Exodus 32:9

Posted on March 23, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Ex 32:9 Rursumque ait Dominus ad Moysen: Cerno quod populus iste duræ cervicis sit:

And again the LORD said to Moyses: “I perceive that this people is stiff-necked;

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Rursumque and again ADV + QUE INDECL
2 ait said 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND IRREG
3 Dominus the LORD NOM.SG.M NOUN 2ND DECL
4 ad to PREP+ACC INDECL
5 Moysen Moses ACC.SG.M NOUN 3RD DECL
6 Cerno I perceive 1SG.PRES.ACT.IND 3RD CONJ
7 quod that CONJ SUBORD INDECL
8 populus the people NOM.SG.M NOUN 2ND DECL
9 iste this NOM.SG.M PRON DEM
10 duræ stiff GEN.SG.F ADJ POS
11 cervicis of neck GEN.SG.F NOUN 3RD DECL
12 sit is / may be 3SG.PRES.SUBJ.ACT IRREG

Syntax

Narrative Introduction:
Rursumque ait Dominus ad Moysen — “And again the LORD said to Moses.”
Rursumque = adverb “again” + enclitic -que joining to the narrative flow.

Main Clause:
Cerno — first-person perception verb, introducing an object clause.

Object Clause Introduced by “quod”:
quod populus iste duræ cervicis sit — “that this people is stiff-necked.”

Noun Phrase:
populus iste — emphatic demonstrative, pointing to Israel’s obstinacy.
duræ cervicis — genitive of quality (“of stiff neck”).

Verb of Clause:
sit — present subjunctive, standard in Latin for object clauses after verbs of knowing/perceiving.

Morphology

  1. Rursumque — Lemma: rursum + que; Part of Speech: adverb with enclitic conjunction; Form: invariable; Function: narrative connector; Translation: and again; Notes: -que ties the action back to the prior divine speech.
  2. ait — Lemma: aio; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third singular perfect active indicative; Function: main verb; Translation: said; Notes: defective verb used for reporting speech.
  3. Dominus — Lemma: Dominus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: subject; Translation: the LORD; Notes: refers to YHWH, so “LORD” is used.
  4. ad — Lemma: ad; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs accusative; Function: introduces recipient; Translation: to; Notes: expresses direction toward the hearer.
  5. Moysen — Lemma: Moyses; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: indirect object; Translation: Moses; Notes: Greek-type declension in Latin.
  6. Cerno — Lemma: cerno; Part of Speech: verb; Form: first singular present active indicative; Function: verb of perception introducing an object clause; Translation: I perceive; Notes: takes quod + subjunctive.
  7. quod — Lemma: quod; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: invariable; Function: introduces object clause; Translation: that; Notes: widely used in later Latin instead of accusative + infinitive.
  8. populus — Lemma: populus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: subject of sit; Translation: the people; Notes: collective noun for Israel.
  9. iste — Lemma: iste; Part of Speech: demonstrative pronoun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: modifies populus; Translation: this; Notes: sometimes conveys disapproval or distance.
  10. duræ — Lemma: durus; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: genitive singular feminine; Function: modifies cervicis; Translation: stiff; Notes: part of a genitive-of-quality phrase.
  11. cervicis — Lemma: cervix; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive singular feminine; Function: genitive of quality; Translation: of neck; Notes: idiom meaning obstinate, unyielding.
  12. sit — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third singular present subjunctive active; Function: verb of object clause; Translation: is; Notes: subjunctive required by quod after verb of perception.

 

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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