Genesis 24:3

Posted on January 24, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Gn 24:3 ut adiurem te per Dominum, Deum cæli et terræ, ut non accipias uxorem filio meo de filiabus Chananæorum, inter quos habito:

that I may make you swear by the LORD, the God of heaven and of earth, that you will not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Chanaanites among whom I live.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 ut that CONJ.PURP
2 adiurem I may make you swear 1SG.PRES.ACT.SUBJ
3 te you ACC.SG.PRON
4 per by PREP+ACC
5 Dominum LORD ACC.SG.M
6 Deum God ACC.SG.M
7 cæli of heaven GEN.SG.M
8 et and CONJ
9 terræ of earth GEN.SG.F
10 ut that CONJ.PURP
11 non not ADV
12 accipias you may take 2SG.PRES.ACT.SUBJ
13 uxorem wife ACC.SG.F
14 filio to my son DAT.SG.M
15 meo my DAT.SG.M.PRON
16 de from PREP+ABL
17 filiabus from the daughters ABL.PL.F
18 Chananæorum of the Canaanites GEN.PL.M
19 inter among PREP+ACC
20 quos whom ACC.PL.M.REL.PRON
21 habito I live 1SG.PRES.ACT.IND

Syntax

Main Purpose Clause: ut adiurem te — purpose clause dependent on previous command; ut (introduces purpose) + adiurem (subjunctive verb) + te (object).
Prepositional Phrase: per Dominum, Deum cæli et terræ — object of adjuration indicating authority, “by the LORD, the God of heaven and of earth.”
Subordinate Clause: ut non accipias uxorem filio meo — second purpose clause specifying the action to avoid; ut (purpose) + accipias (verb) + uxorem (object) + filio meo (indirect object).
Prepositional and Relative Phrase: de filiabus Chananæorum, inter quos habito — specifies origin of women not to be chosen; de filiabus (from the daughters) + Chananæorum (genitive modifier) + relative clause inter quos habito giving locative context.
The overall syntax forms a solemn adjuration: Abraham compels his servant to swear by divine authority not to choose a wife for his son from the Canaanites among whom he dwells.

Morphology

  1. ut — Lemma: ut; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: Purpose conjunction introducing subjunctive; Function: Marks clause of intention; Translation: “that”; Notes: Repeated twice to introduce two coordinated purpose clauses.
  2. adiurem — Lemma: adiuro; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: Present Active Subjunctive 1st Person Singular; Function: Verb of the first purpose clause; Translation: “I may make you swear”; Notes: Expresses Abraham’s intent, not completed action.
  3. te — Lemma: tu; Part of Speech: Pronoun; Form: Accusative Singular; Function: Direct object of adiurem; Translation: “you”; Notes: Refers to Abraham’s servant.
  4. per — Lemma: per; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: Governs Accusative; Function: Introduces object of swearing; Translation: “by”; Notes: Denotes invocation of authority.
  5. Dominum — Lemma: Dominus; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Accusative Singular Masculine; Function: Object of per; Translation: “LORD”; Notes: Refers to YHWH; therefore rendered “LORD.”
  6. Deum — Lemma: Deus; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Accusative Singular Masculine; Function: In apposition to Dominum; Translation: “God”; Notes: Expands divine title, emphasizing authority.
  7. cæli — Lemma: caelum; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Genitive Singular Masculine; Function: Dependent genitive with Deum; Translation: “of heaven”; Notes: Identifies divine domain.
  8. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: Coordinating; Function: Links cæli and terræ; Translation: “and”; Notes: Simple additive connector.
  9. terræ — Lemma: terra; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Genitive Singular Feminine; Function: Coordinated with cæli; Translation: “of earth”; Notes: Completes divine epithet “of heaven and earth.”
  10. ut — Lemma: ut; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: Purpose; Function: Introduces second clause of purpose; Translation: “that”; Notes: Parallel to first ut.
  11. non — Lemma: non; Part of Speech: Adverb; Form: Negation particle; Function: Negates accipias; Translation: “not”; Notes: Gives prohibitive sense within purpose clause.
  12. accipias — Lemma: accipio; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: Present Active Subjunctive 2nd Person Singular; Function: Verb of negative purpose clause; Translation: “you may take”; Notes: Expresses action forbidden by oath.
  13. uxorem — Lemma: uxor; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Accusative Singular Feminine; Function: Direct object of accipias; Translation: “wife”; Notes: Object of the intended action.
  14. filio — Lemma: filius; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Dative Singular Masculine; Function: Indirect object; Translation: “to (my) son”; Notes: Recipient of the wife.
  15. meo — Lemma: meus; Part of Speech: Possessive Pronoun; Form: Dative Singular Masculine; Function: Modifies filio; Translation: “my”; Notes: Refers to Abraham’s son Isaac.
  16. de — Lemma: de; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: Governs Ablative; Function: Marks origin; Translation: “from”; Notes: Indicates descent or source.
  17. filiabus — Lemma: filia; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Ablative Plural Feminine; Function: Object of de; Translation: “daughters”; Notes: Refers to women of a particular people group.
  18. Chananæorum — Lemma: Chananæus; Part of Speech: Proper Noun; Form: Genitive Plural Masculine; Function: Genitive of possession with filiabus; Translation: “of the Canaanites”; Notes: Indicates local ethnicity; refers to the Canaanite people.
  19. inter — Lemma: inter; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: Governs Accusative; Function: Introduces relative clause phrase; Translation: “among”; Notes: Spatial preposition expressing coexistence.
  20. quos — Lemma: qui; Part of Speech: Relative Pronoun; Form: Accusative Plural Masculine; Function: Object of inter; Translation: “whom”; Notes: Refers to Canaanites.
  21. habito — Lemma: habito; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: Present Active Indicative 1st Person Singular; Function: Verb of relative clause; Translation: “I live”; Notes: Indicates Abraham’s dwelling among them.

 

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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