Leviticus 19:31

Posted on April 19, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Lv 19:31 Non declinetis ad magos, nec ab ariolis aliquid sciscitemini, ut polluamini per eos. ego Dominus Deus vester.

You shall not turn aside to magicians, nor shall you inquire anything from soothsayers, so that you be defiled through them. I am the LORD your God.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Non not ADV
2 declinetis you turn aside 2PL.PRES.ACT.SUBJ
3 ad to PREP+ACC
4 magos magicians ACC.PL.M 2ND DECL NOUN
5 nec nor CONJ
6 ab from PREP+ABL
7 ariolis soothsayers ABL.PL.M 2ND DECL NOUN
8 aliquid anything ACC.SG.N INDEF.PRON
9 sciscitemini you inquire 2PL.PRES.DEP.SUBJ
10 ut so that CONJ
11 polluamini you be defiled 2PL.PRES.PASS.SUBJ
12 per through PREP+ACC
13 eos them ACC.PL.M PERS.PRON
14 ego I NOM.SG PERS.PRON
15 Dominus LORD NOM.SG.M 2ND DECL NOUN
16 Deus God NOM.SG.M 2ND DECL NOUN
17 vester your NOM.SG.M POSS.ADJ

Syntax

Primary Prohibition: Non declinetis ad magos (negative jussive subjunctive expressing a direct prohibition with goal)

Coordinated Prohibition: nec ab ariolis aliquid sciscitemini (negative coordination; deponent subjunctive with source expressed by ab)

Purpose Clause: ut polluamini per eos (subjunctive clause stating the avoided consequence; means expressed by per)

Authority Formula: ego Dominus Deus vester (divine self-identification grounding the command)

Morphology

  1. Non — Lemma: non; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: negation; Function: negates the jussive verb; Translation: not; Notes: standard legal negator.
  2. declinetis — Lemma: declino; Part of Speech: verb; Form: second person plural present subjunctive active; Function: jussive prohibition; Translation: you turn aside; Notes: subjunctive used for prohibitions in legal style.
  3. ad — Lemma: ad; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governing the accusative; Function: marks direction or goal; Translation: to; Notes: expresses turning toward illicit sources.
  4. magos — Lemma: magus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative masculine plural second declension; Function: object of ad; Translation: magicians; Notes: practitioners of occult arts.
  5. nec — Lemma: nec; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: negative coordinator; Function: adds a parallel prohibition; Translation: nor; Notes: cumulative negation.
  6. ab — Lemma: ab; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governing the ablative; Function: marks source; Translation: from; Notes: indicates origin of inquiry.
  7. ariolis — Lemma: ariolus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative masculine plural second declension; Function: object of ab; Translation: soothsayers; Notes: fortune-tellers claiming prophetic insight.
  8. aliquid — Lemma: aliquid; Part of Speech: indefinite pronoun; Form: accusative neuter singular; Function: direct object of sciscitemini; Translation: anything; Notes: broadens the scope of forbidden inquiry.
  9. sciscitemini — Lemma: sciscitor; Part of Speech: verb (deponent); Form: second person plural present subjunctive deponent; Function: jussive prohibition; Translation: you inquire; Notes: deponent with active meaning.
  10. ut — Lemma: ut; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: purpose/result marker; Function: introduces a purpose clause; Translation: so that; Notes: states the avoided outcome.
  11. polluamini — Lemma: polluo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: second person plural present subjunctive passive; Function: verb of the purpose clause; Translation: you be defiled; Notes: passive highlights receiving impurity.
  12. per — Lemma: per; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governing the accusative; Function: expresses means; Translation: through; Notes: indicates agency or instrumentality.
  13. eos — Lemma: is; Part of Speech: personal pronoun; Form: accusative masculine plural; Function: object of per; Translation: them; Notes: refers back to the occult practitioners.
  14. ego — Lemma: ego; Part of Speech: personal pronoun; Form: nominative singular; Function: subject of identification; Translation: I; Notes: emphatic divine self-reference.
  15. Dominus — Lemma: dominus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative masculine singular second declension; Function: apposition to ego; Translation: LORD; Notes: rendered in all caps when referring to YHWH.
  16. Deus — Lemma: deus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative masculine singular second declension; Function: further apposition; Translation: God; Notes: identifies divine nature.
  17. vester — Lemma: vester; Part of Speech: possessive adjective; Form: nominative masculine singular; Function: modifies Deus; Translation: your; Notes: affirms covenant relationship.

 

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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