Genesis 32:8

Posted on February 1, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Gn 32:8 dicens: Si venerit Esau ad unam turmam, et percusserit eam, alia turma, quæ relicta est, salvabitur.

saying: “If Esau comes to one company and strikes it, then the other company which is left will be saved.”

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 dicens saying PRES.ACT.PTCP.NOM.SG.M
2 Si if SCONJ
3 venerit he comes 3SG.FUTPERF.ACT.IND
4 Esau Esau NOM.SG.M
5 ad to/toward PREP+ACC
6 unam one ACC.SG.F
7 turmam company/group ACC.SG.F
8 et and CONJ
9 percusserit he strikes 3SG.FUTPERF.ACT.IND
10 eam it ACC.SG.F.PRON
11 alia the other NOM.SG.F
12 turma company/group NOM.SG.F
13 quæ which NOM.SG.F.REL
14 relicta left NOM.SG.F.PERF.PTCP.PASS
15 est is 3SG.PRES.ACT.IND
16 salvabitur will be saved 3SG.FUT.PASS.IND

Syntax

Participial Phrase: dicens introduces Jacob’s reasoning following his division of the camps.
Conditional Clause: Si venerit Esau ad unam turmam, et percusserit eam — protasis (“if”) with two coordinated future-perfect verbs venerit and percusserit; subject Esau; object of ad is unam turmam; direct object of percusserit is eam.
Main Clause (Apodosis): alia turma, quæ relicta est, salvabitur — subject alia turma; relative clause quæ relicta est modifies turma; main verb salvabitur expresses the result.

Morphology

  1. dicens — Lemma: dico; Part of Speech: participle; Form: nominative singular masculine present active participle; Function: introduces reported speech; Translation: “saying”; Notes: Refers to Jacob speaking after dividing the camps.
  2. Si — Lemma: si; Part of Speech: subordinating conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: introduces conditional clause; Translation: “if”; Notes: Marks protasis with future-perfect verbs.
  3. venerit — Lemma: venio; Part of Speech: verb; Form: 3rd person singular future perfect active indicative; Function: main verb of protasis; Translation: “comes/will have come”; Notes: Future perfect indicating completed approach before next event.
  4. Esau — Lemma: Esau; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: subject of venerit and percusserit; Translation: “Esau”; Notes: Brother of Jacob, subject of the conditional clause.
  5. ad — Lemma: ad; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs accusative; Function: expresses motion toward; Translation: “to/toward”; Notes: Used to mark destination.
  6. unam — Lemma: unus; Part of Speech: numeral adjective; Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: modifies turmam; Translation: “one”; Notes: Specifies one of the two divisions.
  7. turmam — Lemma: turma; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: object of ad; Translation: “company” or “group”; Notes: Military term for organized division.
  8. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: coordinates verbs; Translation: “and”; Notes: Links venerit and percusserit.
  9. percusserit — Lemma: percutio; Part of Speech: verb; Form: 3rd person singular future perfect active indicative; Function: second verb in protasis; Translation: “strikes/will have struck”; Notes: Future perfect anticipates possible violent action.
  10. eam — Lemma: is, ea, id; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: direct object of percusserit; Translation: “it”; Notes: Refers back to unam turmam.
  11. alia — Lemma: alius; Part of Speech: adjective/pronoun; Form: nominative singular feminine; Function: subject of salvabitur; Translation: “the other”; Notes: Contrasts with unam turmam.
  12. turma — Lemma: turma; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular feminine; Function: noun in apposition to alia; Translation: “company”; Notes: Repetition for clarity and emphasis.
  13. quæ — Lemma: qui, quae, quod; Part of Speech: relative pronoun; Form: nominative singular feminine; Function: subject of the relative clause; Translation: “which”; Notes: Introduces relative modifying turma.
  14. relicta — Lemma: relinquo; Part of Speech: perfect passive participle; Form: nominative singular feminine; Function: predicate adjective in relative clause; Translation: “left”; Notes: Refers to the group not attacked.
  15. est — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: auxiliary verb; Form: 3rd person singular present indicative; Function: auxiliary forming perfect passive; Translation: “is”; Notes: Helps form “has been left.”
  16. salvabitur — Lemma: salvo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: 3rd person singular future passive indicative; Function: main verb of apodosis; Translation: “will be saved”; Notes: Future passive indicating hopeful preservation.

 

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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