Exodus 23:33

Posted on March 14, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Ex 23:33 Non habitent in terra tua, ne forte peccare te faciant in me, si servieris diis eorum: quod tibi certe erit in scandalum.

They shall not dwell in your land, lest they make you sin against Me, if you should serve their gods; for this will certainly be a stumbling block to you.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Non not ADV
2 habitent they shall dwell 3PL.PRES.SUBJ.ACT
3 in in PREP+ABL
4 terra land ABL.SG.F 1ST DECL
5 tua your ABL.SG.F ADJ POSS
6 ne lest CONJ
7 forte perhaps / lest by chance ADV
8 peccare to make you sin INF.ACT
9 te you ACC.SG PRON PERS
10 faciant they make 3PL.PRES.SUBJ.ACT
11 in against PREP+ACC
12 me Me ACC.SG PRON PERS
13 si if CONJ
14 servieris you should serve 2SG.FUTP.ACT.IND
15 diis gods DAT.PL.M 2ND DECL
16 eorum of them GEN.PL PRON PERS
17 quod which REL PRON NOM.SG.N
18 tibi to you DAT.SG PRON PERS
19 certe certainly ADV
20 erit it will be 3SG.FUT.ACT.IND
21 in as / into PREP+ACC
22 scandalum a stumbling block ACC.SG.N 2ND DECL

Syntax

Main Prohibition:
Non habitent in terra tua — “They shall not dwell in your land.”
• Future-subjunctive force of command.
• in terra tua = location.

Purpose Clause:
ne forte peccare te faciant in me — “lest by chance they make you sin against Me.”
• faciant = subjunctive in negative purpose.
• peccare = complementary infinitive.
• in me = “against Me.”

Conditional Clause:
si servieris diis eorum — “if you should serve their gods.”
• servieris = future perfect, standard for conditions.

Result/Explanation Clause:
quod tibi certe erit in scandalum — “for this will certainly be a stumbling block to you.”
• quod refers to the act of serving foreign gods.
• in scandalum = result idiom (“as a stumbling block”).

Morphology

  1. Non — Lemma: non; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: invariable; Function: negation of main verb; Translation: not; Notes: introduces prohibition.
  2. habitent — Lemma: habito; Part of Speech: verb; Form: present active subjunctive, third person plural; Function: jussive/subjunctive command; Translation: they shall dwell; Notes: used with non to express a legal command.
  3. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: locative marker; Translation: in; Notes: standard spatial relation.
  4. terra — Lemma: terra; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular feminine, first declension; Function: object of in; Translation: land; Notes: covenantal territory.
  5. tua — Lemma: tuus; Part of Speech: possessive adjective; Form: ablative singular feminine; Function: modifies terra; Translation: your; Notes: refers to Israel.
  6. ne — Lemma: ne; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: invariable; Function: introduces negative purpose clause; Translation: lest; Notes: prevents undesired outcome.
  7. forte — Lemma: forte; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: invariable; Function: adds cautionary nuance; Translation: perhaps / by chance; Notes: reinforces “lest”.
  8. peccare — Lemma: pecco; Part of Speech: verb; Form: present active infinitive; Function: complementary infinitive to faciant; Translation: to sin; Notes: object = te.
  9. te — Lemma: tu; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: accusative singular; Function: object of peccare; Translation: you; Notes: direct object of causing.
  10. faciant — Lemma: facio; Part of Speech: verb; Form: present active subjunctive, third person plural; Function: verb of purpose clause; Translation: they make; Notes: completes ne-clause.
  11. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs accusative; Function: expresses offense against someone; Translation: against; Notes: standard in theological Latin.
  12. me — Lemma: ego; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: accusative singular; Function: object of preposition; Translation: Me; Notes: refers to God.
  13. si — Lemma: si; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: invariable; Function: introduces conditional clause; Translation: if; Notes: standard for future conditions.
  14. servieris — Lemma: servio; Part of Speech: verb; Form: future perfect active indicative, second person singular; Function: protasis of future condition; Translation: you should serve; Notes: idiomatic futurity.
  15. diis — Lemma: deus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: dative plural masculine, second declension; Function: indirect object; Translation: gods; Notes: false deities of nations.
  16. eorum — Lemma: is, ea, id; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: genitive plural; Function: possessive genitive; Translation: of them; Notes: modifies diis.
  17. quod — Lemma: qui, quae, quod; Part of Speech: relative pronoun; Form: nominative singular neuter; Function: refers to previous clause; Translation: which; Notes: neuter linking pronoun.
  18. tibi — Lemma: tu; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: dative singular; Function: indirect object; Translation: to you; Notes: recipient of “being a stumbling block.”
  19. certe — Lemma: certe; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: invariable; Function: intensification; Translation: certainly; Notes: emphasizes inevitability.
  20. erit — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: future active indicative, third person singular; Function: main verb of result; Translation: it will be; Notes: states divine consequence.
  21. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs accusative; Function: expresses result; Translation: as; Notes: introduces predicate meaning.
  22. scandalum — Lemma: scandalum; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular neuter, second declension; Function: predicate accusative; Translation: a stumbling block; Notes: source of spiritual ruin.

 

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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