Exodus 28:25

Posted on March 19, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Ex 28:25 et ipsarum catenarum extrema duobus copulabis uncinis in utroque latere superhumeralis quod rationale respicit.

and you will couple the ends of those chains to two hooks on each side of the ephod which the breastpiece faces.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 et and CONJ INDECL
2 ipsarum of those PRON DEM GEN PL F
3 catenarum of chains NOUN GEN PL F 1ST DECL
4 extrema the ends ADJ NOM PL N SUPER
5 duobus to two ADJ DAT PL M
6 copulabis you will couple VERB 2 FUT ACT IND 1ST CONJ
7 uncinis hooks NOUN ABL PL M 2ND DECL
8 in in PREP+ABL INDECL
9 utroque on each PRON INDEF ABL SG N
10 latere side NOUN ABL SG N 3RD DECL
11 superhumeralis of the ephod NOUN ABL SG N 3RD DECL
12 quod which PRON REL NOM SG N
13 rationale the breastpiece NOUN ACC SG N 3RD DECL
14 respicit faces VERB 3 PRES ACT IND 3RD CONJ

Syntax

Main clause:
Implied subject (tu) is contained in the finite verb copulabis (second person singular future active indicative).
Direct object: extrema ipsarum catenarum (“the ends of those chains”) as the thing being coupled.
Dative/ablative complement: duobus uncinis expresses the hooks to which the ends are coupled.
Prepositional phrase: in utroque latere superhumeralis specifies the location of the hooks, “on each side of the ephod.”

Relative clause:
quod rationale respicit
Here quod is the neuter singular relative pronoun referring back to superhumeralis and functions as the subject of respicit.
rationale is the direct object of respicit and denotes the breastpiece which the ephod faces or towards which it is directed.

Morphology

  1. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: coordinating conjunction; Form: indeclinable connective particle; Function: links this instruction to the preceding one; Translation: “and”; Notes: standard clause-level coordinator, joins this command to the series of directions about the ephod and breastpiece.
  2. ipsarum — Lemma: ipse, ipsa, ipsum; Part of Speech: demonstrative pronoun; Form: genitive plural feminine; Function: genitive of possession modifying catenarum; Translation: “of those”; Notes: the pronoun is anaphoric, pointing back to the previously mentioned chains and giving emphasis to “those very chains.”
  3. catenarum — Lemma: catena; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive plural feminine first declension; Function: genitive dependent on ipsarum, expressing whose ends are in view; Translation: “of chains”; Notes: together ipsarum catenarum forms a genitive phrase specifying that the ends belong to the chains previously described as golden attachment chains.
  4. extrema — Lemma: extremus, a, um; Part of Speech: adjective used substantively; Form: nominative plural neuter superlative; Function: substantival subject complement representing “the outermost parts,” here the ends of the chains; Translation: “the ends”; Notes: superlative of space (“outermost”) rather than intensity, and treated as a neuter plural noun referring to the extremities of the chains.
  5. duobus — Lemma: duo; Part of Speech: adjective of number; Form: dative plural masculine; Function: agrees with uncinis and expresses the number of hooks involved in the coupling; Translation: “to two”; Notes: used with uncinis to indicate that the chains are fastened by means of two hooks, one on each side.
  6. copulabis — Lemma: copulo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: second person singular future active indicative first conjugation; Function: main finite verb of the clause giving a direct command in future sense; Translation: “you will couple” or “you will fasten”; Notes: the future indicative in legal and ritual instructions carries an imperatival nuance, functioning as a prescriptive directive rather than simple prediction.
  7. uncinis — Lemma: uncinus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative plural masculine second declension; Function: ablative complement with the verb indicating the instrument or the dative of advantage, “to the hooks”; Translation: “hooks”; Notes: in context these hooks are the metal pieces fixed to the ephod that receive the chains, forming the mechanical link between ephod and breastpiece.
  8. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs the ablative case; Function: introduces the prepositional phrase in utroque latere superhumeralis specifying location; Translation: “in” or “on”; Notes: with the ablative the preposition denotes static position, here “on each side,” not motion towards.
  9. utroque — Lemma: uterque, utraque, utrumque; Part of Speech: pronominal adjective; Form: ablative singular neuter; Function: agrees with latere and qualifies it distributively; Translation: “each”; Notes: uterque regularly has a distributive meaning “each of the two,” stressing that both sides of the ephod are equally equipped with hooks.
  10. latere — Lemma: latus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular neuter third declension; Function: object of the preposition in forming the local phrase “on each side”; Translation: “side”; Notes: used spatially of the lateral parts of the ephod, clarifying where the hooks and chains are positioned around the priestly garment.
  11. superhumeralis — Lemma: superhumerale; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive singular neuter or ablative singular neuter third declension, here best understood as dependent on latere; Function: genitive or ablative of relation specifying “side of the ephod”; Translation: “of the ephod”; Notes: superhumerale is the technical term for the priestly shoulder garment known as the ephod, and here identifies the object whose sides bear the hooks and chains.
  12. quod — Lemma: qui, quae, quod; Part of Speech: relative pronoun; Form: nominative singular neuter; Function: subject of respicit and antecedent-linked to superhumeralis; Translation: “which”; Notes: introduces a defining relative clause that further specifies the ephod as the garment oriented toward the breastpiece, thus tying the two sacred items into one functional unit.
  13. rationale — Lemma: rationale; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular neuter third declension; Function: direct object of respicit; Translation: “the breastpiece”; Notes: a technical cultic term for the “breastpiece of judgment”; its mention here highlights that the ephod is arranged so as to face or correspond to this ornament on the High Priest’s chest.
  14. respicit — Lemma: respicio; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular present active indicative third conjugation; Function: finite verb of the relative clause giving the orientation of the ephod; Translation: “faces” or “looks toward”; Notes: the present indicative expresses a general characteristic arrangement, describing how the ephod is set in stable relationship to the breastpiece in the priestly vestments.

 

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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