Exodus 21:22

Posted on March 12, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Ex 21:22 Si rixati fuerint viri, et percusserit quis mulierem prægnantem, et abortivum quidem fecerit, sed ipsa vixerit: subiacebit damno quantum maritus mulieris expetierit, et arbitri iudicaverint.

If men have quarreled, and someone strikes a pregnant woman, and a miscarriage indeed has been caused, but she herself has lived, he shall be subject to a fine according to how much the husband of the woman shall demand, and the arbiters shall judge.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Si if CONJ INDECL
2 rixati having quarreled NOM.PL.M PERF.DEP.PTCP VERB
3 fuerint have been 3PL.FUTP.ACT.SUBJ VERB
4 viri men NOM.PL.M 2ND DECL NOUN
5 et and CONJ INDECL
6 percusserit strikes 3SG.FUTP.ACT.SUBJ VERB
7 quis someone NOM.SG.M INDEF.PRON
8 mulierem woman ACC.SG.F 3RD DECL NOUN
9 prægnantem pregnant ACC.SG.F PRES.ACT.PTCP VERB
10 et and CONJ INDECL
11 abortivum miscarriage ACC.SG.N 2ND DECL NOUN
12 quidem indeed ADV INDECL
13 fecerit has caused 3SG.FUTP.ACT.SUBJ VERB
14 sed but CONJ INDECL
15 ipsa she herself NOM.SG.F DEM.PRON
16 vixerit has lived 3SG.FUTP.ACT.SUBJ VERB
17 subiacebit shall be subject 3SG.FUT.ACT.IND VERB
18 damno to a fine DAT.SG.N 2ND DECL NOUN
19 quantum as much as ACC.SG.N REL.PRON
20 maritus husband NOM.SG.M 2ND DECL NOUN
21 mulieris of the woman GEN.SG.F 3RD DECL NOUN
22 expetierit shall demand 3SG.FUTP.ACT.SUBJ VERB
23 et and CONJ INDECL
24 arbitri arbiters NOM.PL.M 2ND DECL NOUN
25 iudicaverint shall judge 3PL.FUTP.ACT.SUBJ VERB

Syntax

1. First conditional frame:
Si rixati fuerint viri — “If men have quarreled.”
• Si introduces the case-law protasis.
• rixati fuerint (future perfect deponent construction) = “have quarreled” in legal, hypothetical past sense.
• viri is the plural subject (“men”).

2. Second layered condition (the blow):
et percusserit quis mulierem prægnantem — “and someone strikes a pregnant woman.”
• percusserit = future perfect subjunctive, another hypothetical completed act.
• quis = indefinite subject (“someone”).
• mulierem prægnantem = object + participle; the legal relevance is that she is pregnant.

3. First consequence (the miscarriage):
et abortivum quidem fecerit — “and he indeed has caused a miscarriage.”
• abortivum is the direct object; fecerit in this context = “cause, bring about.”
• quidem adds emphasis: “indeed” or “at least in this respect.”

4. Second consequence (the woman survives):
sed ipsa vixerit — “but she herself has lived.”
• sed marks contrast: the fetus is lost, but the woman survives.
• ipsa is emphatic; vixerit continues the same legal tense.

5. Main legal verdict:
subiacebit damno — “he shall be subject to a fine.”
• subiacebit (future indicative) states the binding legal outcome.
• damno is a dative of penalty (“to a fine, to damages”).

6. Measure of the penalty:
quantum maritus mulieris expetierit — “as much as the husband of the woman shall demand.”
• quantum introduces a measure clause: extent of damages.
• maritus mulieris = “the husband of the woman” as claimant.
• expetierit again future perfect subjunctive, used for his legal claim.

7. Judicial ratification:
et arbitri iudicaverint — “and the arbiters shall judge.”
• arbitri = appointed judges or arbiters.
• iudicaverint = future perfect subjunctive; their decision confirms the final amount of the fine.

