Exodus 21:6

Posted on March 12, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Ex 21:6 offeret eum dominus diis, et applicabitur ad ostium et postes, perforabitque aurem eius subula: et erit ei servus in sæculum.

his lord will present him to the gods, and he will be brought to the door and to the doorposts, and his ear will be pierced with an awl, and he will be a servant to him forever.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 offeret he will present 3SG.FUT.ACT.IND VERB
2 eum him ACC.SG.M PERS.PRON
3 dominus lord NOM.SG.M 2ND DECL NOUN
4 diis to the gods DAT.PL.M 2ND DECL NOUN
5 et and CONJ INDECL
6 applicabitur he will be brought 3SG.FUT.PASS.IND VERB
7 ad to PREP+ACC PREP
8 ostium door ACC.SG.N 2ND DECL NOUN
9 et and CONJ INDECL
10 postes doorposts ACC.PL.M 3RD DECL NOUN
11 perforabitque and he will pierce 3SG.FUT.ACT.IND VERB
12 aurem ear ACC.SG.F 3RD DECL NOUN
13 eius his GEN.SG POSS.PRON
14 subula with an awl ABL.SG.F 1ST DECL NOUN
15 et and CONJ INDECL
16 erit he will be 3SG.FUT.ACT.IND VERB
17 ei to him DAT.SG.M PERS.PRON
18 servus servant NOM.SG.M 2ND DECL NOUN
19 in for PREP+ACC PREP
20 sæculum ever ACC.SG.N 2ND DECL NOUN

Syntax

First legal action:
dominus — subject (“his lord”).
offeret — future verb (“will present”).
eum — direct object (“him”, i.e. the servant).
diis — dative plural (“to the gods”), in legal context understood as “to the judges” acting in God’s authority.

Ritual setting:
applicabitur — future passive (“he will be brought”).
ad ostium et postes — prepositional phrase with coordinated objects (“to the door and the doorposts”), the physical place of the ritual.

Ritual act:
perforabitque — future verb with enclitic -que (“and he will pierce”).
aurem eius — direct object + possessive (“his ear”).
subula — ablative of instrument (“with an awl”).

Final status:
erit ei servus — “he will be a servant to him”; ei is dative of possession, servus predicate nominative.
in sæculum — accusative of duration (“forever”), marking permanent servitude.

Morphology

  1. offeret — Lemma: offero; Part of Speech: verb; Form: future active indicative 3rd person singular; Function: main verb of the first clause; Translation: will present; Notes: expresses the master’s legal duty to present the servant before a higher authority.
  2. eum — Lemma: is; Part of Speech: personal pronoun; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: direct object of offeret; Translation: him; Notes: refers to the servant who has chosen permanent service.
  3. dominus — Lemma: dominus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular masculine 2nd declension; Function: subject; Translation: lord; Notes: human master, therefore translated “lord,” not the divine “LORD.”
  4. diis — Lemma: deus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: dative plural masculine 2nd declension; Function: indirect object / dative of direction; Translation: to the gods; Notes: formally “to the gods,” but in Israelite legal tradition this dative is understood as “to the judges,” earthly representatives who judge under God’s authority.
  5. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: links clauses and actions; Translation: and; Notes: simple coordinator tying the presentation to the subsequent ritual.
  6. applicabitur — Lemma: applico; Part of Speech: verb; Form: future passive indicative 3rd person singular; Function: main verb of the second action; Translation: he will be brought; Notes: passive voice emphasizes that others perform the act of bringing the servant to the door.
  7. ad — Lemma: ad; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: takes the accusative; Function: introduces goal or direction; Translation: to; Notes: marks movement toward the specified place of the ritual.
  8. ostium — Lemma: ostium; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular neuter 2nd declension; Function: object of ad; Translation: door; Notes: the door of the house, the threshold where the servant’s permanent status is publicly confirmed.
  9. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: coordinates objects; Translation: and; Notes: links ostium with postes under the same preposition.
  10. postes — Lemma: postis; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural masculine 3rd declension; Function: second object of the implied ad; Translation: doorposts; Notes: doorposts are often significant in covenant or household rituals, marking the boundary of the master’s house.
  11. perforabitque — Lemma: perforo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: future active indicative 3rd person singular with enclitic -que; Function: main verb of the piercing action; Translation: and he will pierce; Notes: -que joins this action tightly to the preceding procedure as part of one ritual sequence.
  12. aurem — Lemma: auris; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular feminine 3rd declension; Function: direct object of perforabitque; Translation: ear; Notes: the ear is the part of the body marked to show the servant’s permanent, willing obedience.
  13. eius — Lemma: is; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: genitive singular; Function: possessive genitive modifying aurem; Translation: his; Notes: refers back to the servant; the mark is placed on his ear, not the master’s.
  14. subula — Lemma: subula; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular feminine 1st declension; Function: ablative of instrument; Translation: with an awl; Notes: names the tool used; the ablative signals the means by which the piercing is done.
  15. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: joins the final legal result to the ritual act; Translation: and; Notes: marks the consequence that follows the symbolic act.
  16. erit — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: future active indicative 3rd person singular; Function: copular verb; Translation: he will be; Notes: introduces the servant’s new settled status after the ritual.
  17. ei — Lemma: is; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: dative singular masculine; Function: dative of possession with erit; Translation: to him; Notes: indicates that the servant now belongs permanently to the master.
  18. servus — Lemma: servus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular masculine 2nd declension; Function: predicate nominative; Translation: servant; Notes: names the ongoing role and status now fixed by law.
  19. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: with accusative here; Function: forms a phrase of duration; Translation: for; Notes: with the accusative, often expresses extension in time.
  20. sæculum — Lemma: sæculum; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular neuter 2nd declension; Function: object of in in an accusative of duration; Translation: ever; Notes: literally “for the age,” idiomatically “forever,” describing lifelong servitude.

 

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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