Genesis 41:1

Posted on February 10, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Gn 41:1 Post duos annos vidit Pharao somnium. Putabat se stare super fluvium,

After two years, Pharao saw a dream. He thought that he was standing over the river,

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Post after PREP+ACC
2 duos two ADJ.ACC.PL.M
3 annos years NOUN.ACC.PL.M
4 vidit saw V.3SG.PERF.IND.ACT
5 Pharao Pharaoh NOUN.NOM.SG.M
6 somnium a dream NOUN.ACC.SG.N
7 Putabat he thought V.3SG.IMPF.IND.ACT
8 se himself PRON.ACC.SG.M/REFL
9 stare to stand V.INF.PRES.ACT
10 super over PREP+ACC
11 fluvium river NOUN.ACC.SG.M

Syntax

Main clause 1:
Post duos annos vidit Pharao somnium — “After two years, Pharaoh saw a dream.”
• Temporal phrase: Post duos annos.
• Subject: Pharao.
• Verb: vidit.
• Object: somnium.

Main clause 2 (indirect reflexive statement):
Putabat se stare super fluvium — “He thought that he was standing over the river.”
• Verb: Putabat.
• Subject of infinitive: se.
• Infinitive: stare.
• Prepositional phrase: super fluvium.

Morphology

  1. Post — Lemma: post; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs accusative; Function: introduces temporal phrase; Translation: “after”; Notes: Common with time expressions.
  2. duos — Lemma: duo; Part of Speech: numeral/adjective; Form: accusative plural masculine; Function: modifies annos; Translation: “two”; Notes: Accusative of time duration.
  3. annos — Lemma: annus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural masculine; Function: object of post; Translation: “years”; Notes: Time period.
  4. vidit — Lemma: video; Part of Speech: verb; Form: 3rd singular perfect indicative active; Function: main verb; Translation: “saw”; Notes: Perfect indicates completed action.
  5. Pharao — Lemma: Pharao; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: subject; Translation: “Pharaoh”; Notes: Egyptian royal title.
  6. somnium — Lemma: somnium; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular neuter; Function: direct object; Translation: “dream”; Notes: Object of vidit.
  7. Putabat — Lemma: puto; Part of Speech: verb; Form: 3rd singular imperfect indicative active; Function: introduces indirect statement; Translation: “he thought”; Notes: Imperfect indicates ongoing perception.
  8. se — Lemma: se; Part of Speech: reflexive pronoun; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: subject of infinitive; Translation: “himself”; Notes: Refers back to Pharaoh.
  9. stare — Lemma: sto; Part of Speech: verb; Form: present active infinitive; Function: infinitive in indirect statement; Translation: “to stand”; Notes: Complements putabat.
  10. super — Lemma: super; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs accusative; Function: introduces spatial phrase; Translation: “over”; Notes: Indicates position.
  11. fluvium — Lemma: fluvius; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: object of super; Translation: “river”; Notes: Likely Nile in context.

 

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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