Exodus 36:23

Posted on March 27, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Ex 36:23 E quibus viginti ad plagam meridianam erant contra Austrum,

Of which twenty were on the southern side, facing the South Wind.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 E from / of PREP+ABL
2 quibus of which ABL.PL.F PRON.REL
3 viginti twenty INDECL.NUM
4 ad toward PREP+ACC
5 plagam side ACC.SG.F NOUN
6 meridianam southern ACC.SG.F ADJ
7 erant were 3PL.IMP.ACT.IND
8 contra facing PREP+ACC
9 Austrum the South Wind / south ACC.SG.M NOUN

Syntax

Prepositional Phrase:
E quibus — “of which,” referring back to the boards earlier listed.
• ablative of source with relative pronoun.

Main Clause:
viginti … erant
• viginti = numeral functioning as subject (understood “boards”).
• erant = linking verb.

Locative Phrase:
ad plagam meridianam
• ad + accusative expresses orientation toward a side.
• plagam meridianam = “the southern side.”

Directional Complement:
contra Austrum — “facing the South Wind.”
• gives external orientation of the boards.

Morphology

  1. E — Lemma: e/ex; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: expresses source; Translation: of / from; Notes: introduces the part of a larger set.
  2. quibus — Lemma: qui, quae, quod; Part of Speech: relative pronoun; Form: ablative plural feminine; Function: refers to the previously mentioned boards; Translation: of which; Notes: ablative after e.
  3. viginti — Lemma: viginti; Part of Speech: numeral; Form: indeclinable; Function: numerical subject; Translation: twenty; Notes: standard cardinal numeral.
  4. ad — Lemma: ad; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs accusative; Function: expresses orientation; Translation: toward; Notes: commonly used for spatial direction.
  5. plagam — Lemma: plaga; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: object of ad; Translation: side; Notes: used for cardinal directions (“side of the sky”).
  6. meridianam — Lemma: meridianus; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: modifies plagam; Translation: southern; Notes: denotes direction relative to the sun’s height.
  7. erant — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: 3rd person plural imperfect active indicative; Function: linking verb; Translation: were; Notes: descriptive imperfect used for structural arrangement.
  8. contra — Lemma: contra; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs accusative; Function: expresses facing or opposition; Translation: facing; Notes: spatial orientation here, not adversative.
  9. Austrum — Lemma: Auster; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: object of contra; Translation: the South Wind / south; Notes: Auster is both a wind and a cardinal direction.

 

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.