservate — Lemma: reservo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: 2nd person plural present active imperative; Function: command; Translation: “preserve”; Notes: Contrasts sharply with “proiicite.”

 

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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