Leviticus 24:18

Posted on April 24, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Lv 24:18 Qui percusserit animal, reddet vicarium, id est animam pro anima.

Whoever strikes an animal, shall restore a substitute, that is, life for life.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Qui whoever NOM.SG.M REL
2 percusserit has struck 3SG.FUTP.ACT.IND
3 animal animal ACC.SG.N
4 reddet shall restore 3SG.FUT.ACT.IND
5 vicarium a substitute ACC.SG.N
6 id that is NOM.SG.N DEM
7 est is 3SG.PRES.ACT.IND
8 animam life ACC.SG.F
9 pro for PREP+ABL
10 anima life ABL.SG.F

Syntax

Legal Subject: Qui — relative pronoun establishing a general statute.

Offense Clause: percusserit animal — future perfect describing the completed harmful act.

Main Legal Consequence: reddet vicarium — future indicative prescribing restitution.

Explanatory Apposition: id est animam pro anima — clarifies the nature of the restitution as equivalent life-for-life compensation.

Morphology

  1. Qui — Lemma: qui; Part of Speech: relative pronoun; Form: nominative masculine singular; Function: universal legal subject; Translation: whoever; Notes: introduces a rule applicable without exception.
  2. percusserit — Lemma: percutio; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular future perfect indicative active; Function: verb of the conditional offense; Translation: has struck; Notes: frames the act as completed prior to judgment.
  3. animal — Lemma: animal; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative neuter singular, third declension; Function: direct object of percusserit; Translation: animal; Notes: covers livestock and beasts generally.
  4. reddet — Lemma: reddo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular future indicative active; Function: states the mandated outcome; Translation: shall restore; Notes: legal term for restitution or repayment.
  5. vicarium — Lemma: vicarius; Part of Speech: adjective used substantively; Form: accusative neuter singular; Function: direct object of reddet; Translation: a substitute; Notes: emphasizes replacement rather than punishment.
  6. id — Lemma: is; Part of Speech: demonstrative pronoun; Form: nominative neuter singular; Function: subject of the explanatory clause; Translation: that; Notes: introduces clarification.
  7. est — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular present indicative active; Function: copula; Translation: is; Notes: equates the terms of restitution.
  8. animam — Lemma: anima; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative feminine singular, first declension; Function: predicate accusative after id est; Translation: life; Notes: refers to the living being taken.
  9. pro — Lemma: pro; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governing the ablative; Function: expresses substitution or exchange; Translation: for; Notes: standard equivalence marker.
  10. anima — Lemma: anima; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative feminine singular; Function: object of pro; Translation: life; Notes: completes the principle of equal replacement.

 

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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