Exodus 12:7

Posted on March 3, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Ex 12:7 Et sument de sanguine eius, ac ponent super utrumque postem, et in superliminaribus domorum, in quibus comedent illum.

And they shall take from his blood and shall place it upon both doorposts and on the lintels of the houses in which they will eat him.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Et and CONJ
2 sument they shall take 3PL.FUT.ACT.IND
3 de from PREP+ABL
4 sanguine blood ABL.SG.M
5 eius his GEN.SG.M.PRON
6 ac and CONJ
7 ponent they shall place 3PL.FUT.ACT.IND
8 super upon PREP+ACC
9 utrumque each of the two ACC.SG.N/ACC.SG.M
10 postem doorpost ACC.SG.M
11 et and CONJ
12 in on PREP+ABL
13 superliminaribus lintels ABL.PL.N
14 domorum of the houses GEN.PL.F
15 in in PREP+ABL
16 quibus in which ABL.PL.M/F/NT.REL
17 comedent they will eat 3PL.FUT.ACT.IND
18 illum him ACC.SG.M.PRON

Syntax

Main Clause 1: sument de sanguine eius — “they shall take from his blood,” with sument as verb and prepositional phrase marking source.
Main Clause 2: ponent super utrumque postem et in superliminaribus domorum — coordinated with ac; two placement locations are given.
Relative Clause: in quibus comedent illum — modifies domorum, specifying the houses where the lamb will be eaten.
Objects: utanque postem and superliminaribus serve as the objects of placement via prepositions.

Morphology

  1. Et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: links commands; Translation: “and”; Notes: joins sequential ritual actions.
  2. sument — Lemma: sumo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: future active indicative third plural; Function: main verb; Translation: “they shall take”; Notes: refers to the Israelite households.
  3. de — Lemma: de; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: expresses source; Translation: “from”; Notes: indicates extraction from the lamb.
  4. sanguine — Lemma: sanguis; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular masculine; Function: object of de; Translation: “blood”; Notes: refers to sacrificial blood.
  5. eius — Lemma: is; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: genitive singular masculine; Function: possessive modifier; Translation: “his”; Notes: refers to the lamb.
  6. ac — Lemma: ac; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: adds coordinate action; Translation: “and”; Notes: slightly stronger than et.
  7. ponent — Lemma: pono; Part of Speech: verb; Form: future active indicative third plural; Function: main verb; Translation: “they shall place”; Notes: second ritual action.
  8. super — Lemma: super; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs accusative; Function: indicates surface placement; Translation: “upon”; Notes: expresses physical contact.
  9. utrumque — Lemma: uterque; Part of Speech: distributive pronoun; Form: accusative singular masculine/neuter; Function: modifies postem; Translation: “both”; Notes: refers to both sides of the doorway.
  10. postem — Lemma: postis; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: object of super; Translation: “doorpost”; Notes: structural element of doorway.
  11. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: coordination; Translation: “and”; Notes: connects the second placement site.
  12. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: indicates location; Translation: “on”; Notes: here indicating the lintel structure.
  13. superliminaribus — Lemma: superliminare; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative plural neuter; Function: object of in; Translation: “lintels”; Notes: upper crossbeam above doorway.
  14. domorum — Lemma: domus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive plural feminine; Function: dependent genitive; Translation: “of the houses”; Notes: specifies location.
  15. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: introduces relative clause location; Translation: “in”; Notes: spatial marker.
  16. quibus — Lemma: qui; Part of Speech: relative pronoun; Form: ablative plural; Function: relates clause to domorum; Translation: “in which”; Notes: defines location of eating.
  17. comedent — Lemma: comedo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: future active indicative third plural; Function: verb of relative clause; Translation: “they will eat”; Notes: refers to Israelite families.
  18. illum — Lemma: ille; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: direct object; Translation: “him”; Notes: refers to the lamb.

 

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.
This entry was posted in Exodus. Bookmark the permalink.

Comments are closed.