Leviticus 23:21

Posted on April 23, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

21 Et vocabitis hunc diem celeberrimum, atque sanctissimum: omne opus servile non facietis in eo. Legitimum sempiternum erit in cunctis habitaculis, et generationibus vestris.

And you shall call this day most celebrated, and most holy; you shall do no servile work on it. It shall be a perpetual statute in all your dwellings, and throughout your generations.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Et and CONJ
2 vocabitis you shall call 2PL.FUT.ACT.IND
3 hunc this ACC.SG.M.DEM
4 diem day ACC.SG.M
5 celeberrimum most celebrated ACC.SG.M.ADJ.SUPER
6 atque and CONJ
7 sanctissimum most holy ACC.SG.M.ADJ.SUPER
8 omne every ACC.SG.N.ADJ
9 opus work ACC.SG.N
10 servile servile ACC.SG.N.ADJ
11 non not ADV
12 facietis you shall do 2PL.FUT.ACT.IND
13 in on PREP+ABL
14 eo it ABL.SG.M.DEM
15 Legitimum statute NOM.SG.N
16 sempiternum perpetual NOM.SG.N.ADJ
17 erit shall be 3SG.FUT.ACT.IND
18 in in PREP+ABL
19 cunctis all ABL.PL.N.ADJ
20 habitaculis dwellings ABL.PL.N
21 et and CONJ
22 generationibus generations ABL.PL.F
23 vestris your ABL.PL.F.POSS

Syntax

Declarative Command: Et vocabitis hunc diem — legislative future commanding formal designation of the day.
Predicate Complements: celeberrimum atque sanctissimum — coordinated superlative adjectives describing the day’s status.
Prohibition: omne opus servile non facietis in eo — absolute negative command banning servile labor on that day.
Legal Status: Legitimum sempiternum erit — future copular clause establishing enduring force.
Scope: in cunctis habitaculis et generationibus vestris — ablatives extending the statute across place and time.

Morphology

  1. Et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: coordination; Translation: “and”; Notes: Continues the legislative sequence.
  2. vocabitis — Lemma: voco; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: second person plural future active indicative; Function: main command; Translation: “you shall call”; Notes: Formal proclamation language.
  3. hunc — Lemma: hic; Part of Speech: Demonstrative adjective; Form: accusative masculine singular; Function: modifies diem; Translation: “this”; Notes: Points to a specific appointed day.
  4. diem — Lemma: dies; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: accusative masculine singular; Function: direct object; Translation: “day”; Notes: Cultic calendar reference.
  5. celeberrimum — Lemma: celeber; Part of Speech: Adjective; Form: accusative masculine singular superlative; Function: predicate complement; Translation: “most celebrated”; Notes: Emphasizes public solemnity.
  6. atque — Lemma: atque; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: close coordination; Translation: “and”; Notes: Stronger connective than et.
  7. sanctissimum — Lemma: sanctus; Part of Speech: Adjective; Form: accusative masculine singular superlative; Function: predicate complement; Translation: “most holy”; Notes: Marks the day as set apart to YHWH.
  8. omne — Lemma: omnis; Part of Speech: Adjective; Form: accusative neuter singular; Function: modifies opus; Translation: “every”; Notes: Totalizing prohibition.
  9. opus — Lemma: opus; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: accusative neuter singular; Function: direct object; Translation: “work”; Notes: General labor activity.
  10. servile — Lemma: servilis; Part of Speech: Adjective; Form: accusative neuter singular; Function: modifies opus; Translation: “servile”; Notes: Refers to ordinary occupational labor.
  11. non — Lemma: non; Part of Speech: Adverb; Form: indeclinable; Function: negation; Translation: “not”; Notes: Absolute prohibition.
  12. facietis — Lemma: facio; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: second person plural future active indicative; Function: prohibitive command; Translation: “you shall do”; Notes: Legislative future.
  13. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: governing the ablative; Function: temporal reference; Translation: “on”; Notes: Refers to the appointed day.
  14. eo — Lemma: is; Part of Speech: Demonstrative pronoun; Form: ablative masculine singular; Function: object of in; Translation: “it”; Notes: Refers back to diem.
  15. Legitimum — Lemma: legitimus; Part of Speech: Adjective used substantively; Form: nominative neuter singular; Function: subject; Translation: “statute”; Notes: Formal legal ordinance.
  16. sempiternum — Lemma: sempiternus; Part of Speech: Adjective; Form: nominative neuter singular; Function: predicate adjective; Translation: “perpetual”; Notes: Emphasizes enduring validity.
  17. erit — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: third person singular future active indicative; Function: copula; Translation: “shall be”; Notes: Establishes continuing status.
  18. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: governing the ablative; Function: scope; Translation: “in”; Notes: Introduces domains of application.
  19. cunctis — Lemma: cunctus; Part of Speech: Adjective; Form: ablative neuter plural; Function: modifies habitaculis; Translation: “all”; Notes: No exceptions implied.
  20. habitaculis — Lemma: habitaculum; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: ablative neuter plural; Function: locative scope; Translation: “dwellings”; Notes: Applies wherever the community resides.
  21. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: coordination; Translation: “and”; Notes: Adds temporal scope.
  22. generationibus — Lemma: generatio; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: ablative feminine plural; Function: temporal scope; Translation: “generations”; Notes: Extends the statute through time.
  23. vestris — Lemma: vester; Part of Speech: Possessive adjective; Form: ablative feminine plural; Function: modifies generationibus; Translation: “your”; Notes: Addresses the covenant community.

 

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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