Genesis 20:12

Posted on January 20, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Gn 20:12 alias autem et vere soror mea est, filia patris mei, et non filia matris meæ, et duxi eam in uxorem.

Moreover, she is indeed my sister, daughter of my father but not daughter of my mother, and I took her as my wife.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 alias moreover ADV
2 autem however CONJ.ADV
3 et and CONJ
4 vere truly ADV
5 soror sister NOM.SG.F
6 mea my NOM.SG.F.POSS.ADJ
7 est is 3SG.PRES.ACT.IND
8 filia daughter NOM.SG.F
9 patris of (my) father GEN.SG.M
10 mei of my GEN.SG.M.POSS.ADJ
11 et and CONJ
12 non not ADV
13 filia daughter NOM.SG.F
14 matris of (my) mother GEN.SG.F
15 meæ of my GEN.SG.F.POSS.ADJ
16 et and CONJ
17 duxi I took 1SG.PERF.ACT.IND
18 eam her ACC.SG.F.PRON
19 in as PREP+ACC
20 uxorem wife ACC.SG.F

Syntax

Main predication: alias autem et vere soror mea est — Copular clause with emphatic adverbs (alias, vere) reinforcing the truth-claim that she “really is my sister.”
Appositional lineage clarification: filia patris mei, et non filia matris meæ — Two parallel nominal clauses in apposition to soror, marking paternal kinship and negating maternal kinship.
<b(Resulting marital status): et duxi eam in uxorem — Perfective action “I took her in marriage,” with idiomatic complement in uxorem.

Morphology

  1. alias — Lemma: alias; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: indeclinable; Function: discourse connector adding an additional point; Translation: “moreover”; Notes: Here functions as an additive transition reinforcing Abraham’s defense.
  2. autem — Lemma: autem; Part of Speech: conjunction/adverb; Form: indeclinable; Function: mild adversative/contrastive connective; Translation: “however”; Notes: Common postpositive particle marking nuanced contrast.
  3. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: coordinating; Function: links adverbial intensifiers; Translation: “and”; Notes: Couples autem and vere within the assertion.
  4. vere — Lemma: vere; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: indeclinable; Function: intensifier of truth; Translation: “truly”; Notes: Strengthens the factual claim that follows.
  5. soror — Lemma: soror; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular feminine; Function: predicate nominative with “est”; Translation: “sister”; Notes: Core kinship term governing the appositional lineage clauses.
  6. mea — Lemma: meus; Part of Speech: possessive adjective; Form: nominative singular feminine; Function: agrees with “soror”; Translation: “my”; Notes: Marks first-person possession (Abraham’s relation).
  7. est — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: present indicative active, third person singular; Function: copula; Translation: “is”; Notes: Links subject “she” (understood) with predicate “soror mea.”
  8. filia — Lemma: filia; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular feminine; Function: nominative in apposition to “soror”; Translation: “daughter”; Notes: Begins paternal lineage specification.
  9. patris — Lemma: pater; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive singular masculine; Function: genitive of possession with “filia”; Translation: “of (my) father”; Notes: Indicates paternal descent creating half-sibling status.
  10. mei — Lemma: meus; Part of Speech: possessive adjective/pronominal; Form: genitive singular masculine; Function: modifies “patris”; Translation: “my”; Notes: Personalizes the genitive (“of my father”).
  11. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: coordinating; Function: links the parallel negative clause; Translation: “and”; Notes: Keeps the appositions balanced.
  12. non — Lemma: non; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: indeclinable; Function: negation; Translation: “not”; Notes: Negates maternal relationship to avoid full-sibling implication.
  13. filia — Lemma: filia; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular feminine; Function: nominative in parallel apposition; Translation: “daughter”; Notes: Repeats structure for rhetorical clarity.
  14. matris — Lemma: mater; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive singular feminine; Function: genitive with “filia”; Translation: “of (my) mother”; Notes: Specifies exclusion of maternal lineage.
  15. meæ — Lemma: meus; Part of Speech: possessive adjective/pronominal; Form: genitive singular feminine; Function: modifies “matris”; Translation: “my”; Notes: Personalizes the genitive (“of my mother”).
  16. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: coordinating; Function: introduces resultant action; Translation: “and”; Notes: Transitions from kinship claim to marital act.
  17. duxi — Lemma: duco; Part of Speech: verb; Form: perfect indicative active, first person singular; Function: main verb; Translation: “I took”; Notes: Regular verb used idiomatically of marriage with “in uxorem.”
  18. eam — Lemma: is; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: direct object of “duxi”; Translation: “her”; Notes: Refers to Sara, the woman taken in marriage.
  19. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs accusative; Function: forms idiom with “uxorem”; Translation: “as”; Notes: Accusative after “in” expresses change of state/result (“into wife”).
  20. uxorem — Lemma: uxor; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: complement of idiom “in uxorem ducere”; Translation: “wife”; Notes: Standard Latin marital idiom indicating the taking of a bride.

 

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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