Exodus 12:33

Posted on March 3, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Ex 12:33 Urgebantque Ægyptii populum de terra exire velociter, dicentes: Omnes moriemur.

And the Egyptians were pressing the people to go out of the land quickly, saying: “We shall all die.”

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Urgebantque and were pressing 3PL.IMPF.ACT.IND + ENCLITIC
2 Ægyptii the Egyptians NOM.PL.M
3 populum the people ACC.SG.M
4 de from PREP+ABL
5 terra the land ABL.SG.F
6 exire to go out PRES.ACT.INF
7 velociter quickly ADV
8 dicentes saying NOM.PL.M.PRES.ACT.PPL
9 Omnes all NOM.PL.M
10 moriemur we shall die 1PL.FUT.DEP.IND

Syntax

Main clause:
Urgebantque Ægyptii populum — “And the Egyptians were pressing the people”
• Urgebantque = imperfect verb + enclitic -que
• Ægyptii = subject
• populum = direct object

Infinitive phrase (object clause):
de terra exire velociter — “to go out of the land quickly”
• exire = infinitive expressing what they urged
• de terra = ablative with de

Participial phrase introducing speech:
dicentes — “saying”

Direct speech:
Omnes moriemur — “We shall all die”
• moriemur = future deponent

Morphology

  1. Urgebantque — Lemma: urgeo + -que; Part of Speech: verb; Form: imperfect active indicative third plural with enclitic and; Function: main verb; Translation: “and were pressing”; Notes: imperfect shows continuous pressure.
  2. Ægyptii — Lemma: Ægyptius; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative plural masculine; Function: subject; Translation: “the Egyptians”; Notes: collective national subject.
  3. populum — Lemma: populus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: direct object; Translation: “people”; Notes: refers to Israel.
  4. de — Lemma: de; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: expresses separation; Translation: “from”; Notes: typical with verbs of motion.
  5. terra — Lemma: terra; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular feminine; Function: object of de; Translation: “land”; Notes: refers to Egypt.
  6. exire — Lemma: exeo; Part of Speech: verb infinitive; Form: present active infinitive; Function: complement of urgebant; Translation: “to go out”; Notes: expresses the action urged.
  7. velociter — Lemma: velox; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: indeclinable; Function: modifies exire; Translation: “quickly”; Notes: urgency due to plague.
  8. dicentes — Lemma: dico; Part of Speech: participle; Form: nominative plural masculine present active participle; Function: introduces direct speech; Translation: “saying”; Notes: circumstantial.
  9. Omnes — Lemma: omnis; Part of Speech: adjective/pronoun; Form: nominative plural masculine; Function: subject modifier; Translation: “all”; Notes: emphasizes universality of danger.
  10. moriemur — Lemma: morior; Part of Speech: verb (deponent); Form: future deponent indicative first plural; Function: verb of direct speech; Translation: “we shall die”; Notes: deponent with active meaning.

 

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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