Leviticus 19:37

Posted on April 19, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Lv 19:37 Custodite omnia præcepta mea, et universa iudicia, et facite ea. ego Dominus.

Keep all my commandments and all my judgments, and do them. I am the LORD.’”

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Custodite keep 2PL.PRES.ACT.IMP.MOOD
2 omnia all ACC.PL.N ADJ
3 præcepta commandments ACC.PL.N 2ND DECL NOUN
4 mea my ACC.PL.N POSS.ADJ
5 et and CONJ
6 universa all ACC.PL.N ADJ
7 iudicia judgments ACC.PL.N 2ND DECL NOUN
8 et and CONJ
9 facite do 2PL.PRES.ACT.IMP.MOOD
10 ea them ACC.PL.N DEM.PRON
11 ego I NOM.SG PERS.PRON
12 Dominus LORD NOM.SG.M 2ND DECL NOUN

Syntax

Primary Command: Custodite omnia præcepta mea (plural imperative commanding careful observance)

Coordinated Object: et universa iudicia (expands the scope from commands to judicial rulings)

Resulting Action: et facite ea (imperative stressing concrete enactment, not mere knowledge)

Authority Formula: ego Dominus (divine self-identification sealing the command)

Morphology

  1. Custodite — Lemma: custodio; Part of Speech: verb; Form: second person plural present imperative active; Function: principal command; Translation: keep; Notes: implies vigilant guarding and faithful observance, not passive awareness.
  2. omnia — Lemma: omnis; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: accusative neuter plural; Function: modifies præcepta; Translation: all; Notes: excludes selective obedience by emphasizing totality.
  3. præcepta — Lemma: præceptum; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative neuter plural second declension; Function: direct object of custodite; Translation: commandments; Notes: refers to direct divine instructions requiring compliance.
  4. mea — Lemma: meus; Part of Speech: possessive adjective; Form: accusative neuter plural; Function: modifies præcepta; Translation: my; Notes: grounds the commands in divine authority rather than human legislation.
  5. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: coordinating; Function: links complementary obligations; Translation: and; Notes: joins distinct but related categories of law.
  6. universa — Lemma: universus; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: accusative neuter plural; Function: modifies iudicia; Translation: all; Notes: stresses completeness, leaving no judicial ruling outside obedience.
  7. iudicia — Lemma: iudicium; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative neuter plural second declension; Function: second object of custodite; Translation: judgments; Notes: denotes legal decisions and ordinances governing communal life.
  8. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: coordinating; Function: introduces the concluding command; Translation: and; Notes: heightens urgency by moving from guarding to acting.
  9. facite — Lemma: facio; Part of Speech: verb; Form: second person plural present imperative active; Function: command; Translation: do; Notes: emphasizes practical implementation rather than theoretical assent.
  10. ea — Lemma: is; Part of Speech: demonstrative pronoun; Form: accusative neuter plural; Function: direct object of facite; Translation: them; Notes: gathers both commandments and judgments into a single obligation.
  11. ego — Lemma: ego; Part of Speech: personal pronoun; Form: nominative singular; Function: subject of identification; Translation: I; Notes: adds solemn emphasis to the speaker’s identity.
  12. Dominus — Lemma: dominus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative masculine singular second declension; Function: predicate nominative; Translation: LORD; Notes: the covenant name underscoring that obedience is owed to YHWH himself.

 

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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