Genesis 43:2

Posted on February 12, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Gn 43:2 Consumptisque cibis quos ex Ægypto detulerant, dixit Iacob ad filios suos: Revertimini, et emite nobis pauxillum escarum.

And when the food which they had brought from Egypt was consumed, Jacob said to his sons: “Return, and buy for us a little food.”

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Consumptis having been consumed ABL.PL.N.PTCP.PERF.PASS
2 que and ENCLITIC.CONJ
3 cibis foods ABL.PL.M
4 quos which ACC.PL.M (REL.PRON)
5 ex from PREP+ABL
6 Ægypto Egypt ABL.SG.F (PROPER)
7 detulerant they had brought 3PL.PLUP.ACT.IND
8 dixit said 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
9 Iacob Jacob NOM.SG.M (PROPER)
10 ad to PREP+ACC
11 filios sons ACC.PL.M
12 suos his ACC.PL.M
13 Revertimini return 2PL.PRES.ACT.IMPER
14 et and CONJ
15 emite buy 2PL.PRES.ACT.IMPER
16 nobis for us DAT.PL
17 pauxillum a little ACC.SG.N
18 escarum of food GEN.PL.F

Syntax

Temporal Ablative Absolute:
• Consumptis cibis — “when the food had been consumed.”
• que links the participle to its noun.

Relative Clause:
• quos ex Ægypto detulerant — modifies “cibis,” explaining which food.

Main Clause:
• dixit Iacob ad filios suos — Jacob addresses his sons.

Direct Commands:
• Revertimini — “Return.”
• et emite nobis pauxillum escarum — “and buy for us a little food.”

Morphology

  1. Consumptis — Lemma: consumo; Part of Speech: participle; Form: ablative plural neuter perfect passive participle; Function: ablative absolute; Translation: “having been consumed”; Notes: Sets temporal background.
  2. que — Lemma: que; Part of Speech: enclitic conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: links “consumptis” with “cibis”; Translation: “and”; Notes: Attached to previous word.
  3. cibis — Lemma: cibus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative plural masculine; Function: object in ablative absolute; Translation: “foods”; Notes: Refers to supplies from Egypt.
  4. quos — Lemma: qui; Part of Speech: relative pronoun; Form: accusative plural masculine; Function: object of “detulerant”; Translation: “which”; Notes: Introduces relative clause.
  5. ex — Lemma: ex; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: + ablative; Function: expresses source; Translation: “from”; Notes: Origin.
  6. Ægypto — Lemma: Ægyptus; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: ablative singular feminine; Function: object of preposition; Translation: “Egypt”; Notes: Indicates origin of the food.
  7. detulerant — Lemma: defero; Part of Speech: verb; Form: pluperfect active indicative 3rd plural; Function: verb of relative clause; Translation: “they had brought”; Notes: Perfective past prior to main clause.
  8. dixit — Lemma: dico; Part of Speech: verb; Form: perfect active indicative 3rd singular; Function: main verb; Translation: “said”; Notes: Introduces direct speech.
  9. Iacob — Lemma: Iacob; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: subject; Translation: “Jacob”; Notes: Hebrew form.
  10. ad — Lemma: ad; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: + accusative; Function: indicates direction toward a person; Translation: “to”; Notes: Takes human object.
  11. filios — Lemma: filius; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural masculine; Function: object of preposition; Translation: “sons”; Notes: Direct audience.
  12. suos — Lemma: suus; Part of Speech: reflexive adjective; Form: accusative plural masculine; Function: modifies “filios”; Translation: “his”; Notes: Refers to Jacob as possessor.
  13. Revertimini — Lemma: revertor; Part of Speech: deponent verb; Form: present imperative 2nd plural; Function: command; Translation: “return”; Notes: Deponent with active meaning.
  14. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: coordinating; Function: links commands; Translation: “and”; Notes: Smooth continuation.
  15. emite — Lemma: emo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: present active imperative 2nd plural; Function: command; Translation: “buy”; Notes: Commercial action.
  16. nobis — Lemma: nos; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: dative plural; Function: indirect object; Translation: “for us”; Notes: Beneficiary.
  17. pauxillum — Lemma: pauxillus; Part of Speech: adjective used substantively; Form: accusative singular neuter; Function: direct object; Translation: “a little”; Notes: Diminutive expressing scarcity.
  18. escarum — Lemma: esca; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive plural feminine; Function: partitive genitive; Translation: “of food”; Notes: Indicates quantity of food.

 

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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