Genesis 16:5

Posted on January 16, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Gn 16:5 Dixitque Sarai ad Abram: Inique agis contra me: ego dedi ancillam meam in sinum tuum, quæ videns quod conceperit, despectui me habet. iudicet Dominus inter me, et te.

And Sarai said to Abram: “You act unjustly toward me; I gave my handmaid into your bosom, and when she saw that she had conceived, she regards me with contempt. May the LORD judge between me and you.”

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Dixitque and said 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND + ENCLITIC
2 Sarai Sarai NOM.SG.F PROPN
3 ad to PREP+ACC
4 Abram Abram ACC.SG.M PROPN
5 Inique unjustly ADV
6 agis you act 2SG.PRES.ACT.IND
7 contra against PREP+ACC
8 me me ACC.SG.F PRON
9 ego I NOM.SG.F PRON
10 dedi I gave 1SG.PERF.ACT.IND
11 ancillam handmaid ACC.SG.F
12 meam my ACC.SG.F POSS.ADJ
13 in into PREP+ACC
14 sinum bosom ACC.SG.M
15 tuum your ACC.SG.M POSS.ADJ
16 quæ who NOM.SG.F REL.PRON
17 videns seeing NOM.SG.F PRES.ACT.PTCP
18 quod that CONJ
19 conceperit she has conceived 3SG.PERF.ACT.SUBJ
20 despectui for contempt DAT.SG.M NOUN
21 me me ACC.SG.F PRON
22 habet she holds / regards 3SG.PRES.ACT.IND
23 iudicet may judge 3SG.PRES.ACT.SUBJ
24 Dominus LORD NOM.SG.M
25 inter between PREP+ACC
26 me me ACC.SG.F PRON
27 et and CONJ
28 te you ACC.SG.M PRON

Syntax

Main Clause 1: Dixitque Sarai ad Abram — introduces Sarai’s speech; Dixitque is the narrative perfect, ad Abram marks indirect object (“to Abram”).
Direct Speech Clauses:
• Inique agis contra me — present indicative; direct accusation, “you act unjustly toward me.”
• ego dedi ancillam meam in sinum tuum — perfect indicative recounting her prior act of giving Hagar.
• quæ videns quod conceperit, despectui me habet — relative clause explaining Hagar’s attitude; videns quod conceperit is causal, leading to despectui me habet (double dative construction: “she holds me for contempt”).
• iudicet Dominus inter me, et te — optative subjunctive (“may the LORD judge”) concluding Sarai’s appeal for divine arbitration.

