Exodus 12:29

Posted on March 3, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Ex 12:29 Factum est autem in noctis medio, percussit Dominus omne primogenitum in Terra Ægypti, a primogenito Pharaonis, qui in solio eius sedebat, usque ad primogenitum captivæ quæ erat in carcere, et omne primogenitum iumentorum.

And it came to pass, in the middle of the night, the LORD struck every firstborn in the Land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharao who sat on his throne, to the firstborn of the captive woman who was in the prison, and every firstborn of the livestock.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Factum it happened NOM.SG.N.PPP
2 est was 3SG.PRES.ACT.IND
3 autem however / now ADV
4 in in PREP+ABL
5 noctis of night GEN.SG.F
6 medio middle ABL.SG.N
7 percussit struck 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
8 Dominus the LORD NOM.SG.M
9 omne every ACC.SG.N
10 primogenitum firstborn ACC.SG.N
11 in in PREP+ABL
12 Terra land ABL.SG.F
13 Ægypti of Egypt GEN.SG.F
14 a from PREP+ABL
15 primogenito firstborn ABL.SG.M
16 Pharaonis of Pharaoh GEN.SG.M
17 qui who NOM.SG.M.REL
18 in in PREP+ABL
19 solio throne ABL.SG.N
20 eius his GEN.SG.M
21 sedebat was sitting 3SG.IMPF.ACT.IND
22 usque as far as PREP/ADV
23 ad to PREP+ACC
24 primogenitum firstborn ACC.SG.M
25 captivæ of the captive woman GEN.SG.F
26 quæ who NOM.SG.F.REL
27 erat was 3SG.IMPF.ACT.IND
28 in in PREP+ABL
29 carcere prison ABL.SG.M
30 et and CONJ
31 omne every ACC.SG.N
32 primogenitum firstborn ACC.SG.N
33 iumentorum of the livestock GEN.PL.N

Syntax

Narrative main clause:
Factum est autem… percussit Dominus
• Factum est = idiomatic perfect (“it came to pass”)
• percussit Dominus = main verbal action

Temporal phrase:
in noctis medio — “in the middle of the night”

Direct object of divine action:
omne primogenitum in Terra Ægypti — “every firstborn in the land of Egypt”

Range-expression (from…to):
• a primogenito Pharaonis… = starting point
• usque ad primogenitum captivæ… = ending point

Relative clauses:
• qui in solio eius sedebat — describes Pharaoh’s firstborn
• quæ erat in carcere — describes the captive woman

Final addition:
et omne primogenitum iumentorum — “and every firstborn of the livestock”

Morphology

  1. Factum — Lemma: facio; Part of Speech: perfect passive participle; Form: nominative singular neuter; Function: with est forms idiomatic perfect; Translation: “it happened”; Notes: narrative formula.
  2. est — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: present active indicative third singular; Function: auxiliary; Translation: “was”; Notes: forms perfect passive construction.
  3. autem — Lemma: autem; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: indeclinable; Function: narrative connector; Translation: “however / now”; Notes: typical transition marker.
  4. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: locative; Translation: “in”; Notes: introduces temporal setting.
  5. noctis — Lemma: nox; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive singular feminine; Function: genitive of the whole; Translation: “of night”; Notes: partitive relation.
  6. medio — Lemma: medium; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular neuter; Function: object of in; Translation: “middle”; Notes: locative ablative.
  7. percussit — Lemma: percutio; Part of Speech: verb; Form: perfect active indicative third singular; Function: main verb; Translation: “struck”; Notes: divine judgment.
  8. Dominus — Lemma: Dominus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: subject; Translation: “the LORD”; Notes: refers to YHWH.
  9. omne — Lemma: omnis; Part of Speech: adjective/pronoun; Form: accusative singular neuter; Function: modifies primogenitum; Translation: “every”; Notes: used substantively.
  10. primogenitum — Lemma: primogenitus; Part of Speech: noun/adjective; Form: accusative singular neuter; Function: direct object; Translation: “firstborn”; Notes: includes all classes.
  11. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: locative; Translation: “in”; Notes: geographical setting.
  12. Terra — Lemma: terra; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular feminine; Function: location; Translation: “land”; Notes: standard locative ablative.
  13. Ægypti — Lemma: Ægyptus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive singular feminine; Function: modifies Terra; Translation: “of Egypt”; Notes: possessive/genitival.
  14. a — Lemma: a/ab; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: starting point; Translation: “from”; Notes: part of range-expression.
  15. primogenito — Lemma: primogenitus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular masculine; Function: object of a; Translation: “firstborn”; Notes: Pharaoh’s son.
  16. Pharaonis — Lemma: Pharao; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive singular masculine; Function: modifies primogenito; Translation: “of Pharaoh”; Notes: royal context.
  17. qui — Lemma: qui; Part of Speech: relative pronoun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: subject of clause; Translation: “who”; Notes: refers to Pharaoh’s firstborn.
  18. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: locative; Translation: “in”; Notes: spatial.
  19. solio — Lemma: solium; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular neuter; Function: location; Translation: “throne”; Notes: royal seat.
  20. eius — Lemma: is; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: genitive singular masculine; Function: possession; Translation: “his”; Notes: refers to Pharaoh.
  21. sedebat — Lemma: sedeo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: imperfect active indicative third singular; Function: describes habitual state; Translation: “was sitting”; Notes: background action.
  22. usque — Lemma: usque; Part of Speech: adverb/preposition; Form: indeclinable; Function: limit marker; Translation: “as far as”; Notes: joins range.
  23. ad — Lemma: ad; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs accusative; Function: endpoint; Translation: “to”; Notes: part of range-expression.
  24. primogenitum — Lemma: primogenitus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: endpoint object; Translation: “firstborn”; Notes: contrasts with royal firstborn.
  25. captivæ — Lemma: captiva; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive singular feminine; Function: possession; Translation: “of the captive woman”; Notes: lowest social status.
  26. quæ — Lemma: qui; Part of Speech: relative pronoun; Form: nominative singular feminine; Function: subject; Translation: “who”; Notes: introduces clause.
  27. erat — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: imperfect active indicative third singular; Function: describes state; Translation: “was”; Notes: background description.
  28. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: locative; Translation: “in”; Notes: location.
  29. carcere — Lemma: carcer; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular masculine; Function: location; Translation: “prison”; Notes: lowly imprisonment.
  30. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: adds final element; Translation: “and”; Notes: additive.
  31. omne — Lemma: omnis; Part of Speech: adjective/pronoun; Form: accusative singular neuter; Function: modifies primogenitum; Translation: “every”; Notes: includes animals.
  32. primogenitum — Lemma: primogenitus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular neuter; Function: object; Translation: “firstborn”; Notes: refers to animals.
  33. iumentorum — Lemma: iumentum; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive plural neuter; Function: modifies primogenitum; Translation: “of the livestock”; Notes: domestic animals.

 

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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