Genesis 15:15

Posted on January 15, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Gn 15:15 Tu autem ibis ad patres tuos in pace, sepultus in senectute bona.

But you shall go to your fathers in peace, buried in a good old age.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Tu you NOM.SG.PRON
2 autem but / however ADV
3 ibis you shall go 2SG.FUT.ACT.IND
4 ad to / toward PREP+ACC
5 patres fathers / ancestors ACC.PL.M
6 tuos your ACC.PL.M POSS.ADJ
7 in in PREP+ABL
8 pace peace ABL.SG.F
9 sepultus having been buried NOM.SG.M PERF.PASS.PTCP
10 in in PREP+ABL
11 senectute old age ABL.SG.F
12 bona good ABL.SG.F ADJ

Syntax

Main Clause: Tu autem ibis ad patres tuos in pace — future indicative expresses divine promise of peaceful death; tu is emphatic subject contrasting Abram with his descendants’ future suffering. The prepositional phrase ad patres tuos idiomatically means “to your ancestors,” referring to joining them in death.
Participial Phrase: sepultus in senectute bona — participial construction functioning as circumstantial modifier (“being buried in good old age”), elaborating the peaceful aspect of Abram’s death.

Morphology

  1. Tu — Lemma: tu; Part of Speech: Pronoun; Form: Nominative singular; Function: Subject of ibis; Translation: “you”; Notes: Personal pronoun used emphatically; contrasts Abram’s peaceful end with his descendants’ hardship.
  2. autem — Lemma: autem; Part of Speech: Adverb / Coordinating particle; Form: Indeclinable; Function: Adversative conjunction; Translation: “but / however”; Notes: Introduces contrastive statement in divine speech.
  3. ibis — Lemma: eo; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: Future active indicative, 2nd person singular; Function: Main verb; Translation: “you shall go”; Notes: Predicts Abram’s future death and reunion with ancestors, metaphorically describing peaceful passing.
  4. ad — Lemma: ad; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: Governs accusative; Function: Expresses direction; Translation: “to / toward”; Notes: Introduces idiomatic phrase of joining the deceased.
  5. patres — Lemma: pater; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Accusative plural masculine; Function: Object of ad; Translation: “fathers / ancestors”; Notes: Plural used idiomatically for patriarchal ancestors in the afterlife.
  6. tuos — Lemma: tuus; Part of Speech: Adjective; Form: Accusative plural masculine; Function: Modifies patres; Translation: “your”; Notes: Personalizes phrase “your fathers,” emphasizing kinship continuity.
  7. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: Governs ablative; Function: Expresses state or condition; Translation: “in”; Notes: Introduces the condition under which Abram will die.
  8. pace — Lemma: pax; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Ablative singular feminine; Function: Object of in; Translation: “peace”; Notes: Symbolic of divine favor, inner tranquility, and covenantal fulfillment.
  9. sepultus — Lemma: sepelio; Part of Speech: Verb (participle); Form: Nominative singular masculine, perfect passive participle; Function: Circumstantial participle modifying implied subject; Translation: “having been buried”; Notes: Describes the completed act following death, ensuring honorable burial.
  10. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: Governs ablative; Function: Expresses manner or circumstance; Translation: “in”; Notes: Introduces the phrase expressing the quality of old age.
  11. senectute — Lemma: senectus; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Ablative singular feminine; Function: Object of in; Translation: “old age”; Notes: Denotes advanced years as a divine blessing in biblical tradition.
  12. bona — Lemma: bonus; Part of Speech: Adjective; Form: Ablative singular feminine; Function: Modifies senectute; Translation: “good”; Notes: Expresses the quality of blessed longevity, reflecting divine favor and peaceful end.

 

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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