Genesis 43:29

Posted on February 12, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Gn 43:29 Attollens autem Ioseph oculos, vidit Beniamin fratrem suum uterinum, et ait: Iste est frater vester parvulus, de quo dixeratis mihi? Et rursum: Deus, inquit, misereatur tui, fili mi.

But Joseph, lifting up his eyes, saw Benjamin his full brother, and said: “Is this your little brother, of whom you spoke to me?” And again he said: “God have mercy on you, my son.”

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Attollens lifting up NOM.SG.M.PRES.ACT.PTCP
2 autem however / but CONJ
3 Ioseph Joseph NOM.SG.M
4 oculos eyes ACC.PL.M
5 vidit he saw 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
6 Beniamin Benjamin ACC.SG.M
7 fratrem brother ACC.SG.M
8 suum his ACC.SG.M.POSS
9 uterinum full (same mother) ACC.SG.M.ADJ
10 et and CONJ
11 ait he said 3SG.PRES.ACT.IND
12 Iste this NOM.SG.M.DEM
13 est is 3SG.PRES.ACT.IND
14 frater brother NOM.SG.M
15 vester your NOM.SG.M.POSS
16 parvulus little / youngest NOM.SG.M.ADJ
17 de about PREP+ABL
18 quo whom ABL.SG.M.REL
19 dixeratis you had spoken 2PL.PLUPERF.ACT.IND
20 mihi to me DAT.SG.1P
21 Et and CONJ
22 rursum again ADV
23 Deus God NOM.SG.M
24 inquit he said 3SG.PRES.ACT.IND
25 misereatur may He have mercy 3SG.PRES.SUBJ.DEP
26 tui of you GEN.SG.2P
27 fili son VOC.SG.M
28 mi my VOC.SG.M.POSS

Syntax

Circumstantial participle: Attollens autem Ioseph oculos — Joseph performs the main action while lifting his eyes.
Main clause: vidit Beniamin fratrem suum uterinum — verb vidit, direct object expanded by apposition.
Direct question: Iste est frater vester parvulus, de quo dixeratis mihi? — demonstrative Iste identifies Benjamin.
Relative clause: de quo dixeratis mihi — modifies frater parvulus.
Second saying: Et rursum: Deus, inquit, misereatur tui, fili mi. — independent optative-like expression with subjunctive misereatur.
Vocative phrase: fili mi — affectionate address.

Morphology

  1. Attollens — Lemma: attollo; Part of Speech: participle; Form: nominative singular masculine present active; Function: circumstantial participle; Translation: “lifting up”; Notes: modifies Joseph.
  2. autem — Lemma: autem; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: adversative/continuative; Function: soft transition; Translation: “however / but”; Notes: never first in clause.
  3. Ioseph — Lemma: Ioseph; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: subject; Translation: “Joseph”; Notes: indeclinable.
  4. oculos — Lemma: oculus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural masculine; Function: internal object (“lift eyes”); Translation: “eyes”; Notes: idiom.
  5. vidit — Lemma: video; Part of Speech: verb; Form: perfect active indicative 3rd singular; Function: main verb; Translation: “he saw”; Notes: completed perception.
  6. Beniamin — Lemma: Beniamin; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: direct object; Translation: “Benjamin”; Notes: foreign name, indeclinable.
  7. fratrem — Lemma: frater; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: in apposition to Beniamin; Translation: “brother”; Notes: specifies kinship.
  8. suum — Lemma: suus; Part of Speech: possessive adjective; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: modifies fratrem; Translation: “his”; Notes: reflexive to Joseph.
  9. uterinum — Lemma: uterinus; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: further describes fratrem; Translation: “full / of the same mother”; Notes: emphasizes special bond.
  10. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: coordinating; Function: links subsequent speech; Translation: “and”; Notes: narrative connection.
  11. ait — Lemma: aio; Part of Speech: verb; Form: defective present active indicative 3rd singular; Function: introduces direct speech; Translation: “he said”; Notes: standard quotation verb.
  12. Iste — Lemma: iste; Part of Speech: demonstrative pronoun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: subject; Translation: “this”; Notes: identifies Benjamin.
  13. est — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: present active indicative 3rd singular; Function: copula; Translation: “is”; Notes: equative structure.
  14. frater — Lemma: frater; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: predicate nominative; Translation: “brother”; Notes: identifies subject.
  15. vester — Lemma: vester; Part of Speech: possessive adjective; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: modifies frater; Translation: “your”; Notes: plural “you.”
  16. parvulus — Lemma: parvulus; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: descriptive epithet; Translation: “little / youngest”; Notes: affectionate diminutive.
  17. de — Lemma: de; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: with ablative; Function: expresses reference; Translation: “about”; Notes: governs quo.
  18. quo — Lemma: qui; Part of Speech: relative pronoun; Form: ablative singular masculine; Function: object of de; Translation: “whom”; Notes: refers to Benjamin.
  19. dixeratis — Lemma: dico; Part of Speech: verb; Form: pluperfect active indicative 2nd plural; Function: main verb of relative clause; Translation: “you had said”; Notes: earlier conversation.
  20. mihi — Lemma: ego; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: dative singular; Function: indirect object; Translation: “to me”; Notes: refers to Joseph.
  21. Et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: coordinating; Function: introduces second saying; Translation: “and”; Notes: signals continuation.
  22. rursum — Lemma: rursum; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: indeclinable; Function: repetition marker; Translation: “again”; Notes: indicates second speech.
  23. Deus — Lemma: Deus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: subject; Translation: “God”; Notes: Joseph invokes divine blessing.
  24. inquit — Lemma: inquam; Part of Speech: verb; Form: defective present active indicative 3rd singular; Function: parenthetical quotation verb; Translation: “he said”; Notes: used in direct speech.
  25. misereatur — Lemma: misereor; Part of Speech: deponent verb; Form: present subjunctive 3rd singular; Function: optative/subjunctive of wish; Translation: “may He have mercy”; Notes: deponent with active meaning.
  26. tui — Lemma: tu; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: genitive singular; Function: object of misereatur; Translation: “of you”; Notes: genitive with verbs of remembering/pitying.
  27. fili — Lemma: filius; Part of Speech: noun; Form: vocative singular masculine; Function: direct address; Translation: “son”; Notes: affectionate naming.
  28. mi — Lemma: meus; Part of Speech: possessive adjective; Form: vocative singular masculine; Function: modifies fili; Translation: “my”; Notes: tender expression.

 

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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