Leviticus 20:10

Posted on April 20, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Lv 20:10 Si mœchatus quis fuerit cum uxore alterius, et adulterium perpetraverit cum coniuge proximi sui, morte moriantur et mœchus et adultera.

If anyone has committed adultery with the wife of another, and has perpetrated adultery with the spouse of his neighbor, both the adulterer and the adulteress shall surely die.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Si if CONJ
2 mœchatus having committed adultery PERF.DEP.PTCP.NOM.SG.M
3 quis anyone NOM.SG.M (INDEF)
4 fuerit has been 3SG.PERF.ACT.SUBJ
5 cum with PREP+ABL
6 uxore wife ABL.SG.F (3RD DECL)
7 alterius of another GEN.SG.M (ADJ)
8 et and CONJ
9 adulterium adultery ACC.SG.N (2ND DECL)
10 perpetraverit has committed 3SG.PERF.ACT.SUBJ
11 cum with PREP+ABL
12 coniuge spouse ABL.SG.F (3RD DECL)
13 proximi of neighbor GEN.SG.M (2ND DECL)
14 sui his own GEN.SG.M (POSS)
15 morte by death ABL.SG.F (3RD DECL)
16 moriantur let them die 3PL.PRES.DEP.SUBJ
17 et both / and CONJ
18 mœchus adulterer NOM.SG.M (2ND DECL)
19 et and CONJ
20 adultera adulteress NOM.SG.F (1ST DECL)

Syntax

Conditional Clause: Si mœchatus quis fuerit — legal condition using perfect periphrasis to define the offense.

Prepositional Complement: cum uxore alterius — specifies violation of another man’s marriage.

Coordinated Offense: et adulterium perpetraverit cum coniuge proximi sui — restates and intensifies the charge with explicit legal terminology.

Penalty Formula: morte moriantur — fixed idiom mandating death.

Subjects of Execution: et mœchus et adultera — both guilty parties named explicitly.

Morphology

  1. Si — Lemma: si; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: invariable; Function: introduces legal condition; Translation: “if”; Notes: Standard juridical conditional marker.
  2. mœchatus — Lemma: mœchor; Part of Speech: deponent verb (participle); Form: perfect deponent participle nominative masculine singular; Function: predicates the subject in a periphrastic construction; Translation: “having committed adultery”; Notes: Deponent verb expressing moral offense.
  3. quis — Lemma: quis; Part of Speech: indefinite pronoun; Form: nominative masculine singular; Function: subject of the conditional clause; Translation: “anyone”; Notes: Intentionally non-specific legal subject.
  4. fuerit — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular perfect active subjunctive; Function: auxiliary completing the periphrasis; Translation: “has been”; Notes: Typical legal tense after si.
  5. cum — Lemma: cum; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: indicates association; Translation: “with”; Notes: Marks illicit union.
  6. uxore — Lemma: uxor; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative feminine singular; Function: object of cum; Translation: “wife”; Notes: Married woman under covenant protection.
  7. alterius — Lemma: alter; Part of Speech: adjective/pronoun; Form: genitive masculine singular; Function: modifies uxore; Translation: “of another”; Notes: Establishes violation of another man’s marriage.
  8. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: invariable; Function: coordination; Translation: “and”; Notes: Links parallel offenses.
  9. adulterium — Lemma: adulterium; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative neuter singular; Function: direct object of perpetraverit; Translation: “adultery”; Notes: Legal designation of the crime.
  10. perpetraverit — Lemma: perpetro; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular perfect active subjunctive; Function: verb of the conditional clause; Translation: “has committed”; Notes: Formal legal verb for execution of an act.
  11. cum — Lemma: cum; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: association; Translation: “with”; Notes: Reiterates illicit union.
  12. coniuge — Lemma: coniunx; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative feminine singular; Function: object of cum; Translation: “spouse”; Notes: Stresses lawful marital bond.
  13. proximi — Lemma: proximus; Part of Speech: adjective (substantive); Form: genitive masculine singular; Function: modifies coniuge; Translation: “of neighbor”; Notes: Covenantal social relationship.
  14. sui — Lemma: suus; Part of Speech: possessive pronoun; Form: genitive masculine singular; Function: modifies proximi; Translation: “his own”; Notes: Reflexive reference to the offender.
  15. morte — Lemma: mors; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative feminine singular; Function: ablative of manner; Translation: “by death”; Notes: Part of a fixed judicial formula.
  16. moriantur — Lemma: morior; Part of Speech: deponent verb; Form: third person plural present subjunctive; Function: jussive penalty verb; Translation: “let them die”; Notes: Expresses mandated execution.
  17. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: invariable; Function: coordination; Translation: “and”; Notes: Introduces named subjects.
  18. mœchus — Lemma: mœchus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative masculine singular; Function: subject of moriantur; Translation: “adulterer”; Notes: Male offender named explicitly.
  19. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: invariable; Function: coordination; Translation: “and”; Notes: Joins both offenders.
  20. adultera — Lemma: adultera; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative feminine singular; Function: subject of moriantur; Translation: “adulteress”; Notes: Female offender included equally in the penalty.

 

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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