Genesis 47:24

Posted on February 16, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Gn 47:24 ut fruges habere possitis. Quintam partem regi dabitis: quatuor reliquas permitto vobis in sementem, et in cibum familiis et liberis vestris.

so that you may have crops. You shall give a fifth part to the king; the remaining four I allow to you for seed, and for food for your households and your children.”

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 ut so that CONJ
2 fruges crops ACC.PL.F
3 habere to have PRES.ACT.INF
4 possitis you may be able 2PL.PRES.ACT.SUBJ
5 Quintam a fifth ACC.SG.F.ADJ
6 partem part ACC.SG.F
7 regi to the king DAT.SG.M
8 dabitis you shall give 2PL.FUT.ACT.IND
9 quatuor four INDECL.NUM
10 reliquas the remaining ACC.PL.F.ADJ
11 permitto I allow 1SG.PRES.ACT.IND
12 vobis to you DAT.PL
13 in for PREP+ACC
14 sementem seed ACC.SG.F
15 et and CONJ
16 in for PREP+ACC
17 cibum food ACC.SG.M
18 familiis families DAT.PL.F
19 et and CONJ
20 liberis children DAT.PL.M
21 vestris your DAT.PL.M.ADJ

Syntax

Purpose Clause: ut fruges habere possitis — “so that you may have crops.”
• possitis = subjunctive of purpose
• habere = complementary infinitive
• fruges = object

Main Future Command: Quintam partem regi dabitis — “You shall give a fifth part to the king.”
• regi = indirect object
• Quintam partem = direct object

Second Main Clause: quatuor reliquas permitto vobis — “the remaining four I allow to you.”
• permitto = present first person; Joseph speaking
• reliquas = object
• vobis = indirect object

Two Prepositional Uses of in:
• in sementem — “for seed”
• in cibum familiis et liberis vestris — “for food for your families and your children”

Morphology

  1. ut — Lemma: ut; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: introduces purpose clause; Function: subordinator; Translation: “so that”; Notes: Governs subjunctive.
  2. fruges — Lemma: frux; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural feminine; Function: object of habere; Translation: “crops”; Notes: Agricultural produce.
  3. habere — Lemma: habeo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: present active infinitive; Function: complementary infinitive; Translation: “to have”; Notes: Depends on possitis.
  4. possitis — Lemma: possum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: present active subjunctive second plural; Function: verb of purpose clause; Translation: “you may be able”; Notes: Subjunctive of purpose.
  5. Quintam — Lemma: quintus; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: modifies partem; Translation: “a fifth”; Notes: Indicates the proportion owed.
  6. partem — Lemma: pars; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: direct object of dabitis; Translation: “part”; Notes: Fifth portion of harvest.
  7. regi — Lemma: rex; Part of Speech: noun; Form: dative singular masculine; Function: indirect object; Translation: “to the king”; Notes: Here: Pharaoh.
  8. dabitis — Lemma: do; Part of Speech: verb; Form: future active indicative second plural; Function: main verb; Translation: “you shall give”; Notes: Instruction for taxation.
  9. quatuor — Lemma: quattuor; Part of Speech: numeral; Form: indeclinable; Function: modifies reliquas; Translation: “four”; Notes: Contrasts with “a fifth.”
  10. reliquas — Lemma: reliquus; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: accusative plural feminine; Function: direct object of permitto; Translation: “the remaining”; Notes: Refers to four portions out of five.
  11. permitto — Lemma: permitto; Part of Speech: verb; Form: present active indicative first singular; Function: main verb; Translation: “I allow”; Notes: Joseph granting rights.
  12. vobis — Lemma: vos; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: dative plural; Function: indirect object; Translation: “to you”; Notes: Beneficiaries.
  13. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs accusative; Function: expresses purpose; Translation: “for”; Notes: Marks intended use.
  14. sementem — Lemma: sementis; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: object of in; Translation: “seed”; Notes: For planting.
  15. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Function: joins phrases; Translation: “and”; Notes: Coordination.
  16. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs accusative; Function: expresses purpose; Translation: “for”; Notes: Repeated prepositional purpose.
  17. cibum — Lemma: cibus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: object of in; Translation: “food”; Notes: Sustenance.
  18. familiis — Lemma: familia; Part of Speech: noun; Form: dative plural feminine; Function: indirect object; Translation: “to the families”; Notes: Refers to households.
  19. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Function: joins indirect objects; Translation: “and”; Notes: Connects families and children.
  20. liberis — Lemma: liber; Part of Speech: noun; Form: dative plural masculine; Function: indirect object; Translation: “children”; Notes: Refers to offspring.
  21. vestris — Lemma: vester; Part of Speech: possessive adjective; Form: dative plural masculine; Function: modifies liberis; Translation: “your”; Notes: Belonging to the addressed.

 

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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