Genesis 24:35

Posted on January 24, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Gn 24:35 et Dominus benedixit domino meo valde, magnificatusque est: et dedit ei oves et boves, argentum et aurum, servos et ancillas, camelos et asinos.

and the LORD has blessed my master greatly, and he has been made very great; and He has given him sheep and oxen, silver and gold, male and female servants, camels and donkeys.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 et and CONJ
2 Dominus the LORD NOM.SG.M
3 benedixit blessed 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
4 domino to the master DAT.SG.M
5 meo my DAT.SG.M POSS.ADJ
6 valde greatly ADV
7 magnificatusque and he has been made great 3SG.PERF.IND.PASS + CONJ
8 est is / was AUX 3SG.PERF.IND
9 et and CONJ
10 dedit gave 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
11 ei to him DAT.SG.M 3P.PRON
12 oves sheep ACC.PL.F
13 et and CONJ
14 boves oxen ACC.PL.M
15 argentum silver ACC.SG.N
16 et and CONJ
17 aurum gold ACC.SG.N
18 servos male servants ACC.PL.M
19 et and CONJ
20 ancillas female servants ACC.PL.F
21 camelos camels ACC.PL.M
22 et and CONJ
23 asinos donkeys ACC.PL.M

Syntax

Clause 1: et Dominus benedixit domino meo valde — the main clause with perfect active verb benedixit (“has blessed”) and indirect object domino meo (“my master”). The adverb valde intensifies the extent of blessing. Dominus here refers to YHWH, consistent with the covenantal blessing motif.
Clause 2: magnificatusque est — a perfect passive form (“and he has been made great”), joined by -que, expressing resultant honor from divine favor.
Clause 3: et dedit ei oves et boves, argentum et aurum, servos et ancillas, camelos et asinos — enumeration of blessings, each pair forming a merismus of wealth categories: livestock (oves et boves), precious metals (argentum et aurum), human servants (servos et ancillas), and beasts of burden (camelos et asinos). The dative ei marks the recipient of these divine gifts.
The syntax mirrors the Hebrew rhythm of Genesis 24:35, balancing divine action with material evidence of prosperity.

Morphology

  1. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: Indeclinable; Function: Connective between narrative statements; Translation: “and”; Notes: Marks continuity in divine narrative.
  2. Dominus — Lemma: Dominus; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Nominative Singular Masculine; Function: Subject of benedixit; Translation: “the LORD”; Notes: Refers to YHWH; capitalized per divine reference rule.
  3. benedixit — Lemma: benedico; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: Perfect Active Indicative Third Person Singular; Function: Main verb; Translation: “has blessed”; Notes: Compound of bene + dico; expresses divine favor realized in the past.
  4. domino — Lemma: dominus; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Dative Singular Masculine; Function: Indirect object; Translation: “to (the) master”; Notes: Refers to Abraham; recipient of the blessing.
  5. meo — Lemma: meus; Part of Speech: Adjective (Possessive); Form: Dative Singular Masculine; Function: Modifies domino; Translation: “my”; Notes: Denotes personal subordination of speaker (servant of Abraham).
  6. valde — Lemma: valde; Part of Speech: Adverb; Form: Indeclinable; Function: Intensifier of benedixit; Translation: “greatly”; Notes: Strengthens the scope of divine blessing.
  7. magnificatusque — Lemma: magnifico + -que; Part of Speech: Verb (Perfect Passive Indicative); Form: 3rd Person Singular + enclitic conjunction; Function: Predicate of result; Translation: “and he has been made great”; Notes: Passive voice shows divine agency in exalting Abraham.
  8. est — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: Verb (Auxiliary); Form: Perfect Indicative Third Person Singular; Function: Auxiliary of magnificatus; Translation: “is / was”; Notes: Completes periphrastic passive construction.
  9. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: Indeclinable; Function: Links coordinate clause; Translation: “and”; Notes: Sequential connector for divine acts.
  10. dedit — Lemma: do; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: Perfect Active Indicative Third Person Singular; Function: Main verb of giving; Translation: “gave / has given”; Notes: Perfect tense showing completed generosity.
  11. ei — Lemma: is, ea, id; Part of Speech: Pronoun; Form: Dative Singular Masculine; Function: Indirect object of dedit; Translation: “to him”; Notes: Refers again to Abraham, recipient of God’s blessing.
  12. oves — Lemma: ovis; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Accusative Plural Feminine; Function: Direct object of dedit; Translation: “sheep”; Notes: Represents wealth and pastoral abundance.
  13. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: Indeclinable; Function: Connects oves and boves; Translation: “and”; Notes: Links livestock types.
  14. boves — Lemma: bos; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Accusative Plural Masculine; Function: Direct object of dedit; Translation: “oxen”; Notes: Symbolic of agricultural wealth and strength.
  15. argentum — Lemma: argentum; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Accusative Singular Neuter; Function: Object of dedit; Translation: “silver”; Notes: Represents monetary prosperity.
  16. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: Indeclinable; Function: Connects argentum and aurum; Translation: “and”; Notes: Pairs precious metals.
  17. aurum — Lemma: aurum; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Accusative Singular Neuter; Function: Object of dedit; Translation: “gold”; Notes: Symbol of divine favor and covenantal wealth.
  18. servos — Lemma: servus; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Accusative Plural Masculine; Function: Direct object of dedit; Translation: “male servants”; Notes: Reflects domestic and pastoral management structure.
  19. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: Indeclinable; Function: Connects paired nouns; Translation: “and”; Notes: Used repeatedly for parallelism and rhythm.
  20. ancillas — Lemma: ancilla; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Accusative Plural Feminine; Function: Object of dedit; Translation: “female servants”; Notes: Complements servos; domestic staff of wealthy patriarchs.
  21. camelos — Lemma: camelus; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Accusative Plural Masculine; Function: Object of dedit; Translation: “camels”; Notes: Sign of long-distance wealth and transport capacity.
  22. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: Indeclinable; Function: Links final pair; Translation: “and”; Notes: Concludes accumulation series.
  23. asinos — Lemma: asinus; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Accusative Plural Masculine; Function: Object of dedit; Translation: “donkeys”; Notes: Represents practical means of transport and labor; completes the catalogue of blessings.

 

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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