Leviticus 18:2

Posted on April 18, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Lv 18:2 Loquere filiis Israel, et dices ad eos: Ego Dominus Deus vester:

“Speak to the sons of Israel, and you shall say to them: ‘I am the LORD your God.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Loquere speak 2SG.PRES.IMP.MOOD.DEP
2 filiis sons DAT.PL.M
3 Israel Israel INDECL
4 et and CONJ
5 dices you-will-say 2SG.FUT.ACT.IND
6 ad to PREP+ACC
7 eos them ACC.PL.M.PRON.PERS
8 Ego I NOM.SG.PRON.PERS
9 Dominus LORD NOM.SG.M
10 Deus God NOM.SG.M
11 vester your NOM.SG.M.PRON.POSS

Syntax

Main Command: Loquere — direct imperative addressed to Moses
Indirect Object: filiis Israel — recipients of the speech
Sequential Action: dices ad eos — future directive introducing the message
Declarative Clause: Ego Dominus Deus vester — covenantal self-identification
Predicate Structure: Subject Ego + Predicate Nouns Dominus, Deus with possessive modifier vester

Morphology

  1. Loquere — Lemma: loquor; Part of Speech: verb; Form: second person singular present imperative deponent; Function: command; Translation: speak; Notes: Deponent imperative with active meaning.
  2. filiis — Lemma: filius; Part of Speech: noun; Form: dative masculine plural, second declension; Function: indirect object; Translation: sons; Notes: Recipients of the instruction.
  3. Israel — Lemma: Israel; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: indeclinable; Function: genitive of relation with filiis; Translation: Israel; Notes: National designation.
  4. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: invariable; Function: coordination; Translation: and; Notes: Links commands.
  5. dices — Lemma: dico; Part of Speech: verb; Form: second person singular future indicative active; Function: directive action; Translation: you shall say; Notes: Future used for authoritative instruction.
  6. ad — Lemma: ad; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governing accusative; Function: direction toward; Translation: to; Notes: Introduces the addressees.
  7. eos — Lemma: is; Part of Speech: personal pronoun; Form: accusative masculine plural; Function: object of ad; Translation: them; Notes: Refers back to the sons of Israel.
  8. Ego — Lemma: ego; Part of Speech: personal pronoun; Form: nominative singular; Function: subject; Translation: I; Notes: Emphatic self-reference.
  9. Dominus — Lemma: Dominus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative masculine singular, second declension; Function: predicate noun; Translation: LORD; Notes: Refers to YHWH.
  10. Deus — Lemma: Deus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative masculine singular, second declension; Function: predicate noun in apposition; Translation: God; Notes: Identifies divine status.
  11. vester — Lemma: vester; Part of Speech: possessive pronoun; Form: nominative masculine singular; Function: modifies Deus; Translation: your; Notes: Covenantal possession.

 

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 Leviticus. Bookmark the permalink.

Comments are closed.