Genesis 17:1

Posted on January 17, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Gn 17:1 Postquam vero nonaginta et novem annorum esse cœperat, apparuit ei Dominus: dixitque ad eum: Ego Deus omnipotens: ambula coram me, et esto perfectus.

And when he had begun to be ninety-nine years old, the LORD appeared to him and said to him: “I am God Almighty; walk before me and be blameless.”

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Postquam after CONJ.SUBORD
2 vero indeed ADV
3 nonaginta ninety NUM.CARD.INDECL
4 et and CONJ
5 novem nine NUM.CARD.INDECL
6 annorum of years GEN.PL.M
7 esse to be PRES.ACT.INF
8 cœperat had begun 3SG.PLUPERF.ACT.IND
9 apparuit appeared 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
10 ei to him DAT.SG.M.PRON
11 Dominus LORD NOM.SG.M
12 dixitque and said 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND + CONJ
13 ad to PREP+ACC
14 eum him ACC.SG.M.PRON
15 Ego I NOM.SG.PRON
16 Deus God NOM.SG.M
17 omnipotens almighty NOM.SG.M.ADJ
18 ambula walk 2SG.PRES.ACT.IMP
19 coram before PREP+ABL
20 me me ABL.SG.PRON
21 et and CONJ
22 esto be 2SG.FUT.ACT.IMP
23 perfectus blameless NOM.SG.M.ADJ

Syntax

Temporal Clause: Postquam vero nonaginta et novem annorum esse cœperat — introduced by postquam (“after”), describing the time when the following events occurred; nonaginta et novem annorum expresses Abraham’s age; esse cœperat functions as a periphrastic expression “had begun to be.”
Main Clause 1: apparuit ei Dominus — subject Dominus (the LORD) follows the verb apparuit for emphasis; ei marks the dative of the person to whom He appeared.
Main Clause 2: dixitque ad eum — dixit introduces direct speech; ad eum marks the indirect object “to him.”
Direct Speech: Ego Deus omnipotens: ambula coram me, et esto perfectus — a declaration followed by two imperatives: ambula (command to walk) and esto (command to be).

Morphology

  1. Postquam — Lemma: postquam; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: subordinating; Function: introduces temporal clause; Translation: “after”; Notes: Commonly used with perfect or pluperfect verbs.
  2. vero — Lemma: vero; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: indeclinable; Function: adds emphasis or contrast; Translation: “indeed”; Notes: Reinforces narrative transition.
  3. nonaginta — Lemma: nonaginta; Part of Speech: numeral; Form: indeclinable; Function: part of compound number; Translation: “ninety”; Notes: Used with “novem” to form “ninety-nine.”
  4. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: coordinating; Function: connects numerals; Translation: “and”; Notes: Links the two cardinal numerals.
  5. novem — Lemma: novem; Part of Speech: numeral; Form: indeclinable; Function: completes numerical phrase; Translation: “nine”; Notes: Used with “nonaginta.”
  6. annorum — Lemma: annus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive plural masculine; Function: genitive of quality; Translation: “of years”; Notes: Indicates age or duration.
  7. esse — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: present active infinitive; Function: infinitive complement with “cœperat”; Translation: “to be”; Notes: Dependent infinitive after verbs of beginning.
  8. cœperat — Lemma: coepio; Part of Speech: verb; Form: pluperfect active indicative, third person singular; Function: main verb of temporal clause; Translation: “had begun”; Notes: Marks inception of a state.
  9. apparuit — Lemma: appareo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: perfect active indicative, third person singular; Function: main verb of the first main clause; Translation: “appeared”; Notes: Describes divine manifestation.
  10. ei — Lemma: is, ea, id; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: dative singular masculine; Function: indirect object of “apparuit”; Translation: “to him”; Notes: Refers to Abraham.
  11. Dominus — Lemma: Dominus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: subject of “apparuit”; Translation: “LORD”; Notes: Refers to YHWH, hence rendered in small caps.
  12. dixitque — Lemma: dico; Part of Speech: verb + conjunction; Form: perfect active indicative, third person singular with enclitic “-que”; Function: introduces direct speech; Translation: “and said”; Notes: Narrative continuation marker.
  13. ad — Lemma: ad; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs accusative; Function: introduces indirect object; Translation: “to”; Notes: Shows direction of speech.
  14. eum — Lemma: is, ea, id; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: object of “ad”; Translation: “him”; Notes: Refers to Abraham.
  15. Ego — Lemma: ego; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: nominative singular; Function: subject of “sum” (understood); Translation: “I”; Notes: Expresses divine self-identification.
  16. Deus — Lemma: Deus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: predicate nominative; Translation: “God”; Notes: Title of divine identity.
  17. omnipotens — Lemma: omnipotens; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: modifies “Deus”; Translation: “almighty”; Notes: Denotes unlimited divine power.
  18. ambula — Lemma: ambulo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: present active imperative, second person singular; Function: imperative of command; Translation: “walk”; Notes: Figurative for living faithfully before God.
  19. coram — Lemma: coram; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: expresses presence; Translation: “before”; Notes: Indicates moral and spiritual awareness before God.
  20. me — Lemma: ego; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: ablative singular; Function: object of “coram”; Translation: “me”; Notes: Refers to the LORD speaking.
  21. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: coordinating; Function: joins two commands; Translation: “and”; Notes: Links two imperatives.
  22. esto — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: future active imperative, second person singular; Function: imperative of command; Translation: “be”; Notes: Expresses divine exhortation toward moral completeness.
  23. perfectus — Lemma: perfectus; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: predicate adjective with “esto”; Translation: “blameless”; Notes: Indicates moral integrity and wholeness before God.

 

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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