Morphology

  1. Dixitque — Lemma: dico + que; Part of Speech: Verb + Enclitic; Form: Perfect active indicative, 3rd person singular; Function: Main narrative verb; Translation: “and said”; Notes: The enclitic -que connects this action with the preceding narrative seamlessly.
  2. Sarai — Lemma: Sarai; Part of Speech: Proper noun; Form: Nominative singular feminine; Function: Subject; Translation: “Sarai”; Notes: Speaker and principal female figure in the Hagar narrative.
  3. ad — Lemma: ad; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: Governs accusative; Function: Indicates direction; Translation: “to”; Notes: Marks Abram as recipient of the address.
  4. Abram — Lemma: Abram; Part of Speech: Proper noun; Form: Accusative singular masculine; Function: Object of ad; Translation: “Abram”; Notes: Hebrew proper name, recipient of Sarai’s reproach.
  5. Inique — Lemma: inique; Part of Speech: Adverb; Form: Indeclinable; Function: Modifies agis; Translation: “unjustly”; Notes: Expresses moral grievance against perceived wrongdoing.
  6. agis — Lemma: ago; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: Present active indicative, 2nd person singular; Function: Main verb of accusation; Translation: “you act”; Notes: Denotes continuous or current conduct.
  7. contra — Lemma: contra; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: Governs accusative; Function: Indicates opposition; Translation: “against”; Notes: Establishes conflict between Sarai and Abram.
  8. me — Lemma: ego; Part of Speech: Pronoun; Form: Accusative singular; Function: Object of contra; Translation: “me”; Notes: Refers to Sarai herself as the wronged party.
  9. ego — Lemma: ego; Part of Speech: Pronoun; Form: Nominative singular; Function: Subject; Translation: “I”; Notes: Used for emphasis at the start of the following statement.
  10. dedi — Lemma: do; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: Perfect active indicative, 1st person singular; Function: Main verb; Translation: “I gave”; Notes: Perfect tense highlights the completed and now regretted act.
  11. ancillam — Lemma: ancilla; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Accusative singular feminine; Function: Direct object of dedi; Translation: “handmaid”; Notes: Hagar is the object given into Abram’s care.
  12. meam — Lemma: meus; Part of Speech: Adjective; Form: Accusative singular feminine; Function: Possessive modifier; Translation: “my”; Notes: Reinforces Sarai’s authority over Hagar.
  13. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: Governs accusative; Function: Indicates motion toward; Translation: “into”; Notes: Used idiomatically for intimacy or transfer.
  14. sinum — Lemma: sinus; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Accusative singular masculine; Function: Object of in; Translation: “bosom”; Notes: Figurative for intimacy or marital union.
  15. tuum — Lemma: tuus; Part of Speech: Adjective; Form: Accusative singular masculine; Function: Possessive modifier; Translation: “your”; Notes: Refers to Abram as recipient.
  16. quæ — Lemma: qui, quae, quod; Part of Speech: Relative pronoun; Form: Nominative singular feminine; Function: Subject of subordinate clause; Translation: “who”; Notes: Refers to Hagar.
  17. videns — Lemma: video; Part of Speech: Verb (participle); Form: Nominative singular feminine, present active participle; Function: Circumstantial modifier; Translation: “seeing”; Notes: Denotes perception preceding contempt.
  18. quod — Lemma: quod; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: Indeclinable; Function: Introduces object clause; Translation: “that”; Notes: Links perception with conception result.
  19. conceperit — Lemma: concipio; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: Perfect active subjunctive, 3rd person singular; Function: Verb in indirect statement; Translation: “she has conceived”; Notes: Subjunctive follows videns to express perceived fact.
  20. despectui — Lemma: despectus; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Dative singular masculine; Function: Dative of purpose; Translation: “for contempt”; Notes: Used idiomatically with habeo for evaluative constructions.
  21. me — Lemma: ego; Part of Speech: Pronoun; Form: Accusative singular; Function: Dative of reference (in double dative); Translation: “me”; Notes: Serves as the person affected by contempt.
  22. habet — Lemma: habeo; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: Present active indicative, 3rd person singular; Function: Main verb of relative clause; Translation: “holds / regards”; Notes: Part of idiom “habeo alicui despectui,” meaning “to hold in contempt.”
  23. iudicet — Lemma: iudico; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: Present active subjunctive, 3rd person singular; Function: Optative; Translation: “may judge”; Notes: Expresses Sarai’s appeal for divine judgment.
  24. Dominus — Lemma: Dominus; Part of Speech: Noun (title); Form: Nominative singular masculine; Function: Subject of iudicet; Translation: “LORD”; Notes: Refers to YHWH as divine arbiter of justice.
  25. inter — Lemma: inter; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: Governs accusative; Function: Indicates comparison or mediation; Translation: “between”; Notes: Sets parties for judgment.
  26. me — Lemma: ego; Part of Speech: Pronoun; Form: Accusative singular; Function: Object of inter; Translation: “me”; Notes: Refers to Sarai.
  27. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: Indeclinable; Function: Connects coordinate objects; Translation: “and”; Notes: Joins the parties under divine judgment.
  28. te — Lemma: tu; Part of Speech: Pronoun; Form: Accusative singular; Function: Object of inter; Translation: “you”; Notes: Refers to Abram; completes judicial appeal 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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