Genesis 35:7

Posted on February 4, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Gn 35:7 Ædificavitque ibi altare, et appellavit nomen loci illius, Domus Dei: ibi enim apparuit ei Deus cum fugeret fratrem suum.

And he built an altar there, and he called the name of that place House of God; for there God appeared to him when he was fleeing his brother.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Ædificavitque and he built 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
2 ibi there ADV
3 altare altar NOUN.ACC.SG.N
4 et and CONJ
5 appellavit he called 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
6 nomen name NOUN.ACC.SG.N
7 loci of the place NOUN.GEN.SG.M
8 illius that PRON.GEN.SG.M
9 Domus House NOUN.NOM.SG.F
10 Dei of God NOUN.GEN.SG.M
11 ibi there ADV
12 enim for CONJ
13 apparuit appeared 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
14 ei to him PRON.DAT.SG.M
15 Deus God NOUN.NOM.SG.M
16 cum when CONJ
17 fugeret he was fleeing 3SG.IMPF.ACT.SUBJ
18 fratrem brother NOUN.ACC.SG.M
19 suum his ADJ.ACC.SG.M

Syntax

Main Clause 1: Ædificavitque … altare — verb Ædificavitque governs direct object altare; adverb ibi marks location.
Main Clause 2: et appellavit nomen loci illius Domus Dei — verb appellavit takes object nomen, specified by genitive loci illius; predicate name Domus Dei in apposition to “nomen.”
Explanatory Clause: ibi enim apparuit ei Deus — causal/explanatory “for there God appeared to him,” giving the reason for the naming.
Temporal Subordinate: cum fugeret fratrem suum — “when he was fleeing his brother,” modifying the theophany.

Morphology

  1. Ædificavitque — Lemma: aedificō; Part of Speech: verb; Form: perfect active indicative, 3rd singular, with enclitic -que; Function: main predicate of building; Translation: “and he built”; Notes: -que coordinates with the following clause.
  2. ibi — Lemma: ibi; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: simple; Function: adverb of place; Translation: “there”; Notes: Locative setting.
  3. altare — Lemma: altāre; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular neuter; Function: direct object; Translation: “altar”; Notes: Object of the building action.
  4. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: coordinating; Function: links main clauses; Translation: “and”; Notes: Simple coordinator.
  5. appellavit — Lemma: appellō; Part of Speech: verb; Form: perfect active indicative, 3rd singular; Function: main predicate of naming; Translation: “he called”; Notes: Speech-act of naming.
  6. nomen — Lemma: nōmen; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular neuter; Function: direct object of “appellavit”; Translation: “name”; Notes: Receives the predicate appellation.
  7. loci — Lemma: locus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive singular masculine; Function: dependent genitive on “nomen”; Translation: “of the place”; Notes: Specifies the entity named.
  8. illius — Lemma: ille; Part of Speech: demonstrative; Form: genitive singular masculine; Function: modifier of “loci”; Translation: “that”; Notes: Deictic reference to the specific site.
  9. Domus — Lemma: domus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular feminine; Function: predicate name in apposition to “nomen”; Translation: “House”; Notes: First part of the place-name.
  10. Dei — Lemma: Deus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive singular masculine; Function: completes the name; Translation: “of God”; Notes: Refers to God (no “Dominus” form here).
  11. ibi — Lemma: ibi; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: simple; Function: adverb of place; Translation: “there”; Notes: Begins the explanatory clause.
  12. enim — Lemma: enim; Part of Speech: conjunction/particle; Form: postpositive; Function: marks explanation; Translation: “for”; Notes: Typically second position in clause.
  13. apparuit — Lemma: appareō; Part of Speech: verb; Form: perfect active indicative, 3rd singular; Function: main verb of theophany clause; Translation: “appeared”; Notes: Punctual theophanic event.
  14. ei — Lemma: is, ea, id; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: dative singular masculine; Function: indirect object; Translation: “to him”; Notes: Recipient is Jacob.
  15. Deus — Lemma: Deus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: subject; Translation: “God”; Notes: Subject of “apparuit.”
  16. cum — Lemma: cum; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: temporal; Function: introduces subordinate time clause; Translation: “when”; Notes: Takes the subjunctive in classical narrative.
  17. fugeret — Lemma: fugiō; Part of Speech: verb; Form: imperfect active subjunctive, 3rd singular; Function: verb of the temporal clause; Translation: “he was fleeing”; Notes: Connotes contemporaneous background action.
  18. fratrem — Lemma: frāter; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: object of “fugeret”; Translation: “brother”; Notes: Esau is the referent.
  19. suum — Lemma: suus; Part of Speech: possessive adjective; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: possessive modifier of “fratrem”; Translation: “his”; Notes: Reflexive, referring back to Jacob.

 

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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