Exodus 4:31

Posted on February 23, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Ex 4:31 et credidit populus. Audieruntque quod visitasset Dominus filios Israel, et respexisset afflictionem illorum: et proni adoraverunt.

And the people believed. And they heard that the LORD had visited the sons of Israel, and had looked upon their affliction, and they bowed down in worship.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 et and CONJ
2 credidit believed 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
3 populus the people NOM.SG.M
4 Audieruntque and they heard 3PL.PERF.ACT.IND
5 quod that CONJ
6 visitasset had visited 3SG.PLUP.ACT.SUBJ
7 Dominus LORD NOM.SG.M
8 filios sons ACC.PL.M
9 Israel Israel GEN.SG.M
10 et and CONJ
11 respexisset had looked upon 3SG.PLUP.ACT.SUBJ
12 afflictionem affliction ACC.SG.F
13 illorum of them GEN.PL.M
14 et and CONJ
15 proni bent down NOM.PL.M
16 adoraverunt worshiped 3PL.PERF.ACT.IND

Syntax

Main clause #1: et credidit populus — subject populus, verb credidit, expressing belief.
Main clause #2: Audieruntque … — introduces a content clause with quod.
Content clause #1: quod visitasset Dominus filios Israel — pluperfect subjunctive visitasset indicates reported divine visitation.
Content clause #2: et respexisset afflictionem illorum — parallel structure describing divine compassion.
Final action: proni adoraverunt — subject implied by plural predicate adjective proni, verb adoraverunt; expresses reverential worship.
Structure: narrative moves from belief → report → divine action → worship.

Morphology

  1. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: coordinating; Function: links to previous sentence; Translation: and; Notes: standard narrative connective.
  2. credidit — Lemma: credo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular perfect active indicative; Function: expresses completed act of believing; Translation: believed; Notes: perfect marks decisive faith response.
  3. populus — Lemma: populus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: subject; Translation: the people; Notes: collective singular.
  4. Audieruntque — Lemma: audio; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person plural perfect active indicative with enclitic -que; Function: begins next narrative action; Translation: and they heard; Notes: perfect for completed reception of news.
  5. quod — Lemma: quod; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: subordinating; Function: introduces content clause; Translation: that; Notes: classical and biblical Latin usage.
  6. visitasset — Lemma: visito; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular pluperfect active subjunctive; Function: verb of content clause; Translation: had visited; Notes: subjunctive used in indirect discourse.
  7. Dominus — Lemma: Dominus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: subject of visitasset; Translation: LORD; Notes: refers to YHWH.
  8. filios — Lemma: filius; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural masculine; Function: direct object of visitasset; Translation: sons; Notes: denotes Israelites.
  9. Israel — Lemma: Israel; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: genitive singular masculine; Function: modifies filios; Translation: Israel; Notes: genitive of relation.
  10. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Function: links second content clause; Translation: and; Notes: continues report.
  11. respexisset — Lemma: respicio; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular pluperfect active subjunctive; Function: verb of second content clause; Translation: had looked upon; Notes: expresses compassionate regard.
  12. afflictionem — Lemma: afflictio; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: object of respexisset; Translation: affliction; Notes: suffering of Israel in Egypt.
  13. illorum — Lemma: ille; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: genitive plural masculine; Function: modifies afflictionem; Translation: of them; Notes: refers to the Israelites.
  14. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Function: transitions to final narrative act; Translation: and; Notes: marks culmination.
  15. proni — Lemma: pronus; Part of Speech: adjective functioning substantively; Form: nominative plural masculine; Function: subject (implied “they”); Translation: bent down; Notes: posture of reverence.
  16. adoraverunt — Lemma: adoro; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person plural perfect active indicative; Function: main verb of worship; Translation: worshiped; Notes: perfect describing completed act of reverence.

 

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.