Exodus 3:9

Posted on February 22, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Ex 3:9 Clamor ergo filiorum Israel venit ad me: vidique afflictionem eorum, qua ab Ægyptiis opprimuntur.

Therefore the cry of the sons of Israel has come to me, and I have seen their affliction, with which they are oppressed by the Egyptians.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Clamor cry NOM.SG.M
2 ergo therefore ADV
3 filiorum of the sons GEN.PL.M
4 Israel of Israel GEN.SG.M PROPER
5 venit has come 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
6 ad to PREP+ACC
7 me me ACC.SG PRON
8 vidique and I have seen 1SG.PERF.ACT.IND + ENCLITIC -QUE
9 afflictionem affliction ACC.SG.F
10 eorum of them GEN.PL PRON
11 qua with which ABL.SG.F REL
12 ab by PREP+ABL
13 Ægyptiis the Egyptians ABL.PL.M
14 opprimuntur they are oppressed 3PL.PRES.PASS.IND

Syntax

Main Statement:
Clamor ergo filiorum Israel venit ad me — “Therefore the cry of the sons of Israel has come to me.”
• Clamor = subject.
• filiorum Israel = genitive phrase identifying the source of the cry.
• venit ad me = perfect verb + directional phrase indicating divine reception.

Coordinated Clause with -que:
vidique afflictionem eorum — “and I have seen their affliction.”
• vidi = perfect, expressing completed divine perception.
• -que = enclitic joining this clause to the prior one.
• afflictionem eorum = object + possessive genitive.

Relative Clause of Characterization:
qua ab Ægyptiis opprimuntur — “with which they are oppressed by the Egyptians.”
• qua = ablative (ablative of respect/instrument) referring to affliction.
• opprimuntur = present passive (ongoing oppression).
• ab Ægyptiis = agent of the passive.

Morphology

  1. Clamor — Lemma: clamor; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: subject of venit; Translation: “cry”; Notes: Often indicates distress reaching divine attention.
  2. ergo — Lemma: ergo; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: indeclinable; Function: logical connector; Translation: “therefore”; Notes: Draws a conclusion from previous statements.
  3. filiorum — Lemma: filius; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive plural masculine; Function: modifies clamor; Translation: “of the sons”; Notes: Genitive of possession.
  4. Israel — Lemma: Israel; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: genitive singular masculine; Function: modifies filiorum; Translation: “of Israel”; Notes: Collective ethnic designation.
  5. venit — Lemma: venio; Part of Speech: verb; Form: 3rd singular perfect active indicative; Function: main verb; Translation: “has come”; Notes: Perfect expresses completed arrival before God.
  6. ad — Lemma: ad; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs accusative; Function: expresses direction toward a receiver; Translation: “to”; Notes: Indicates movement toward its object.
  7. me — Lemma: ego; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: accusative singular; Function: object of ad; Translation: “me”; Notes: The divine recipient of the cry.
  8. vidique — Lemma: video + que; Part of Speech: verb with enclitic; Form: 1st singular perfect active indicative; Function: coordinated main verb; Translation: “and I have seen”; Notes: -que attaches to the first word of the second coordinated clause.
  9. afflictionem — Lemma: afflictio; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: direct object; Translation: “affliction”; Notes: Refers to oppression or suffering.
  10. eorum — Lemma: is; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: genitive plural; Function: possessive genitive modifying afflictionem; Translation: “of them”; Notes: Stands for the Israelite people.
  11. qua — Lemma: qui; Part of Speech: relative pronoun; Form: ablative singular feminine; Function: ablative of respect/instrument; Translation: “with which”; Notes: Refers to afflictionem and introduces the relative clause.
  12. ab — Lemma: ab; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: marks agent of the passive; Translation: “by”; Notes: Used before words beginning with vowels.
  13. Ægyptiis — Lemma: Ægyptius; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative plural masculine; Function: agent in passive construction; Translation: “the Egyptians”; Notes: Ablative of agent with ab + passive verb.
  14. opprimuntur — Lemma: opprimo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: 3rd plural present passive indicative; Function: main verb of the relative clause; Translation: “they are oppressed”; Notes: Present tense expresses ongoing state of oppression.

 

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.
This entry was posted in Exodus. Bookmark the permalink.

Comments are closed.