Genesis 49:32

Posted on February 18, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Gn 49:32 Finitisque mandatis quibus filios instruebat, collegit pedes suos super lectulum, et obiit: appositusque est ad populum suum.

And when the commands with which he instructed his sons were finished, he gathered his feet upon the little bed and died; and he was added to his people.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Finitisque and having been finished PPP.ABL.PL.N (ABL.ABS)
2 mandatis commands N.NEUT.ABL.PL
3 quibus with which REL.PRON.ABL.PL.N
4 filios sons N.MASC.ACC.PL
5 instruebat he was instructing V.3SG.IMP.ACT.IND
6 collegit he gathered V.3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
7 pedes feet N.MASC.ACC.PL
8 suos his ADJ.ACC.PL.M (REFL)
9 super upon PREP+ACC
10 lectulum little bed N.MASC.ACC.SG
11 et and CONJ.COORD
12 obiit he died V.3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
13 appositusque and he was added PPP.NOM.SG.M + -QUE
14 est was V.3SG.PRES.IND.ACT
15 ad to PREP+ACC
16 populum people N.MASC.ACC.SG
17 suum his ADJ.ACC.SG.M (REFL)

Syntax

Ablative absolute: Finitisque mandatis quibus filios instruebat —
Finitis mandatis (“when the commands were finished”) forms the ablative absolute.
quibus filios instruebat is a relative clause explaining those commands.

Main clause: collegit pedes suos super lectulum —
collegit is the main verb (“he gathered”).
pedes suos is the direct object.
super lectulum describes placement (“upon the little bed”).

Coordinated clause: et obiit —
A simple sequential event (“and he died”).

Passive addition formula: appositusque est ad populum suum —
appositus est (“was added”) reflects the Hebrew idiom for being united with ancestors.
ad populum suum gives the destination (“to his people”).

Morphology

  1. Finitisque — Lemma: finio; Part of Speech: participle; Form: perfect passive participle ablative plural neuter; Function: ablative absolute; Translation: having been finished; Notes: modifies mandatis.
  2. mandatis — Lemma: mandatum; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative plural neuter; Function: noun in ablative absolute; Translation: commands; Notes: Jacob’s last instructions.
  3. quibus — Lemma: qui; Part of Speech: relative pronoun; Form: ablative plural neuter; Function: introduces relative clause; Translation: with which; Notes: relates to mandatis.
  4. filios — Lemma: filius; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural masculine; Function: direct object of instruebat; Translation: sons; Notes: recipients of Jacob’s teachings.
  5. instruebat — Lemma: instruo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: 3rd person singular imperfect active indicative; Function: verb of the relative clause; Translation: he was instructing; Notes: ongoing action before death.
  6. collegit — Lemma: colligo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: 3rd person singular perfect active indicative; Function: main verb; Translation: he gathered; Notes: gesture of preparing for death.
  7. pedes — Lemma: pes; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural masculine; Function: direct object; Translation: feet; Notes: physical detail in death scene.
  8. suos — Lemma: suus; Part of Speech: reflexive adjective; Form: accusative plural masculine; Function: modifies pedes; Translation: his; Notes: refers to Jacob.
  9. super — Lemma: super; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs accusative; Function: spatial relation; Translation: upon; Notes: direction upward.
  10. lectulum — Lemma: lectulus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: object of super; Translation: little bed; Notes: diminutive expresses tenderness.
  11. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: invariant; Function: coordination; Translation: and; Notes: sequential narration.
  12. obiit — Lemma: obeo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: 3rd person singular perfect active indicative; Function: main verb; Translation: he died; Notes: formal term for death.
  13. appositusque — Lemma: appono; Part of Speech: participle with enclitic; Form: perfect passive participle nominative singular masculine; Function: predicate with est; Translation: and he was added; Notes: Hebrew idiom reproduced in Latin.
  14. est — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: 3rd singular present indicative; Function: auxiliary; Translation: was; Notes: completes passive.
  15. ad — Lemma: ad; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs accusative; Function: direction/destination; Translation: to; Notes: spiritual destination.
  16. populum — Lemma: populus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: object of ad; Translation: people; Notes: ancestors.
  17. suum — Lemma: suus; Part of Speech: reflexive adjective; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: modifies populum; Translation: his; Notes: refers to Jacob.

 

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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