Morphology

  1. Si — Lemma: si; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: introduces the conditional legal case (protasis); Translation: if; Notes: standard opening for case-law conditions.
  2. rixati — Lemma: rixor; Part of Speech: deponent verb (participle); Form: nominative plural masculine perfect deponent participle; Function: with fuerint, forms the verbal idea “have quarreled” describing the men; Translation: having quarreled; Notes: deponent form, active meaning, highlighting prior mutual strife.
  3. fuerint — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: future perfect active subjunctive 3rd person plural; Function: auxiliary with rixati in the protasis; Translation: have been; Notes: typical legal tense for hypothetical completed action.
  4. viri — Lemma: vir; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative plural masculine 2nd declension; Function: subject of rixati fuerint; Translation: men; Notes: indicates adult male participants.
  5. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: coordinates the next conditional action with the first; Translation: and; Notes: links clauses within the same legal frame.
  6. percusserit — Lemma: percutio; Part of Speech: verb; Form: future perfect active subjunctive 3rd person singular; Function: main verb of the second conditional clause (the blow); Translation: strikes / has struck; Notes: legal future perfect for hypothetical violence.
  7. quis — Lemma: quis; Part of Speech: indefinite pronoun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: subject of percusserit; Translation: someone; Notes: leaves the offender unspecified (“anyone”).
  8. mulierem — Lemma: mulier; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular feminine 3rd declension; Function: direct object of percusserit; Translation: woman; Notes: the one struck.
  9. prægnantem — Lemma: prægnans; Part of Speech: participle (used adjectivally); Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: modifies mulierem; Translation: pregnant; Notes: the pregnancy is the reason the law specifies this case.
  10. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: connects the consequence to the preceding condition; Translation: and; Notes: marks the next step in the chain of events.
  11. abortivum — Lemma: abortivum; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular neuter 2nd declension; Function: direct object of fecerit; Translation: miscarriage; Notes: technical term for the expelled fetus / miscarriage event.
  12. quidem — Lemma: quidem; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: indeclinable; Function: intensifier attached to the verb phrase; Translation: indeed; Notes: emphasizes the reality of the miscarriage.
  13. fecerit — Lemma: facio; Part of Speech: verb; Form: future perfect active subjunctive 3rd person singular; Function: verb of the result clause; Translation: has caused; Notes: in this idiom “to cause a miscarriage.”
  14. sed — Lemma: sed; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: introduces a contrastive clause; Translation: but; Notes: contrasts fetal death with the woman’s survival.
  15. ipsa — Lemma: ipse; Part of Speech: intensive/demonstrative pronoun; Form: nominative singular feminine; Function: subject of vixerit; Translation: she herself; Notes: emphatic, stressing that the woman remains alive.
  16. vixerit — Lemma: vivo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: future perfect active subjunctive 3rd person singular; Function: verb describing the woman’s survival; Translation: has lived; Notes: survival shifts the penalty from capital to monetary.
  17. subiacebit — Lemma: subiaceo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: future active indicative 3rd person singular; Function: main verb of the apodosis (legal verdict); Translation: shall be subject; Notes: expresses binding liability in future legal terms.
  18. damno — Lemma: damnum; Part of Speech: noun; Form: dative singular neuter 2nd declension; Function: dative of penalty with subiacebit; Translation: to a fine; Notes: indicates monetary damages rather than death.
  19. quantum — Lemma: quantus; Part of Speech: relative/interrogative adjective used substantively; Form: accusative singular neuter; Function: introduces the measure clause governed by expetierit; Translation: as much as; Notes: sets the scale of compensation.
  20. maritus — Lemma: maritus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular masculine 2nd declension; Function: subject of expetierit; Translation: husband; Notes: the legal claimant in this context.
  21. mulieris — Lemma: mulier; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive singular feminine 3rd declension; Function: possessive genitive modifying maritus; Translation: of the woman; Notes: identifies whose husband is in view.
  22. expetierit — Lemma: expeto; Part of Speech: verb; Form: future perfect active subjunctive 3rd person singular; Function: verb of the measure clause; Translation: shall demand; Notes: describes the husband’s legal demand for compensation.
  23. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: coordinates the judicial confirmation with the husband’s demand; Translation: and; Notes: links private claim and official judgment.
  24. arbitri — Lemma: arbiter; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative plural masculine 2nd declension; Function: subject of iudicaverint; Translation: arbiters; Notes: judges or arbiters who assess the case.
  25. iudicaverint — Lemma: iudico; Part of Speech: verb; Form: future perfect active subjunctive 3rd person plural; Function: verb stating official judicial decision; Translation: shall judge; Notes: their judgment confirms and fixes the fine.

 

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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