Exodus 5:6

Posted on February 24, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Ex 5:6 Præcepit ergo in die illo præfectis operum et exactoribus populi, dicens:

Therefore on that day he commanded the overseers of the works and the taskmasters of the people, saying:

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Præcepit he commanded 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
2 ergo therefore ADV
3 in on PREP+ABL
4 die day ABL.SG.M
5 illo that ABL.SG.M
6 præfectis to the overseers DAT.PL.M
7 operum of the works GEN.PL.N
8 et and CONJ
9 exactoribus to the taskmasters DAT.PL.M
10 populi of the people GEN.SG.M
11 dicens saying PRES.ACT.PART.NOM.SG.M

Syntax

Main clause: Præcepit ergo in die illo — perfect verb marking decisive royal command.
Indirect object cluster: præfectis operum et exactoribus populi — two coordinated datives identifying groups receiving the order.
Participle: dicens — introduces the content of the forthcoming command (next verse).
Structure: Pharaoh issues an administrative command directly to supervisory hierarchies.

Morphology

  1. Præcepit — Lemma: præcipio; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular perfect active indicative; Function: main verb; Translation: he commanded; Notes: expresses authoritative directive.
  2. ergo — Lemma: ergo; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: logical connective; Function: infers from previous argument; Translation: therefore; Notes: marks consequence.
  3. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: indicates time; Translation: on; Notes: ablative of time when.
  4. die — Lemma: dies; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular masculine; Function: object of in; Translation: day; Notes: classical ambigender noun.
  5. illo — Lemma: ille; Part of Speech: demonstrative adjective; Form: ablative singular masculine; Function: modifies die; Translation: that; Notes: indicates specificity.
  6. præfectis — Lemma: præfectus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: dative plural masculine; Function: indirect object; Translation: to the overseers; Notes: administrative officials overseeing labor.
  7. operum — Lemma: opus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive plural neuter; Function: modifies præfectis; Translation: of the works; Notes: refers to construction or labor tasks.
  8. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Function: joins coordinated datives; Translation: and; Notes: links administrative ranks.
  9. exactoribus — Lemma: exactor; Part of Speech: noun; Form: dative plural masculine; Function: indirect object; Translation: to the taskmasters; Notes: those who enforced quotas.
  10. populi — Lemma: populus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive singular masculine; Function: modifies exactoribus; Translation: of the people; Notes: refers to the Israelites.
  11. dicens — Lemma: dico; Part of Speech: participle; Form: present active participle nominative singular masculine; Function: introduces direct speech; Translation: saying; Notes: agrees with implicit subject “he” (Pharaoh).

 

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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