Genesis 30:33

Posted on January 30, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Gn 30:33 Respondebitque mihi cras iustitia mea, quando placiti tempus advenerit coram te: et omnia quæ non fuerint varia, et maculosa, et furva, tam in ovibus quam in capris, furti me arguent.

And my righteousness will answer for me tomorrow, when the time of our agreement comes before you: and whatever will not be speckled, and spotted, and dark, both among the sheep and among the goats, will accuse me of theft.”

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Respondebitque and will answer 3SG.FUT.ACT.IND + CONJ
2 mihi for me DAT.SG.1P.PRON
3 cras tomorrow ADV
4 iustitia righteousness NOM.SG.F
5 mea my NOM.SG.F.POSS.ADJ
6 quando when CONJ
7 placiti of the agreement GEN.SG.N
8 tempus time NOM.SG.N
9 advenerit shall come 3SG.FUT.PERF.ACT.IND
10 coram before PREP + ABL
11 te you ABL.SG.2P.PRON
12 et and CONJ
13 omnia all things / everything NOM/ACC.PL.N
14 quæ which NOM/ACC.PL.N.REL.PRON
15 non not ADV
16 fuerint will have been 3PL.FUT.PERF.ACT.IND
17 varia speckled NOM/ACC.PL.N.ADJ
18 et and CONJ
19 maculosa spotted NOM/ACC.PL.N.ADJ
20 et and CONJ
21 furva dark NOM/ACC.PL.N.ADJ
22 tam both ADV
23 in among PREP + ABL
24 ovibus sheep ABL.PL.F
25 quam as CONJ
26 in among PREP + ABL
27 capris goats ABL.PL.F
28 furti of theft GEN.SG.N
29 me me ACC.SG.1P.PRON
30 arguent will accuse 3PL.FUT.ACT.IND

Syntax

Main Clause: Respondebitque mihi cras iustitia mea — The verb Respondebit is future indicative (“will answer”), with iustitia mea as subject and mihi as dative of advantage (“for me”).
Temporal Clause: quando placiti tempus advenerit coram te — Introduced by quando (“when”), this future perfect clause describes the arrival of the appointed time of judgment.
Relative Clause: et omnia quæ non fuerint varia et maculosa et furva — The neuter plural omnia is qualified by a relative clause referring to unmarked animals.
Correlative Phrase: tam in ovibus quam in capris — Indicates that the rule applies equally to both sheep and goats.
Main Predicate: furti me arguent — “will accuse me of theft”; me is direct object, furti is genitive of charge, and arguent is the future active indicative verb.

Morphology

  1. Respondebitque — Lemma: respondeo; Part of Speech: verb + conjunction; Form: future active indicative 3rd singular with enclitic -que; Function: main verb of the clause; Translation: “and will answer”; Notes: Expresses future vindication, joining this statement to the preceding context by -que.
  2. mihi — Lemma: ego; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: dative singular; Function: indirect object (dative of advantage); Translation: “for me”; Notes: Denotes that Jacob’s righteousness will testify on his behalf.
  3. cras — Lemma: cras; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: indeclinable; Function: temporal adverb; Translation: “tomorrow”; Notes: Points to a near-future time of reckoning between Jacob and Laban.
  4. iustitia — Lemma: iustitia; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular feminine; Function: subject of Respondebit; Translation: “righteousness”; Notes: Represents Jacob’s honesty as his own defense.
  5. mea — Lemma: meus; Part of Speech: adjective (possessive); Form: nominative singular feminine; Function: modifies iustitia; Translation: “my”; Notes: Emphasizes personal integrity and moral ownership.
  6. quando — Lemma: quando; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: introduces a temporal clause; Translation: “when”; Notes: Marks the time when Jacob’s innocence will be revealed.
  7. placiti — Lemma: placitum; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive singular neuter; Function: modifies tempus; Translation: “of the agreement”; Notes: Refers to the mutual covenant between Jacob and Laban.
  8. tempus — Lemma: tempus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular neuter; Function: subject of advenerit; Translation: “time”; Notes: Refers to the appointed moment of inspection or judgment.
  9. advenerit — Lemma: advenio; Part of Speech: verb; Form: future perfect active indicative 3rd singular; Function: main verb of temporal clause; Translation: “shall come”; Notes: Expresses an event completed prior to another future time.
  10. coram — Lemma: coram; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: prepositional phrase; Translation: “before”; Notes: Used to denote presence or witness before someone of authority.
  11. te — Lemma: tu; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: ablative singular; Function: object of coram; Translation: “you”; Notes: Direct reference to Laban, before whom Jacob’s integrity will be proved.
  12. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: introduces a coordinated clause; Translation: “and”; Notes: Connects the clause about the animals to the prior sentence.
  13. omnia — Lemma: omnis; Part of Speech: adjective used substantively; Form: nominative/accusative plural neuter; Function: subject of arguent; Translation: “everything”; Notes: Refers to all the animals under examination.
  14. quæ — Lemma: qui; Part of Speech: pronoun (relative); Form: nominative/accusative plural neuter; Function: introduces relative clause; Translation: “which”; Notes: Relates to omnia as antecedent, defining a subset.
  15. non — Lemma: non; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: indeclinable; Function: negation; Translation: “not”; Notes: Negates the adjectives that follow, identifying exceptions.
  16. fuerint — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: future perfect active indicative 3rd plural; Function: verb of relative clause; Translation: “will have been”; Notes: Refers to a future determination after observation.
  17. varia — Lemma: varius; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: nominative/accusative plural neuter; Function: complement of fuerint; Translation: “speckled”; Notes: Describes one acceptable coloration under the agreement.
  18. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: joins coordinate adjectives; Translation: “and”; Notes: Continues the list of qualifying markings.
  19. maculosa — Lemma: maculosus; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: nominative/accusative plural neuter; Function: coordinate predicate adjective; Translation: “spotted”; Notes: Indicates animals with visible marks or blotches.
  20. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: continues coordination; Translation: “and”; Notes: Joins the final member of the list.
  21. furva — Lemma: furvus; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: nominative/accusative plural neuter; Function: predicate adjective; Translation: “dark”; Notes: Describes dark-colored animals included in the agreement.
  22. tam — Lemma: tam; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: indeclinable; Function: correlative adverb paired with quam; Translation: “both”; Notes: Introduces parallel structure encompassing two classes of animals.
  23. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: marks relation of inclusion; Translation: “among / in”; Notes: First preposition of the correlative phrase.
  24. ovibus — Lemma: ovis; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative plural feminine; Function: object of in; Translation: “sheep”; Notes: Refers to female or mixed flocks under Jacob’s care.
  25. quam — Lemma: quam; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: correlative conjunction; Translation: “as”; Notes: Completes tam … quam structure, linking two categories.
  26. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: parallels the first in; Translation: “among / in”; Notes: Repetition for syntactic balance.
  27. capris — Lemma: capra; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative plural feminine; Function: object of in; Translation: “goats”; Notes: Completes the correlative contrast with ovibus.
  28. furti — Lemma: furtum; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive singular neuter; Function: genitive of charge; Translation: “of theft”; Notes: Expresses the crime of which Jacob would be accused if unmarked animals appeared.
  29. me — Lemma: ego; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: accusative singular; Function: direct object of arguent; Translation: “me”; Notes: The one potentially charged with wrongdoing.
  30. arguent — Lemma: arguo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: future active indicative 3rd plural; Function: main verb of the final clause; Translation: “will accuse”; Notes: Concludes the sentence, predicting a hypothetical accusation of theft if Jacob’s conditions are not met.

 

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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