Leviticus 23:7

Posted on April 23, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Lv 23:7 dies primus erit vobis celeberrimus, sanctusque: omne opus servile non facietis in eo:

The first day shall be most solemn for you and holy; you shall do no servile work in it;

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 dies day NOM.SG.M
2 primus first NOM.SG.M.ADJ
3 erit shall be 3SG.FUT.ACT.IND
4 vobis for you DAT.PL.PERS
5 celeberrimus most solemn NOM.SG.M.ADJ.SUPER
6 sanctusque and holy NOM.SG.M.ADJ+CONJ
7 omne all ACC.SG.N.ADJ
8 opus work ACC.SG.N
9 servile servile ACC.SG.N.ADJ
10 non not ADV
11 facietis you shall do 2PL.FUT.ACT.IND
12 in in PREP+ABL
13 eo it ABL.SG.M.DEM

Syntax

Main Declaration: dies primus erit vobis celeberrimus sanctusque — nominative subject with future copula, dative of advantage, and coordinated predicate adjectives.
Absolute Prohibition: omne opus servile non facietis in eo — comprehensive ban using an accusative object, legislative future, and locative prepositional phrase.

Morphology

  1. dies — Lemma: dies; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: nominative masculine singular; Function: subject; Translation: “day”; Notes: Introduces the festival day.
  2. primus — Lemma: primus; Part of Speech: Adjective; Form: nominative masculine singular; Function: modifies dies; Translation: “first”; Notes: Marks the opening day of the feast.
  3. erit — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: third person singular future active indicative; Function: copula; Translation: “shall be”; Notes: Legislative future defining status.
  4. vobis — Lemma: vos; Part of Speech: Personal pronoun; Form: dative plural; Function: dative of advantage; Translation: “for you”; Notes: Addresses the covenant community.
  5. celeberrimus — Lemma: celeber; Part of Speech: Adjective; Form: nominative masculine singular superlative; Function: predicate adjective; Translation: “most solemn”; Notes: Superlative degree marking exceptional festal status.
  6. sanctusque — Lemma: sanctus; Part of Speech: Adjective with enclitic conjunction; Form: nominative masculine singular; Function: coordinated predicate adjective; Translation: “and holy”; Notes: The enclitic -que tightly links holiness with solemnity.
  7. omne — Lemma: omnis; Part of Speech: Adjective; Form: accusative neuter singular; Function: modifies opus; Translation: “all”; Notes: Expresses total scope.
  8. opus — Lemma: opus; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: accusative neuter singular; Function: direct object; Translation: “work”; Notes: General labor activity.
  9. servile — Lemma: servilis; Part of Speech: Adjective; Form: accusative neuter singular; Function: modifies opus; Translation: “servile”; Notes: Specifies labor of a workday character.
  10. non — Lemma: non; Part of Speech: Adverb; Form: indeclinable; Function: negation; Translation: “not”; Notes: Absolute prohibition.
  11. facietis — Lemma: facio; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: second person plural future active indicative; Function: prohibitive command; Translation: “you shall do”; Notes: Legislative future expressing obligation.
  12. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: governing the ablative; Function: locative; Translation: “in”; Notes: Refers to the specified day.
  13. eo — Lemma: is; Part of Speech: Demonstrative pronoun; Form: ablative masculine singular; Function: object of in; Translation: “it”; Notes: Points back to the first day.

 

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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