Genesis 46:25

Posted on February 15, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Gn 46:25 Hi filii Balæ, quam dedit Laban Racheli filiæ suæ: et hos genuit Iacob: omnes animæ, septem.

These are the sons of Bala, whom Laban gave to Rachel his daughter: and these Jacob begot: all the persons, seven.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Hi these NOM.PL.M
2 filii sons NOM.PL.M
3 Balæ of Bilhah GEN.SG.F
4 quam whom ACC.SG.F
5 dedit gave 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
6 Laban Laban NOM.SG.M
7 Racheli to Rachel DAT.SG.F
8 filiæ daughter DAT.SG.F
9 suæ his DAT.SG.F
10 et and CONJ
11 hos these ACC.PL.M
12 genuit begot 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
13 Iacob Jacob NOM.SG.M
14 omnes all ACC.PL.F
15 animæ persons NOM.PL.F
16 septem seven NUM.INDECL

Syntax

Primary Heading: Hi filii Balæ — “These are the sons of Bala,” with Hi as demonstrative subject and filii as the head noun, modified by Balæ (genitive).

Relative Clause: quam dedit Laban Racheli filiæ suæ —
• quam: object (“whom”)
• dedit: verb
• Laban: subject
• Racheli filiæ suæ: indirect object (“to Rachel his daughter”)

Second Clause: et hos genuit Iacob —
• et: connecting the next statement
• hos: object (“these”)
• genuit: verb
• Iacob: subject

Summary Statement: omnes animæ, septem — nominative summary with total count.

Morphology

  1. Hi — Lemma: hic; Part of Speech: demonstrative pronoun; Form: nominative plural masculine; Function: subject of the heading; Translation: “these”; Notes: introduces the genealogical list.
  2. filii — Lemma: filius; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative plural masculine; Function: predicate noun in the heading; Translation: “sons”; Notes: standard genealogical terminology.
  3. Balæ — Lemma: Bala; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: genitive singular feminine; Function: genitive of relationship modifying filii; Translation: “of Bala”; Notes: identifies the mother of the listed sons.
  4. quam — Lemma: qui; Part of Speech: relative pronoun; Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: direct object of dedit; Translation: “whom”; Notes: refers to Bala.
  5. dedit — Lemma: do; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular perfect active indicative; Function: main verb of the relative clause; Translation: “gave”; Notes: describes Laban’s action of giving Bala to Rachel.
  6. Laban — Lemma: Laban; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: subject of dedit; Translation: “Laban”; Notes: patriarchal figure involved in the transaction.
  7. Racheli — Lemma: Rachel; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: dative singular feminine; Function: indirect object of dedit; Translation: “to Rachel”; Notes: recipient of Bala.
  8. filiæ — Lemma: filia; Part of Speech: noun; Form: dative singular feminine; Function: apposition to Racheli; Translation: “daughter”; Notes: identifies Rachel’s relationship to Laban.
  9. suæ — Lemma: suus; Part of Speech: possessive adjective; Form: dative singular feminine agreeing with filiæ; Function: expresses possession (“his daughter”); Translation: “his”; Notes: reflexive possession referring back to Laban.
  10. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: coordinating conjunction; Form: invariable; Function: links the previous clause to the next; Translation: “and”; Notes: simple additive connector.
  11. hos — Lemma: hic; Part of Speech: demonstrative pronoun; Form: accusative plural masculine; Function: direct object of genuit; Translation: “these”; Notes: refers to the sons Bala bore.
  12. genuit — Lemma: gigno; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular perfect active indicative; Function: main verb of the clause; Translation: “begot”; Notes: standard language for paternal descent.
  13. Iacob — Lemma: Iacob; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: subject of genuit; Translation: “Jacob”; Notes: father of the tribal line.
  14. omnes — Lemma: omnis; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: accusative plural feminine; Function: modifies animæ in the summary; Translation: “all”; Notes: common in genealogical totals.
  15. animæ — Lemma: anima; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative plural feminine; Function: nominative of summation; Translation: “persons”; Notes: biblical Latin uses “souls” to mean “individuals.”
  16. septem — Lemma: septem; Part of Speech: numeral; Form: indeclinable; Function: numerical total modifying animæ; Translation: “seven”; Notes: indicates the total descendants from Bala.

 

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.
This entry was posted in Genesis. Bookmark the permalink.

Comments are closed.