Exodus 9:17

Posted on February 28, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Ex 9:17 Adhuc retines populum meum: et non vis dimittere eum?

Do you still hold back My people, and do you not want to release them?

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Adhuc still ADV
2 retines you hold back 2SG.PRES.ACT.IND
3 populum people ACC.SG.M
4 meum my ACC.SG.M (ADJ)
5 et and CONJ
6 non not ADV
7 vis you want 2SG.PRES.ACT.IND
8 dimittere to release INF.PRES.ACT
9 eum him / it ACC.SG

Syntax

Main Interrogative Sequence:

Adhuc retines populum meum — “Do you still hold back my people?”
• retines — main verb, present active
• populum meum — direct object (“my people”)
• Adhuc — rhetorical intensifier indicating persistence

et non vis dimittere eum? — “and do you not want to release them?”
• vis — verb of volition
• dimittere — complementary infinitive
• eum — refers collectively to “my people” as a unit

Morphology

  1. Adhuc — Lemma: adhuc; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: temporal adverb; Function: indicates ongoing action; Translation: “still”; Notes: Adds emphasis to Pharaoh’s persistent refusal.
  2. retines — Lemma: retineo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: present active indicative 2nd singular; Function: main verb; Translation: “you hold back”; Notes: Implies deliberate restraint.
  3. populum — Lemma: populus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: direct object of retines; Translation: “people”; Notes: Refers to the nation of Israel.
  4. meum — Lemma: meus; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: modifies populum; Translation: “my”; Notes: Indicates divine possession.
  5. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: coordinating; Function: links two clauses; Translation: “and”; Notes: Connects the two rhetorical questions.
  6. non — Lemma: non; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: negator; Function: negates vis; Translation: “not”; Notes: Strengthens the rhetorical force.
  7. vis — Lemma: volo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: present active indicative 2nd singular; Function: verb governing infinitive; Translation: “you want”; Notes: Suggests a willful refusal.
  8. dimittere — Lemma: dimitto; Part of Speech: verb; Form: present active infinitive; Function: complementary infinitive to vis; Translation: “to release”; Notes: The action Pharaoh refuses to perform.
  9. eum — Lemma: is; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: accusative singular; Function: object of dimittere; Translation: “him / it”; Notes: Singular referring collectively to “the people” as a nation.

 

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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