Exodus 20:5

Posted on March 11, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Ex 20:5 Non adorabis ea, neque coles: ego sum Dominus Deus tuus fortis, zelotes, visitans iniquitatem patrum in filios, in tertiam et quartam generationem eorum qui oderunt me:

You shall not adore them, nor shall you serve them. I am the LORD your God, strong and zealous, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the sons, to the third and fourth generation of those who hate Me;

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Non not ADV INDECL
2 adorabis you shall adore 2SG.FUT.ACT.IND
3 ea them ACC.PL.N PRON.DEM
4 neque nor CONJ INDECL
5 coles you shall serve 2SG.FUT.ACT.IND
6 ego I NOM.SG.PERS
7 sum am 1SG.PRES.ACT.IND
8 Dominus LORD NOM.SG.M 2ND DECL
9 Deus God NOM.SG.M 2ND DECL
10 tuus your NOM.SG.M POSS
11 fortis strong NOM.SG.M ADJ POS
12 zelotes zealous NOM.SG.M NOUN
13 visitans visiting PRES.ACT.PTCP.NOM.SG.M
14 iniquitatem iniquity ACC.SG.F 3RD DECL
15 patrum of the fathers GEN.PL.M 3RD DECL
16 in upon PREP+ACC
17 filios sons ACC.PL.M 2ND DECL
18 in to PREP+ACC
19 tertiam third ACC.SG.F ADJ ORD
20 et and CONJ INDECL
21 quartam fourth ACC.SG.F ADJ ORD
22 generationem generation ACC.SG.F 3RD DECL
23 eorum of those GEN.PL.M/N PRON.DEM
24 qui who NOM.PL.M PRON.REL
25 oderunt hate 3PL.PERF.ACT.IND
26 me me ACC.SG.PERS

Syntax

Main Prohibitions: Non adorabis and neque coles — parallel future-tense prohibitions.

Divine Identification: ego sum Dominus Deus tuus functions as the theological ground for the prohibitions.

Participial Clause: visitans iniquitatem patrum… describes the LORD’s ongoing judicial action.

Relative Clause: qui oderunt me — identifies those upon whom the judgment falls.

Morphology

  1. Non — Lemma: non; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: invariable; Function: negates the verb; Translation: “not”; Notes: Standard negator.
  2. adorabis — Lemma: adoro; Part of Speech: verb; Form: future indicative active second person singular; Function: first prohibition; Translation: “you shall adore”; Notes: Future used for commandments.
  3. ea — Lemma: is; Part of Speech: demonstrative pronoun; Form: accusative plural neuter; Function: object of adorabis; Translation: “them”; Notes: Refers to idols previously mentioned.
  4. neque — Lemma: neque; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: invariable; Function: coordinates second prohibition; Translation: “nor”; Notes: Links prohibitions strongly.
  5. coles — Lemma: colo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: future indicative active second person singular; Function: second prohibition; Translation: “you shall serve”; Notes: Often used for cultic service.
  6. ego — Lemma: ego; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: nominative singular; Function: emphatic subject; Translation: “I”; Notes: Emphasis before divine name.
  7. sum — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: present indicative active first person singular; Function: equative verb; Translation: “am”; Notes: Divine self-identification.
  8. Dominus — Lemma: Dominus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular masculine, 2nd declension; Function: predicate nominative; Translation: “LORD”; Notes: Refers to YHWH.
  9. Deus — Lemma: Deus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: apposition to Dominus; Translation: “God”; Notes: Confirms identity.
  10. tuus — Lemma: tuus; Part of Speech: possessive adjective; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: modifies Deus; Translation: “your”; Notes: Covenant relationship.
  11. fortis — Lemma: fortis; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: modifier of Dominus Deus; Translation: “strong”; Notes: Divine power.
  12. zelotes — Lemma: zelotes; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: predicate modifier; Translation: “zealous”; Notes: Borrowed from Greek ζηλωτής.
  13. visitans — Lemma: visito; Part of Speech: participle; Form: present active participle nominative singular masculine; Function: modifying Dominus Deus; Translation: “visiting”; Notes: Indicates ongoing judicial action.
  14. iniquitatem — Lemma: iniquitas; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: object of visitans; Translation: “iniquity”; Notes: Judicial wrongdoing.
  15. patrum — Lemma: pater; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive plural masculine; Function: possessive genitive; Translation: “of the fathers”; Notes: Refers to ancestors.
  16. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs accusative; Function: expresses direction toward object; Translation: “upon”; Notes: Governs filios.
  17. filios — Lemma: filius; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural masculine; Function: object of in; Translation: “sons”; Notes: Refers to descendants.
  18. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs accusative; Function: introduces measure; Translation: “to”; Notes: Governs ordinal adjectives.
  19. tertiam — Lemma: tertius; Part of Speech: adjective (ordinal); Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: modifies generationem; Translation: “third”; Notes: Specifies extent.
  20. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: invariable; Function: links ordinals; Translation: “and”; Notes: Simple connective.
  21. quartam — Lemma: quartus; Part of Speech: adjective (ordinal); Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: modifies generationem; Translation: “fourth”; Notes: Parallel to tertiam.
  22. generationem — Lemma: generatio; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular feminine, 3rd declension; Function: object of in; Translation: “generation”; Notes: Extent of judgment.
  23. eorum — Lemma: is; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: genitive plural masculine/neuter; Function: possessive genitive; Translation: “of those”; Notes: Specifies those judged.
  24. qui — Lemma: qui; Part of Speech: relative pronoun; Form: nominative plural masculine; Function: subject of relative clause; Translation: “who”; Notes: Refers to eorum.
  25. oderunt — Lemma: odi; Part of Speech: verb; Form: perfect indicative active third person plural; Function: verb of clause; Translation: “hate”; Notes: Perfect with present meaning.
  26. me — Lemma: ego; Part of Speech: personal pronoun; Form: accusative singular; Function: object of oderunt; Translation: “me”; Notes: Refers to the LORD.

 

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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