Genesis 41:50

Posted on February 10, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Gn 41:50 Nati sunt autem Ioseph filii duo antequam veniret fames: quos peperit ei Aseneth filia Putiphare sacerdotis Heliopoleos.

But two sons were born to Joseph before the famine came; whom Aseneth, the daughter of Putiphare, the priest of Heliopolis, bore to him.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Nati born NOM.PL.M.PERF.PASS.PTCP
2 sunt were 3PL.PRES.ACT.IND
3 autem however ADV
4 Ioseph Joseph DAT.SG.M
5 filii sons NOM.PL.M
6 duo two NOM.PL.M.NUM
7 antequam before CONJ
8 veniret came 3SG.IMP.ACT.SUBJ
9 fames famine NOM.SG.F
10 quos whom ACC.PL.M
11 peperit bore 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
12 ei to him DAT.SG.M
13 Aseneth Aseneth NOM.SG.F
14 filia daughter NOM.SG.F
15 Putiphare of Putiphare GEN.SG.M
16 sacerdotis of the priest GEN.SG.M
17 Heliopoleos of Heliopolis GEN.SG.F

Syntax

Main Clause:
• Nati sunt autem Ioseph filii duo — “But two sons were born to Joseph.”
— Nati sunt = passive periphrastic (“were born”).
— filii duo = subject (“two sons”).
— Ioseph = dative of reference (“to Joseph”).
— autem = transitional adverb.

Temporal Clause:
• antequam veniret fames — “before the famine came.”
— antequam introduces temporal clause.
— veniret = imperfect subjunctive (anticipated event).
— fames = subject.

Relative Clause:
• quos peperit ei Aseneth filia Putiphare sacerdotis Heliopoleos
— quos = object of peperit.
— peperit = main verb (“bore”).
— ei = indirect object (“to him”).
— Aseneth = subject.
— filia Putiphare sacerdotis Heliopoleos = apposition identifying lineage.

Morphology

  1. Nati — Lemma: nascor; Part of Speech: participle; Form: nominative plural masculine perfect passive participle; Function: subject component of passive periphrasis; Translation: “born”; Notes: deponent verb with passive form.
  2. sunt — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: present active indicative third person plural; Function: auxiliary verb; Translation: “were”; Notes: completes passive construction.
  3. autem — Lemma: autem; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: invariable; Function: transitional connective; Translation: “however”; Notes: soft contrastive marker in narrative.
  4. Ioseph — Lemma: Ioseph; Part of Speech: noun; Form: dative singular masculine; Function: indirect object; Translation: “to Joseph”; Notes: dative of reference (“born to Joseph”).
  5. filii — Lemma: filius; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative plural masculine; Function: subject; Translation: “sons”; Notes: two sons: Manasseh and Ephraim.
  6. duo — Lemma: duo; Part of Speech: numeral; Form: nominative plural masculine; Function: modifies filii; Translation: “two”; Notes: agrees in gender and number.
  7. antequam — Lemma: antequam; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: invariable; Function: introduces temporal clause; Translation: “before”; Notes: takes subjunctive when referring to anticipated events.
  8. veniret — Lemma: venio; Part of Speech: verb; Form: imperfect active subjunctive third person singular; Function: verb of temporal clause; Translation: “came”; Notes: describes future-in-the-past event.
  9. fames — Lemma: fames; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular feminine; Function: subject of veniret; Translation: “famine”; Notes: refers to the predicted seven years of want.
  10. quos — Lemma: qui, quae, quod; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: accusative plural masculine; Function: direct object of peperit; Translation: “whom”; Notes: refers to the two sons.
  11. peperit — Lemma: pario; Part of Speech: verb; Form: perfect active indicative third person singular; Function: main verb; Translation: “bore”; Notes: denotes childbirth.
  12. ei — Lemma: is, ea, id; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: dative singular masculine; Function: indirect object; Translation: “to him”; Notes: refers to Joseph.
  13. Aseneth — Lemma: Aseneth; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: nominative singular feminine; Function: subject of peperit; Translation: “Aseneth”; Notes: Joseph’s Egyptian wife.
  14. filia — Lemma: filia; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular feminine; Function: apposition to Aseneth; Translation: “daughter”; Notes: identifies lineage.
  15. Putiphare — Lemma: Putiphar; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: genitive singular masculine; Function: genitive modifying filia; Translation: “of Putiphare”; Notes: father of Aseneth.
  16. sacerdotis — Lemma: sacerdos; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive singular masculine; Function: further genitive in apposition; Translation: “of the priest”; Notes: Putiphare held priestly office.
  17. Heliopoleos — Lemma: Heliopolis; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: genitive singular feminine; Function: specifies the priesthood’s location; Translation: “of Heliopolis”; Notes: major Egyptian cult center.

 

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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