Exodus 12:3

Posted on March 3, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Ex 12:3 Loquimini ad universum cœtum filiorum Israel, et dicite eis: Decima die mensis huius tollat unusquisque agnum per familias et domos suas.

Speak to the whole assembly of the sons of Israel, and say to them: ‘On the tenth day of this month let each one take a lamb according to his families and his houses.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Loquimini speak 2PL.PRES.ACT.IMP
2 ad to PREP+ACC
3 universum the whole ACC.SG.M
4 cœtum assembly ACC.SG.M
5 filiorum of the sons GEN.PL.M
6 Israel Israel GEN.SG.M.INV
7 et and CONJ
8 dicite say 2PL.PRES.ACT.IMP
9 eis to them DAT.PL.3PERS.PRON
10 Decima tenth ABL.SG.F
11 die day ABL.SG.F
12 mensis of the month GEN.SG.M
13 huius of this GEN.SG.M/GEN.SG.N.DEM
14 tollat let him take 3SG.PRES.ACT.SUBJ
15 unusquisque each one NOM.SG.M.INDEF
16 agnum a lamb ACC.SG.M
17 per according to PREP+ACC
18 familias families ACC.PL.F
19 et and CONJ
20 domos houses ACC.PL.F
21 suas their ACC.PL.F.REFL

Syntax

Main Imperative Structure: Loquimini (primary imperative, “speak”) with complement ad universum cœtum filiorum Israel (prepositional phrase expressing target audience).
dicite eis (secondary coordinated imperative, “say to them”) introduces direct instruction.

Temporal Phrase: Decima die mensis huius — ablative of time specifying when the action should occur (“on the tenth day of this month”).

Subordinate Jussive Clause: tollat unusquisque agnum — jussive subjunctive expressing command indirectly (“let each one take a lamb”).

Prepositional Phrases:
• per familias — distributive sense indicating allocation “according to the families.”
• et domos suas — further specification by households; suas refers reflexively to the members of Israel.

Morphology

  1. Loquimini — Lemma: loquor; Part of Speech: verb (deponent); Form: present imperative second person plural; Function: main command directed to Moses and Aaron; Translation: “speak”; Notes: deponent in form but active in meaning.
  2. ad — Lemma: ad; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs accusative; Function: marks the audience addressed; Translation: “to”; Notes: standard directional preposition.
  3. universum — Lemma: universus; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: modifies cœtum; Translation: “the whole”; Notes: emphasizes totality.
  4. cœtum — Lemma: cœtus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: object of ad; Translation: “assembly”; Notes: refers to the national gathering of Israel.
  5. filiorum — Lemma: filius; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive plural masculine; Function: dependent genitive modifying cœtum; Translation: “of the sons”; Notes: idiomatic for “children of Israel.”
  6. Israel — Lemma: Israel; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: indeclinable genitive; Function: genitive modifying filiorum; Translation: “Israel”; Notes: indeclinable in Latin biblical usage.
  7. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: links commands; Translation: “and”; Notes: simple coordination.
  8. dicite — Lemma: dico; Part of Speech: verb; Form: present imperative second plural; Function: second command; Translation: “say”; Notes: used to introduce divine instruction.
  9. eis — Lemma: is; Part of Speech: personal pronoun; Form: dative plural; Function: indirect object of dicite; Translation: “to them”; Notes: refers to the people of Israel.
  10. Decima — Lemma: decimus; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: ablative singular feminine; Function: modifies die; Translation: “tenth”; Notes: ablative of time when.
  11. die — Lemma: dies; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular feminine; Function: in ablative of time; Translation: “day”; Notes: feminine in the singular in classical and biblical usage.
  12. mensis — Lemma: mensis; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive singular masculine; Function: genitive modifying die; Translation: “of the month”; Notes: expresses the temporal framework.
  13. huius — Lemma: hic; Part of Speech: demonstrative pronoun; Form: genitive singular; Function: modifies mensis; Translation: “of this”; Notes: specific, near-deictic reference.
  14. tollat — Lemma: tollo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: present subjunctive third person singular; Function: jussive subjunctive expressing command; Translation: “let him take”; Notes: indirect command under dicite.
  15. unusquisque — Lemma: unusquisque; Part of Speech: indefinite pronoun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: subject of tollat; Translation: “each one”; Notes: distributive force.
  16. agnum — Lemma: agnus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: direct object of tollat; Translation: “a lamb”; Notes: refers to the Passover lamb designated for each household.
  17. per — Lemma: per; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs accusative; Function: introduces distributive phrase; Translation: “according to”; Notes: expresses distribution across households.
  18. familias — Lemma: familia; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural feminine; Function: object of per; Translation: “families”; Notes: refers to kinship units within Israel.
  19. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: links objects; Translation: “and”; Notes: simple coordination.
  20. domos — Lemma: domus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural feminine; Function: secondary object of per; Translation: “houses”; Notes: parallels “familias” as distribution units.
  21. suas — Lemma: suus; Part of Speech: reflexive possessive adjective; Form: accusative plural feminine; Function: modifies domos; Translation: “their”; Notes: reflexive to the subject “each one.”

 

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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