Genesis 31:19

Posted on January 31, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Gn 31:19 Eo tempore ierat Laban ad tondendas oves, et Rachel furata est idola patris sui.

At that time Laban had gone to shear the sheep, and Rachel stole her father’s idols.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Eo at that ABL.SG.N.DEMONSTR
2 tempore time ABL.SG.N
3 ierat had gone 3SG.PLUPERF.ACT.IND
4 Laban Laban NOM.SG.M
5 ad to PREP+ACC
6 tondendas to shear ACC.PL.F.FUT.PTCP.PASS
7 oves sheep ACC.PL.F
8 et and CONJ
9 Rachel Rachel NOM.SG.F
10 furata stole NOM.SG.F.PERF.PTCP.DEP
11 est has 3SG.PRES.ACT.IND
12 idola idols ACC.PL.N
13 patris of (her) father GEN.SG.M
14 sui her GEN.SG.M.REFL.PRON

Syntax

Temporal Clause: Eo tempore ierat Laban ad tondendas oves — sets the time frame, indicating Laban’s absence for shearing.
Main Clause: et Rachel furata est idola patris sui — the main event, revealing Rachel’s secretive theft.
Contrast: While Laban is occupied in labor, Rachel acts covertly, heightening narrative tension.

Morphology

  1. Eo — Lemma: is, ea, id; Part of Speech: demonstrative pronoun; Form: ablative singular neuter; Function: modifies tempore in ablative of time; Translation: “at that”; Notes: Introduces the temporal setting of the event.
  2. tempore — Lemma: tempus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular neuter; Function: ablative of time when; Translation: “time”; Notes: Specifies the occasion of the action, typical for narrative framing.
  3. ierat — Lemma: eo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: pluperfect active indicative, 3rd person singular; Function: main verb of temporal clause; Translation: “had gone”; Notes: Denotes completed action prior to Rachel’s theft.
  4. Laban — Lemma: Laban; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: subject of ierat; Translation: “Laban”; Notes: Jacob’s father-in-law, setting contrast with Rachel’s action.
  5. ad — Lemma: ad; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs accusative; Function: expresses purpose; Translation: “to”; Notes: Introduces infinitive or gerundive purpose phrase.
  6. tondendas — Lemma: tondeo; Part of Speech: participle (gerundive); Form: accusative plural feminine future passive; Function: expresses purpose (“for shearing”); Translation: “to shear”; Notes: Used idiomatically after ad to indicate purpose.
  7. oves — Lemma: ovis; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural feminine; Function: object of gerundive; Translation: “sheep”; Notes: Indicates Laban’s flock and the routine pastoral labor.
  8. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: links clauses; Translation: “and”; Notes: Connects two simultaneous events.
  9. Rachel — Lemma: Rachel; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: nominative singular feminine; Function: subject of furata est; Translation: “Rachel”; Notes: Acts independently, setting up moral and narrative complexity.
  10. furata — Lemma: furor; Part of Speech: deponent participle; Form: nominative singular feminine perfect; Function: predicate in perfect tense; Translation: “stole”; Notes: Deponent form emphasizing completed stealth action.
  11. est — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: auxiliary verb; Form: present indicative, 3rd person singular; Function: auxiliary forming perfect of deponent; Translation: “has”; Notes: Required for perfect tense in deponent constructions.
  12. idola — Lemma: idolum; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural neuter; Function: direct object of furata est; Translation: “idols”; Notes: Refers to household gods (*teraphim*), symbolizing inheritance claims.
  13. patris — Lemma: pater; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive singular masculine; Function: possessive genitive; Translation: “of (her) father”; Notes: Shows theft against family authority, not foreign property.
  14. sui — Lemma: suus; Part of Speech: reflexive possessive pronoun; Form: genitive singular masculine; Function: modifies patris; Translation: “her”; Notes: Reflects Rachel’s relationship and emphasizes betrayal of kinship.

 

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.