Genesis 5:20

Posted on January 5, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Gn 5:20 Et facti sunt omnes dies Iared nongenti sexaginta duo anni, et mortuus est.

And all the days of Jared were nine hundred and sixty-two years, and he died.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Et and CONJ
2 facti were made / became NOM.PL.M.PERF.PASS.PART
3 sunt were 3PL.PRES.ACT.IND
4 omnes all NOM.PL.M.ADJ
5 dies days NOM.PL.M
6 Iared of Jared GEN.SG.M (INDECL)
7 nongenti nine hundred NOM.PL.M.NUM
8 sexaginta sixty NUM.INDECL
9 duo two NOM.PL.M.NUM
10 anni years NOM.PL.M
11 et and CONJ
12 mortuus died NOM.SG.M.PERF.PASS.PART
13 est was 3SG.PRES.ACT.IND

Syntax

Main Clause 1: Et facti sunt omnes dies Iared nongenti sexaginta duo anni — The perfect periphrastic facti sunt (“were made / became”) serves as the main verb, expressing completion of lifespan. The subject is omnes dies Iared (“all the days of Iared”), and the predicate nominative nongenti sexaginta duo anni (“nine hundred and sixty-two years”) defines the total duration.
Main Clause 2: et mortuus est — The conjunction et joins the concluding statement, where the periphrastic mortuus est (“he died”) signifies the closing formula in the genealogical sequence.

Morphology

  1. Et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: Invariable; Function: Connects this genealogical entry to the preceding one; Translation: “and”; Notes: Frequently opens sentences in narrative Latin for smooth transition.
  2. facti — Lemma: facio; Part of Speech: Verb (participle); Form: Nominative plural masculine, perfect passive participle; Function: Predicate adjective with sunt; Translation: “were made / became”; Notes: Functions idiomatically as a copulative participle in biblical Latin, denoting the completion of life-span reckoning.
  3. sunt — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: Present active indicative, 3rd person plural; Function: Auxiliary forming periphrastic construction; Translation: “were”; Notes: Serves to form the perfect periphrastic with facti.
  4. omnes — Lemma: omnis; Part of Speech: Adjective; Form: Nominative plural masculine; Function: Modifies dies; Translation: “all”; Notes: The plural reinforces the totality of lifespan measurement.
  5. dies — Lemma: dies; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Nominative plural masculine; Function: Subject of facti sunt; Translation: “days”; Notes: In biblical Latin, “days” often represents total years of life metaphorically.
  6. Iared — Lemma: Iared; Part of Speech: Proper noun (indeclinable); Form: Genitive singular masculine; Function: Possessive genitive modifying dies; Translation: “of Jared”; Notes: The Latin form mirrors the Hebrew יָרֶד (Yared), maintaining Semitic declension invariability.
  7. nongenti — Lemma: nongenti; Part of Speech: Numeral adjective; Form: Nominative plural masculine; Function: Modifies anni; Translation: “nine hundred”; Notes: Part of a compound numeral expression, maintaining agreement with anni.
  8. sexaginta — Lemma: sexaginta; Part of Speech: Numeral; Form: Indeclinable; Function: Second element in the numeric compound; Translation: “sixty”; Notes: Typical of Latin compound numbering, indeclinable numerals follow declinable ones.
  9. duo — Lemma: duo; Part of Speech: Numeral adjective; Form: Nominative plural masculine; Function: Final numeric modifier of anni; Translation: “two”; Notes: Retains gender agreement with anni (“years”).
  10. anni — Lemma: annus; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Nominative plural masculine; Function: Predicate nominative; Translation: “years”; Notes: Concludes the numeric expression, syntactically linked to dies via predicate construction.
  11. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: Invariable; Function: Introduces the closing clause; Translation: “and”; Notes: Maintains narrative rhythm in the genealogical formula.
  12. mortuus — Lemma: morior; Part of Speech: Verb (deponent participle); Form: Nominative singular masculine, perfect participle; Function: Predicate complement with est; Translation: “died”; Notes: Deponent verb forming perfect tense with sum; standard in Vulgate genealogical formula.
  13. est — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: Present active indicative, 3rd person singular; Function: Auxiliary verb; Translation: “was / has been”; Notes: Forms perfect periphrastic construction with mortuus, denoting completed death event.

 

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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