Genesis 4:5

Posted on January 4, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Gn 4:5 Ad Cain vero, et ad munera illius non respexit: iratusque est Cain vehementer, et concidit vultus eius.

But to Cain and to his gifts He did not look with favor; and Cain became very angry, and his face fell.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Ad to / toward PREP+ACC
2 Cain Cain ACC.SG.M
3 vero but ADV
4 et and CONJ
5 ad to / toward PREP+ACC
6 munera gifts ACC.PL.N
7 illius of him / his GEN.SG.M.PRON
8 non not ADV
9 respexit looked upon 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
10 iratusque and he was angry PPP.NOM.SG.M + ENCLITIC.CONJ
11 est was 3SG.PRES.ACT.IND
12 Cain Cain NOM.SG.M
13 vehementer greatly ADV
14 et and CONJ
15 concidit fell 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
16 vultus face NOM.SG.M
17 eius his GEN.SG.M.PRON

Syntax

Main Clause 1: Ad Cain vero et ad munera illius non respexit — expresses divine disfavor; Dominus is the understood subject from the prior verse, ad Cain and ad munera illius function as prepositional complements, and non negates the verb respexit.
Main Clause 2: iratusque est Cain vehementer — a copular clause describing Cain’s emotional reaction, with iratus as predicate adjective and est as auxiliary.
Final Clause: et concidit vultus eius — depicts the outward manifestation of anger or shame; vultus eius as subject phrase with concidit as main verb. The three clauses build emotional contrast between divine rejection and human response.

Morphology

  1. Ad — Lemma: ad; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: Governs accusative; Function: Marks direction or relation; Translation: “to / toward”; Notes: Used with Cain to show divine attention or lack thereof.
  2. Cain — Lemma: Cain; Part of Speech: Proper noun; Form: Accusative singular masculine; Function: Object of ad; Translation: “Cain”; Notes: The rejected offerer.
  3. vero — Lemma: vero; Part of Speech: Adverb; Form: Invariable; Function: Contrastive adverb; Translation: “but / indeed”; Notes: Sets opposition to previous divine favor shown to Abel.
  4. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: Invariable; Function: Coordinates two parallel objects; Translation: “and”; Notes: Links Cain with munera illius.
  5. ad — Lemma: ad; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: Governs accusative; Function: Repeated for stylistic parallelism; Translation: “to / toward”; Notes: Reinforces prepositional symmetry.
  6. munera — Lemma: munus; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Accusative plural neuter; Function: Object of ad; Translation: “gifts”; Notes: Parallel to Abel’s offerings in previous verse.
  7. illius — Lemma: ille; Part of Speech: Demonstrative pronoun; Form: Genitive singular masculine; Function: Possessive modifying munera; Translation: “his”; Notes: Refers to Cain as the possessor of the offerings.
  8. non — Lemma: non; Part of Speech: Adverb; Form: Invariable; Function: Negates the verb; Translation: “not”; Notes: Indicates divine rejection.
  9. respexit — Lemma: respicio; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: Perfect active indicative, 3rd person singular; Function: Main verb; Translation: “looked upon / regarded”; Notes: Used idiomatically for divine favor or attention.
  10. iratusque — Lemma: iratus + que; Part of Speech: Adjective + enclitic conjunction; Form: Nominative singular masculine; Function: Predicate adjective joined by est; Translation: “and he was angry”; Notes: Derived from irascor, denotes intense emotion.
  11. est — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: Present active indicative, 3rd person singular; Function: Copula linking iratus with Cain; Translation: “was”; Notes: Indicates state of being rather than action.
  12. Cain — Lemma: Cain; Part of Speech: Proper noun; Form: Nominative singular masculine; Function: Subject of est; Translation: “Cain”; Notes: The emotional actor in the second clause.
  13. vehementer — Lemma: vehementer; Part of Speech: Adverb; Form: Invariable; Function: Modifies iratus est; Translation: “greatly / intensely”; Notes: Intensifies emotional reaction.
  14. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: Invariable; Function: Links the final clause; Translation: “and”; Notes: Sequential connection of emotional and physical response.
  15. concidit — Lemma: concido; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: Perfect active indicative, 3rd person singular; Function: Main verb of final clause; Translation: “fell / was cast down”; Notes: Figurative expression for sadness or dejection.
  16. vultus — Lemma: vultus; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Nominative singular masculine; Function: Subject of concidit; Translation: “face”; Notes: Represents visible emotion or countenance.
  17. eius — Lemma: eius; Part of Speech: Possessive pronoun; Form: Genitive singular masculine; Function: Modifies vultus; Translation: “his”; Notes: Refers to Cain, marking possession of the countenance.

 

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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