Genesis 28:18

Posted on January 28, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Gn 28:18 Surgens ergo Iacob mane, tulit lapidem quem supposuerat capiti suo, et erexit in titulum, fundens oleum desuper.

And Jacob, rising early in the morning, took the stone that he had placed under his head, and set it up as a pillar, pouring oil on top of it.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Surgens rising NOM.SG.M.PART.PRES.ACT
2 ergo therefore ADV
3 Iacob Jacob NOM.SG.M
4 mane in the morning ADV
5 tulit he took 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
6 lapidem stone ACC.SG.M
7 quem which ACC.SG.M.REL
8 supposuerat he had placed under 3SG.PLUPERF.ACT.IND
9 capiti to the head DAT.SG.N
10 suo his DAT.SG.N.PRON.ADJ
11 et and CONJ
12 erexit he set up 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
13 in into PREP+ACC
14 titulum pillar ACC.SG.M
15 fundens pouring NOM.SG.M.PART.PRES.ACT
16 oleum oil ACC.SG.N
17 desuper from above/on top ADV

Syntax

Participle Phrase: Surgens ergo Iacob mane — circumstantial participle describing the time and condition of the main action; Iacob is the subject, Surgens agrees with it in gender and number, mane functions adverbially (“in the morning”).
Main Clause: tulit lapidem quem supposuerat capiti suo — perfect indicative expressing completed action; lapidem is the direct object, quem supposuerat is a relative clause modifying lapidem.
Coordinated Clause: et erexit in titulum — conjunction et joins a subsequent action; in titulum marks purpose/result (“as a pillar”).
Supplementary Phrase: fundens oleum desuper — circumstantial participle expressing the accompanying action, modifying the subject Iacob.

Morphology

  1. Surgens — Lemma: surgo; Part of Speech: participle; Form: nominative singular masculine present active participle; Function: modifies Iacob; Translation: “rising”; Notes: Describes action simultaneous with the main verb.
  2. ergo — Lemma: ergo; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: —; Function: transitional marker; Translation: “therefore”; Notes: Indicates inference or sequence in narrative.
  3. Iacob — Lemma: Iacob; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: subject of tulit and erexit; Translation: “Jacob”; Notes: Central subject of the verse.
  4. mane — Lemma: mane; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: —; Function: adverbial modifier of time; Translation: “in the morning”; Notes: Indicates early timing of the action.
  5. tulit — Lemma: fero; Part of Speech: verb; Form: perfect active indicative 3rd person singular; Function: main verb; Translation: “he took”; Notes: Describes completed action of taking the stone.
  6. lapidem — Lemma: lapis; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: direct object of tulit; Translation: “stone”; Notes: Object later used in ritual consecration.
  7. quem — Lemma: qui; Part of Speech: relative pronoun; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: object of supposuerat; Translation: “which”; Notes: Refers back to lapidem.
  8. supposuerat — Lemma: suppono; Part of Speech: verb; Form: pluperfect active indicative 3rd person singular; Function: verb of the relative clause; Translation: “he had placed under”; Notes: Refers to earlier action while sleeping.
  9. capiti — Lemma: caput; Part of Speech: noun; Form: dative singular neuter; Function: indirect object of supposuerat; Translation: “to the head”; Notes: Indicates spatial relation (“under his head”).
  10. suo — Lemma: suus; Part of Speech: pronoun/adjective; Form: dative singular neuter; Function: possessive modifier of capiti; Translation: “his”; Notes: Reflexive possessive referring to Jacob.
  11. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: coordinating; Function: connects clauses; Translation: “and”; Notes: Introduces next sequential act.
  12. erexit — Lemma: erigo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: perfect active indicative 3rd person singular; Function: verb of second clause; Translation: “he set up”; Notes: Marks consecrating action of establishing a pillar.
  13. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs accusative; Function: expresses transformation or purpose; Translation: “into/as”; Notes: Denotes the state resulting from the action.
  14. titulum — Lemma: titulus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: object of in; Translation: “pillar”; Notes: A commemorative marker of the event.
  15. fundens — Lemma: fundo; Part of Speech: participle; Form: nominative singular masculine present active; Function: circumstantial participle; Translation: “pouring”; Notes: Describes accompanying ritual action.
  16. oleum — Lemma: oleum; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular neuter; Function: object of fundens; Translation: “oil”; Notes: Symbol of consecration and dedication.
  17. desuper — Lemma: desuper; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: —; Function: modifies fundens; Translation: “from above/on top”; Notes: Denotes direction of the pouring motion.

 

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 Genesis. Bookmark the permalink.

Comments are closed.