Genesis 32:29

Posted on February 1, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Gn 32:29 Interrogavit eum Iacob: Dic mihi, quo appellaris nomine? Respondit: Cur quæris nomen meum? Et benedixit ei in eodem loco.

And Jacob asked him: “Tell me, what is your name?” He replied: “Why do you ask my name?” And he blessed him there in the same place.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Interrogavit he asked 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
2 eum him ACC.SG.M (PRON)
3 Iacob Jacob NOM.SG.M (PROPN.INDECL)
4 Dic tell 2SG.PRES.ACT.IMP
5 mihi to me DAT.SG (PRON)
6 quo what INTERROG.ADV
7 appellaris you are called 2SG.PRES.PASS.IND
8 nomine by name ABL.SG.N
9 Respondit he replied 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
10 Cur why INTERROG.ADV
11 quæris you ask 2SG.PRES.ACT.IND
12 nomen name ACC.SG.N
13 meum my ACC.SG.N (POSS.ADJ)
14 Et and CONJ
15 benedixit he blessed 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
16 ei him DAT.SG (PRON)
17 in in PREP+ABL
18 eodem the same ABL.SG.M (DEM.ADJ)
19 loco place ABL.SG.M

Syntax

Main Clause 1: Interrogavit eum Iacob — “And Jacob asked him.”
• Subject: Iacob — nominative, subject of the verb.
• Object: eum — accusative, the one questioned.
• Verb: Interrogavit — perfect indicative, denoting a completed action.

Direct Speech Clause 1: Dic mihi, quo appellaris nomine? — “Tell me, what is your name?”
• Imperative: Dic — command, second person singular.
• Dative: mihi — recipient of the action (“to me”).
• Interrogative Clause: quo appellaris nomine — “by what name are you called?”
• Appellaris — passive indicative; nomine in ablative of respect.

Main Clause 2: Respondit — introduces divine response.
Direct Speech Clause 2: Cur quæris nomen meum? — “Why do you ask my name?”
• Cur — interrogative adverb introducing question of reason.
• Quæris — present indicative active, main verb of question.
• Nomen meum — direct object phrase, “my name.”

Main Clause 3: Et benedixit ei in eodem loco — “And he blessed him there in the same place.”
• Verb: Benedixit — perfect indicative, denoting completed blessing.
• Indirect Object: ei — “to him,” dative.
• Prepositional Phrase: in eodem loco — ablative of location, “in the same place.”

Morphology

  1. Interrogavit — Lemma: interrogo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: perfect active indicative, 3rd singular; Function: main verb introducing question; Translation: “he asked”; Notes: Completed action of inquiry.
  2. eum — Lemma: is, ea, id; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: direct object; Translation: “him”; Notes: Refers to the divine being.
  3. Iacob — Lemma: Iacob; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: nominative singular masculine (indeclinable); Function: subject of “Interrogavit”; Translation: “Jacob”; Notes: Uninflected Hebrew proper name.
  4. Dic — Lemma: dico; Part of Speech: verb; Form: present active imperative, 2nd singular; Function: command; Translation: “tell”; Notes: Direct address to the divine opponent.
  5. mihi — Lemma: ego; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: dative singular; Function: indirect object; Translation: “to me”; Notes: Marks the recipient of the command.
  6. quo — Lemma: quis, quid; Part of Speech: interrogative adverb; Form: invariable; Function: expresses means or manner; Translation: “by what”; Notes: Used with ablative “nomine.”
  7. appellaris — Lemma: appello; Part of Speech: verb; Form: present passive indicative, 2nd singular; Function: main verb of indirect question; Translation: “you are called”; Notes: Passive of naming; second person address.
  8. nomine — Lemma: nomen; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular neuter; Function: ablative of respect; Translation: “by name”; Notes: Expresses specification of naming.
  9. Respondit — Lemma: respondeo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: perfect active indicative, 3rd singular; Function: introduces reply; Translation: “he replied”; Notes: Standard verb for reporting answers.
  10. Cur — Lemma: cur; Part of Speech: interrogative adverb; Form: invariable; Function: introduces question of reason; Translation: “why”; Notes: Common in rhetorical inquiry.
  11. quæris — Lemma: quæro; Part of Speech: verb; Form: present active indicative, 2nd singular; Function: main verb; Translation: “you ask”; Notes: Direct address, indicative of present action.
  12. nomen — Lemma: nomen; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular neuter; Function: direct object of “quæris”; Translation: “name”; Notes: Object of inquiry.
  13. meum — Lemma: meus; Part of Speech: possessive adjective; Form: accusative singular neuter; Function: modifies “nomen”; Translation: “my”; Notes: Possessive adjective modifying a neuter noun.
  14. Et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: invariable; Function: links clauses; Translation: “and”; Notes: Coordinates the final narrative clause.
  15. benedixit — Lemma: benedico; Part of Speech: verb; Form: perfect active indicative, 3rd singular; Function: main verb; Translation: “he blessed”; Notes: Compound verb with dative object (“ei”).
  16. ei — Lemma: is, ea, id; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: dative singular masculine; Function: indirect object of “benedixit”; Translation: “him”; Notes: Refers to Jacob as recipient of blessing.
  17. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: expresses location; Translation: “in”; Notes: Takes ablative with static sense.
  18. eodem — Lemma: idem; Part of Speech: demonstrative adjective/pronoun; Form: ablative singular masculine; Function: modifies “loco”; Translation: “the same”; Notes: Demonstrative of identity.
  19. loco — Lemma: locus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular masculine; Function: object of preposition “in”; Translation: “place”; Notes: Indicates physical location of blessing.

 

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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