Genesis 49:16

Posted on February 18, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Gn 49:16 Dan iudicabit populum suum sicut et alia tribus in Israel.

Dan will judge his people, just like the other tribe in Israel.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Dan Dan PN.NOM.SG.M
2 iudicabit will judge V.3SG.FUT.ACT.IND
3 populum people N.MASC.ACC.SG
4 suum his POSS.ADJ.ACC.SG.M
5 sicut just as CONJ.COMP
6 et also CONJ.COORD
7 alia other ADJ.NOM.SG.F
8 tribus tribe N.FEM.NOM.SG
9 in in PREP+ABL
10 Israel Israel PN.ABL.SG.M

Syntax

Main clause: Dan iudicabit populum suum — Dan is the subject, iudicabit is the future verb, and populum suum is the direct object (“his people”).

Comparative clause: sicut et alia tribus in Israel — The conjunction sicut introduces a comparison.
alia tribus (nominative) is the implicit subject of the comparison: “just like another tribe in Israel.”

Morphology

  1. Dan — Lemma: Dan; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: subject; Translation: Dan; Notes: tribe named after Jacob’s son.
  2. iudicabit — Lemma: iudico; Part of Speech: verb; Form: 3rd person singular future active indicative; Function: main verb; Translation: will judge; Notes: expresses future authority.
  3. populum — Lemma: populus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: direct object; Translation: people; Notes: refers to the tribe of Dan.
  4. suum — Lemma: suus; Part of Speech: possessive adjective; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: modifies populum; Translation: his; Notes: reflexive, referring back to Dan.
  5. sicut — Lemma: sicut; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: invariant; Function: introduces comparison; Translation: just as; Notes: common comparative particle.
  6. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: invariant; Function: adds emphasis (“also”); Translation: also; Notes: reinforces parallelism.
  7. alia — Lemma: alius; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: nominative singular feminine; Function: modifies tribus; Translation: other; Notes: “another tribe.”
  8. tribus — Lemma: tribus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular feminine; Function: subject of comparison; Translation: tribe; Notes: indeclinable in classical, but here treated with 4th/5th declension patterns.
  9. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: locative expression; Translation: in; Notes: marks placement within Israel.
  10. Israel — Lemma: Israel; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: ablative singular masculine; Function: object of in; Translation: Israel; Notes: geographic-political term.

 

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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