Genesis 33:2

Posted on February 2, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Gn 33:2 et posuit utramque ancillam, et liberos earum in principio: Liam vero, et filios eius in secundo loco: Rachel autem, et Ioseph novissimos.

and he placed both the maidservants and their children in front; Lia, however, and her sons in the second place; and Rachel and Joseph last.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 et and CONJ
2 posuit he placed 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
3 utramque each / both ACC.SG.F (NUM.ADJ)
4 ancillam maidservant ACC.SG.F
5 et and CONJ
6 liberos children ACC.PL.M
7 earum their GEN.PL.F (POSS.PRON)
8 in in / at PREP+ABL
9 principio the beginning / front ABL.SG.N
10 Liam Leah ACC.SG.F (PROPN)
11 vero however ADV
12 et and CONJ
13 filios sons / children ACC.PL.M
14 eius her GEN.SG.F (POSS.PRON)
15 in in / at PREP+ABL
16 secundo second ABL.SG.M (ORD.NUM.ADJ)
17 loco place ABL.SG.M
18 Rachel Rachel ACC.SG.F (PROPN.INDECL)
19 autem and / however CONJ
20 et and CONJ
21 Ioseph Joseph ACC.SG.M (PROPN.INDECL)
22 novissimos last / rearmost ACC.PL.M (SUPERL.ADJ)

Syntax

Main Clause 1: et posuit utramque ancillam et liberos earum in principio — “And he placed both maidservants and their children in front.”
• Verb: posuit — perfect, indicates completed placement.
• Object Phrases: utramque ancillam + liberos earum — direct objects, “both maidservants and their children.”
• Prepositional Phrase: in principio — ablative of place, “in front” (lit. “in the beginning”).

Main Clause 2: Liam vero et filios eius in secundo loco — “Leah, however, and her children in the second place.”
• Subject/Objects: Liam et filios eius — accusatives as coordinated objects of understood “posuit.”
• Adverb: vero — marks contrast (“however”).
• Prepositional Phrase: in secundo loco — “in the second place.”

Main Clause 3: Rachel autem et Ioseph novissimos — “and Rachel and Joseph last.”
• Verb (understood): posuit implied from context.
• Subjects/Objects: Rachel et Ioseph — accusatives of placement.
• Predicate Adjective: novissimos — “rearmost,” agreeing with both in position sense.

Morphology

  1. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: invariable; Function: connects clauses; Translation: “and”; Notes: Sequential connector introducing the main action.
  2. posuit — Lemma: pono; Part of Speech: verb; Form: perfect active indicative, 3rd singular; Function: main verb; Translation: “he placed”; Notes: Denotes deliberate arrangement of family members.
  3. utramque — Lemma: uterque; Part of Speech: numeral adjective; Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: modifies “ancillam”; Translation: “both”; Notes: Refers collectively to Bilhah and Zilpah.
  4. ancillam — Lemma: ancilla; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: direct object; Translation: “maidservant”; Notes: One of the two handmaids.
  5. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: invariable; Function: connects coordinated objects; Translation: “and”; Notes: Links “ancillam” and “liberos.”
  6. liberos — Lemma: liber; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural masculine; Function: direct object; Translation: “children”; Notes: Refers to offspring of the maidservants.
  7. earum — Lemma: is, ea, id; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: genitive plural feminine; Function: possessive genitive; Translation: “their”; Notes: Refers back to “ancillae.”
  8. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: indicates place; Translation: “in / at”; Notes: Introduces locative phrase.
  9. principio — Lemma: principium; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular neuter; Function: object of “in”; Translation: “in the front”; Notes: Locative expression.
  10. Liam — Lemma: Lia; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: direct object of implied “posuit”; Translation: “Leah”; Notes: Placed in middle group.
  11. vero — Lemma: vero; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: invariable; Function: contrastive adverb; Translation: “however”; Notes: Signals change or contrast.
  12. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: invariable; Function: joins “Liam” and “filios eius”; Translation: “and”; Notes: Connective.
  13. filios — Lemma: filius; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural masculine; Function: direct object; Translation: “sons / children”; Notes: Refers to Leah’s offspring.
  14. eius — Lemma: is, ea, id; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: genitive singular feminine; Function: possessive modifier; Translation: “her”; Notes: Possessive reference to Leah.
  15. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: denotes position; Translation: “in”; Notes: Used with locative noun “loco.”
  16. secundo — Lemma: secundus; Part of Speech: adjective (ordinal); Form: ablative singular masculine; Function: modifies “loco”; Translation: “second”; Notes: Indicates order of placement.
  17. loco — Lemma: locus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular masculine; Function: object of “in”; Translation: “place”; Notes: Completes prepositional phrase.
  18. Rachel — Lemma: Rachel; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: accusative singular feminine (indeclinable); Function: direct object of implied “posuit”; Translation: “Rachel”; Notes: Placed last with Joseph.
  19. autem — Lemma: autem; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: invariable; Function: introduces contrastive clause; Translation: “and,” “however”; Notes: Postpositive conjunction.
  20. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: invariable; Function: connects “Rachel” and “Ioseph”; Translation: “and”; Notes: Coordinates last pair.
  21. Ioseph — Lemma: Ioseph; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: accusative singular masculine (indeclinable); Function: direct object of implied “posuit”; Translation: “Joseph”; Notes: Rachel’s son.
  22. novissimos — Lemma: novissimus; Part of Speech: adjective (superlative); Form: accusative plural masculine; Function: predicate adjective agreeing with Rachel and Joseph; Translation: “last”; Notes: Denotes the rearmost group.

 

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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