Leviticus 25:37

Posted on April 25, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Lv 25:37 Pecuniam tuam non dabis ei ad usuram, et frugum superabundantiam non exiges.

You shall not give your money to him at interest, and you shall not exact an excess of produce.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Pecuniam money ACC.SG.F.1ST.DECL
2 tuam your ACC.SG.F.POSS.ADJ
3 non not ADV
4 dabis you will give 2SG.FUT.IND.ACT
5 ei to him DAT.SG.PERS.PRON
6 ad for PREP+ACC
7 usuram interest ACC.SG.F.1ST.DECL
8 et and CONJ
9 frugum of produce GEN.PL.F.3RD.DECL
10 superabundantiam excess ACC.SG.F.1ST.DECL
11 non not ADV
12 exiges you will exact 2SG.FUT.IND.ACT

Syntax

Main Prohibition (Financial): Pecuniam tuam non dabis ei ad usuram — future indicative with negation expressing a binding legal ban on lending at interest.
Coordinated Prohibition (Agricultural): et frugum superabundantiam non exiges — parallel future indicative extending the ban to produce-based exploitation.
Dative of Recipient: ei — marks the vulnerable beneficiary protected by the law.

Morphology

  1. Pecuniam — Lemma: pecunia; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular feminine, first declension; Function: direct object; Translation: money; Notes: Refers to monetary capital rather than goods.
  2. tuam — Lemma: tuus; Part of Speech: possessive adjective; Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: modifies pecuniam; Translation: your; Notes: Personalizes responsibility.
  3. non — Lemma: non; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: invariable; Function: negation; Translation: not; Notes: Establishes prohibition.
  4. dabis — Lemma: do; Part of Speech: verb; Form: second person singular future indicative active; Function: main verb; Translation: you will give; Notes: Future indicative carries prescriptive legal force.
  5. ei — Lemma: is; Part of Speech: personal pronoun; Form: dative singular masculine; Function: indirect object; Translation: to him; Notes: Refers to the impoverished brother.
  6. ad — Lemma: ad; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governing the accusative; Function: purpose; Translation: for; Notes: Introduces the intended gain.
  7. usuram — Lemma: usura; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular feminine, first declension; Function: object of ad; Translation: interest; Notes: Denotes profit taken from a loan.
  8. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: invariable; Function: coordination; Translation: and; Notes: Links parallel prohibitions.
  9. frugum — Lemma: frux; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive plural feminine, third declension; Function: dependent genitive; Translation: of produce; Notes: Refers to agricultural yield.
  10. superabundantiam — Lemma: superabundantia; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular feminine, first declension; Function: direct object; Translation: excess; Notes: Indicates surplus demanded beyond fairness.
  11. non — Lemma: non; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: invariable; Function: negation; Translation: not; Notes: Reiterates the ban.
  12. exiges — Lemma: exigo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: second person singular future indicative active; Function: main verb; Translation: you will exact; Notes: Conveys coercive collection, explicitly forbidden.

 

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.
This entry was posted in Leviticus. Bookmark the permalink.

Comments are closed.