Genesis 25:5

Posted on January 25, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Gn 25:5 Deditque Abraham cuncta quæ possederat, Isaac:

And Abraham gave all that he possessed to Isaac;

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Deditque and gave 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
2 Abraham Abraham NOM.SG.M
3 cuncta all things ACC.PL.N
4 quæ which PRON.REL.ACC.PL.N
5 possederat he had possessed 3SG.PLUPERF.ACT.IND
6 Isaac to Isaac DAT.SG.M

Syntax

Main Clause: Abraham (Subject) + dedit (Verb) + cuncta quæ possederat (Direct Object) + Isaac (Indirect Object).
Phrase: quæ possederat — Relative clause modifying cuncta, expressing possession.
Clause Function: The sentence presents a testamentary act — Abraham’s bequeathing of all possessions to Isaac.

Morphology

  1. Deditque — Lemma: do; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: Perfect active indicative, third person singular, with enclitic conjunction -que (“and”); Function: Main verb of the clause; Translation: “and gave”; Notes: -que links this clause with the preceding genealogical narrative, continuing the story.
  2. Abraham — Lemma: Abraham; Part of Speech: Proper noun; Form: Nominative singular masculine; Function: Subject of dedit; Translation: “Abraham”; Notes: Hebrew-origin name, uninflected in Latin; the patriarch of Israel.
  3. cuncta — Lemma: cunctus; Part of Speech: Adjective functioning substantively; Form: Accusative plural neuter; Function: Direct object of dedit; Translation: “all things” or “everything”; Notes: Plural neuter used collectively to denote totality of possessions.
  4. quæ — Lemma: qui, quae, quod; Part of Speech: Relative pronoun; Form: Accusative plural neuter; Function: Object of possederat, referring to cuncta; Translation: “which”; Notes: Introduces a relative clause qualifying the object “cuncta.”
  5. possederat — Lemma: possideo; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: Pluperfect active indicative, third person singular; Function: Predicate of the relative clause; Translation: “he had possessed”; Notes: Expresses completed possession prior to the giving action; temporal sequencing marked by pluperfect.
  6. Isaac — Lemma: Isaac; Part of Speech: Proper noun; Form: Dative singular masculine; Function: Indirect object of dedit; Translation: “to Isaac”; Notes: Hebrew-origin name, dative case expresses the beneficiary of the gift.

 

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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