Exodus 4:20

Posted on February 23, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Ex 4:20 Tulit ergo Moyses uxorem suam, et filios suos, et imposuit eos super asinum, reversusque est in Ægyptum, portans virgam Dei in manu sua.

And so Moyses took his wife and his sons, and he placed them on a donkey, and he returned into Egypt, carrying the rod of God in his hand.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Tulit took 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
2 ergo therefore ADV
3 Moyses Moses NOM.SG.M
4 uxorem wife ACC.SG.F
5 suam his ACC.SG.F
6 et and CONJ
7 filios sons ACC.PL.M
8 suos his ACC.PL.M
9 et and CONJ
10 imposuit placed 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
11 eos them ACC.PL.M
12 super upon PREP+ACC
13 asinum donkey ACC.SG.M
14 reversusque and having returned NOM.SG.M.PERF.PTCP
15 est he is 3SG.PRES.ACT.IND
16 in into PREP+ACC
17 Ægyptum Egypt ACC.SG.F
18 portans carrying NOM.SG.M.PRES.ACT.PTCP
19 virgam rod ACC.SG.F
20 Dei of God GEN.SG.M
21 in in PREP+ABL
22 manu hand ABL.SG.F
23 sua his ABL.SG.F

Syntax

Main narrative verb: Tulit Moyses — subject Moyses, verb Tulit, objects uxorem suam and filios suos.
Coordinated action: imposuit eos super asinum — Moses places his family on a donkey.
Periphrastic perfect: reversusque est — “and he returned,” using a perfect participle + est.
Directional phrase: in Ægyptum — expresses motion toward Egypt.
Circumstantial participle: portans virgam Dei in manu sua — describes Moses while returning.
Genitive construction: virgam Dei — “the rod of God,” possession expressed by genitive.

Morphology

  1. Tulit — Lemma: fero; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular perfect active indicative; Function: principal narrative verb; Translation: took; Notes: perfect form of an irregular verb.
  2. ergo — Lemma: ergo; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: indeclinable; Function: logical connective marking narrative progression; Translation: therefore; Notes: often marks inference.
  3. Moyses — Lemma: Moyses; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: subject of Tulit; Translation: Moses; Notes: Latinized form of the Hebrew name.
  4. uxorem — Lemma: uxor; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: direct object; Translation: wife; Notes: refers to Zipporah.
  5. suam — Lemma: suus; Part of Speech: reflexive possessive adjective; Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: modifies uxorem; Translation: his; Notes: reflexive to the subject Moses.
  6. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: coordinating; Function: links direct objects; Translation: and; Notes: simple additive conjunction.
  7. filios — Lemma: filius; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural masculine; Function: direct object; Translation: sons; Notes: Gershom and Eliezer.
  8. suos — Lemma: suus; Part of Speech: reflexive possessive adjective; Form: accusative plural masculine; Function: modifies filios; Translation: his; Notes: reflexive to Moses.
  9. et — conjunction; links clauses.
  10. imposuit — Lemma: impono; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular perfect active indicative; Function: verb of placing; Translation: placed; Notes: governs double object (direct + prepositional).
  11. eos — Lemma: is; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: accusative plural masculine; Function: direct object of imposuit; Translation: them; Notes: refers to wife and sons collectively.
  12. super — Lemma: super; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs accusative; Function: expresses position above; Translation: upon; Notes: physical placement.
  13. asinum — Lemma: asinus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: object of super; Translation: donkey; Notes: typical transport animal.
  14. reversusque — Lemma: revertor; Part of Speech: deponent participle with enclitic -que; Form: nominative singular masculine perfect participle; Function: part of periphrastic verb; Translation: and having returned; Notes: deponent but active in meaning.
  15. est — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular present active indicative; Function: auxiliary forming perfect; Translation: he is; Notes: completes periphrastic perfect.
  16. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs accusative for motion; Function: directional preposition; Translation: into; Notes: expresses motion toward Egypt.
  17. Ægyptum — Lemma: Ægyptus; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: object of in; Translation: Egypt; Notes: destination.
  18. portans — Lemma: porto; Part of Speech: participle; Form: nominative singular masculine present active participle; Function: circumstantial participle; Translation: carrying; Notes: describes Moses during the journey.
  19. virgam — Lemma: virga; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: object of portans; Translation: rod; Notes: the same miraculous rod given by God.
  20. Dei — Lemma: Deus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive singular masculine; Function: possessive genitive; Translation: of God; Notes: expresses divine ownership.
  21. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: expresses location; Translation: in; Notes: refers to Moses’ hand.
  22. manu — Lemma: manus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular feminine; Function: object of in; Translation: hand; Notes: ablative of location.
  23. sua — Lemma: suus; Part of Speech: reflexive possessive adjective; Form: ablative singular feminine; Function: modifies manu; Translation: his; Notes: refers to Moses.

 

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.