Genesis 1:18

Posted on January 1, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Gn 1:18 et præessent diei ac nocti, et dividerent lucem ac tenebras. Et vidit Deus quod esset bonum.

and that they might rule the day and the night, and might divide the light and the darkness. And God saw that it was good.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 et and CONJ
2 præessent they might rule 3PL.IMP.SUBJ.ACT
3 diei the day DAT.SG.M
4 ac and CONJ
5 nocti, the night DAT.SG.F
6 et and CONJ
7 dividerent they might divide 3PL.IMP.SUBJ.ACT
8 lucem light ACC.SG.F
9 ac and CONJ
10 tenebras. darkness ACC.PL.F
11 Et And CONJ
12 vidit saw 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
13 Deus God NOM.SG.M
14 quod that CONJ.SUB
15 esset was 3SG.IMP.SUBJ.ACT
16 bonum. good NOM.SG.N

Syntax

Coordinated Purpose Clauses:
• ut præessent diei ac nocti — ruling day and night
• et dividerent lucem ac tenebras — separating light/darkness

Main Narrative Clause: Et vidit Deus quod esset bonum — divine evaluation of goodness using a content clause introduced by quod

Morphology

  1. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: Coordinating; Function: Links ongoing divine purposes; Translation: “and”; Notes: Narrative continuation.
  2. præessent — Lemma: praesum; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: Imperfect subjunctive active, 3rd plural; Function: Purpose; Translation: “they might rule”; Notes: Government metaphor.
  3. diei — Lemma: dies; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Dative singular masculine; Function: Object of rule; Translation: “the day”; Notes: Beneficiary of rule.
  4. ac — Lemma: ac; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: Coordinating; Function: Connects correlative pair; Translation: “and”; Notes: Stronger than “et”.
  5. nocti, — Lemma: nox; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Dative singular feminine; Function: Object of rule; Translation: “the night”; Notes: Punctuation preserved.
  6. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: Coordinating; Function: Adds second purpose; Translation: “and”; Notes: Parallel structure.
  7. dividerent — Lemma: divido; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: Imperfect subjunctive active, 3rd plural; Function: Purpose; Translation: “they might divide”; Notes: Continuing cosmic order.
  8. lucem — Lemma: lux; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Accusative singular feminine; Function: Object; Translation: “light”; Notes: First part of contrast pair.
  9. ac — Lemma: ac; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: Coordinating; Function: Joins contrasted pair; Translation: “and”; Notes: Creates parallelism.
  10. tenebras. — Lemma: tenebrae; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Accusative plural feminine; Function: Object; Translation: “darkness”; Notes: Opposite to lucem.
  11. Et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: Coordinating; Function: Introduces evaluation; Translation: “And”; Notes: Narrative transition.
  12. vidit — Lemma: video; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: Perfect active indicative, 3rd singular; Function: Main verb; Translation: “saw”; Notes: Perception confirming order.
  13. Deus — Lemma: Deus; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Nominative singular masculine; Function: Subject; Translation: “God”; Notes: Divine evaluator.
  14. quod — Lemma: quod; Part of Speech: Conjunction/pronoun; Form: Subordinator introducing content clause; Function: Connects evaluation; Translation: “that”; Notes: Governs subjunctive.
  15. esset — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: Imperfect subjunctive active, 3rd singular; Function: Verb in content clause; Translation: “was”; Notes: Subjunctive after evaluation verb.
  16. bonum. — Lemma: bonus; Part of Speech: Adjective; Form: Nominative singular neuter; Function: Predicate adjective; Translation: “good”; Notes: Moral approval formula.

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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