Exodus 34:12

Posted on March 25, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Ex 34:12 Cave ne umquam cum habitatoribus terræ illius iungas amicitias, quæ sint tibi in ruinam:

Beware lest ever you join friendships with the inhabitants of that land, which may be for you as a ruin;

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Cave beware 2SG.PRES.ACT.IMP 2ND CONJ
2 ne lest CONJ
3 umquam ever ADV
4 cum with PREP+ABL
5 habitatoribus inhabitants ABL.PL.M 3RD DECL
6 terræ of the land GEN.SG.F 1ST DECL
7 illius of that GEN.SG.F DEM.PRON
8 iungas you join 2SG.PRES.ACT.SUBJ 3RD CONJ
9 amicitias friendships ACC.PL.F 3RD DECL
10 quæ which NOM.PL.F REL.PRON
11 sint may be 3PL.PRES.ACT.SUBJ IRREG
12 tibi to you DAT.SG 2ND.PERS.PRON
13 in as / into PREP+ACC
14 ruinam ruin ACC.SG.F 1ST DECL

Syntax

Main Clause — Prohibition:
Cave ne umquam… iungas amicitias — “Beware lest you ever join friendships.”
• Cave = primary imperative.
• ne introduces negative purpose clause with the subjunctive iungas.
• umquam intensifies the prohibition.

Prepositional Phrase:
cum habitatoribus terræ illius — “with the inhabitants of that land.”
• Ablative object of cum.
• terræ illius = genitive phrase modifying habitatoribus.

Relative Clause of Result/Purpose:
quæ sint tibi in ruinam — “which may be for you as a ruin.”
• quæ refers to amicitias.
• sint subjunctive expresses potential danger.
• tibi = dative of disadvantage.
• in ruinam = predicate accusative expressing outcome.

Morphology

  1. Cave — Lemma: caveō; Part of Speech: verb; Form: 2nd person singular present active imperative; Function: head of main prohibition; Translation: beware; Notes: imperative of warning, especially common in legal and covenantal texts.
  2. ne — Lemma: nē; Part of Speech: subordinating conjunction; Form: invariable; Function: introduces negative clause with subjunctive; Translation: lest; Notes: signals feared or prohibited action.
  3. umquam — Lemma: umquam; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: invariable; Function: modifies iungas to indicate temporal universality; Translation: ever; Notes: strengthens the total prohibition.
  4. cum — Lemma: cum; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: introduces the persons with whom union is forbidden; Translation: with; Notes: marks association or companionship.
  5. habitatoribus — Lemma: habitātor; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative plural masculine, third declension; Function: object of cum; Translation: inhabitants; Notes: refers to settled residents of the land.
  6. terræ — Lemma: terra; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive singular feminine, first declension; Function: modifies habitatoribus; Translation: of the land; Notes: denotes territorial possession or location.
  7. illius — Lemma: ille; Part of Speech: demonstrative pronoun; Form: genitive singular feminine; Function: modifies terræ; Translation: of that; Notes: points to a specific land known in context.
  8. iungas — Lemma: iungō; Part of Speech: verb; Form: 2nd person singular present active subjunctive; Function: verb of negative purpose clause; Translation: you join; Notes: subjunctive required after ne.
  9. amicitias — Lemma: amīcitia; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural feminine, first declension; Function: direct object of iungas; Translation: friendships; Notes: covenantal or political alliances are implied, not merely personal friendship.
  10. quæ — Lemma: quī, quae, quod; Part of Speech: relative pronoun; Form: nominative plural feminine; Function: introduces clause modifying amicitias; Translation: which; Notes: refers back to the plural feminine antecedent.
  11. sint — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: 3rd person plural present active subjunctive; Function: verb of relative clause expressing potential danger; Translation: may be; Notes: subjunctive expresses feared or possible outcome.
  12. tibi — Lemma: tū; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: dative singular; Function: dative of disadvantage; Translation: to you; Notes: marks the harm falling upon the addressee.
  13. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs accusative; Function: introduces result phrase; Translation: into / as; Notes: expresses the state into which the friendships may turn.
  14. ruinam — Lemma: ruīna; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular feminine, first declension; Function: predicate accusative after in; Translation: ruin; Notes: expresses destructive consequence of forbidden alliances.

 

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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