Genesis 14:19

Posted on January 14, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Gn 14:19 benedixit ei, et ait: Benedictus Abram Deo excelso, qui creavit cælum et terram:

And he blessed him and said: “Blessed be Abram by God Most High, who created heaven and earth.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 benedixit he blessed 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
2 ei him DAT.SG.M
3 et and CONJ
4 ait he said 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
5 Benedictus Blessed NOM.SG.M.PERF.PASS.PTCP
6 Abram Abram NOM.SG.M
7 Deo to God DAT.SG.M
8 excelso Most High DAT.SG.M.SUPERL
9 qui who NOM.SG.M.REL.PRON
10 creavit created 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
11 cælum heaven ACC.SG.N
12 et and CONJ
13 terram earth ACC.SG.F

Syntax

Main Clause: benedixit ei (verb + indirect object) + et ait (coordinated verb).
Quoted Blessing: Benedictus Abram Deo excelso — nominative predicate “Blessed” + subject “Abram” + dative “Deo excelso” expressing agent (“by God Most High”).
Relative Clause: qui creavit cælum et terram — subordinate clause modifying “Deo excelso,” identifying Him as the Creator of heaven and earth.

Morphology

  1. benedixit — Lemma: benedico; Part of Speech: verb; Form: perfect active indicative 3rd person singular; Function: main verb; Translation: “he blessed”; Notes: expresses a completed action of blessing directed to “ei.”
  2. ei — Lemma: is, ea, id; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: dative singular masculine; Function: indirect object of “benedixit”; Translation: “him”; Notes: refers contextually to Abram.
  3. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: simple coordinating; Function: connects two main verbs; Translation: “and”; Notes: typical narrative connector.
  4. ait — Lemma: aio; Part of Speech: verb; Form: perfect active indicative 3rd person singular; Function: introduces direct speech; Translation: “he said”; Notes: defective verb, common for direct quotations.
  5. Benedictus — Lemma: benedictus; Part of Speech: participle (verbal adjective); Form: nominative singular masculine, perfect passive participle; Function: predicate adjective describing Abram; Translation: “Blessed”; Notes: passive sense, denoting state of being blessed.
  6. Abram — Lemma: Abram; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: subject of the predicate “Benedictus”; Translation: “Abram”; Notes: patriarchal name before his renaming as Abraham.
  7. Deo — Lemma: Deus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: dative singular masculine; Function: agent of the blessing (by God); Translation: “by God”; Notes: dative of agency used with passive participle.
  8. excelso — Lemma: excelsus; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: dative singular masculine, superlative; Function: modifies “Deo”; Translation: “Most High”; Notes: divine epithet emphasizing God’s supremacy.
  9. qui — Lemma: qui, quae, quod; Part of Speech: relative pronoun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: subject of the subordinate clause; Translation: “who”; Notes: refers to “Deo excelso.”
  10. creavit — Lemma: creo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: perfect active indicative 3rd person singular; Function: predicate of the relative clause; Translation: “created”; Notes: describes divine creative act.
  11. cælum — Lemma: caelum; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular neuter; Function: direct object of “creavit”; Translation: “heaven”; Notes: paired with “terram” as object of creation.
  12. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: simple coordinating; Function: links two direct objects; Translation: “and”; Notes: joins “cælum” and “terram.”
  13. terram — Lemma: terra; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: second direct object of “creavit”; Translation: “earth”; Notes: corresponds with “cælum” in the creation pair.

 

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.
This entry was posted in Genesis. Bookmark the permalink.

Comments are closed.