Genesis 18:1

Posted on January 18, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Gn 16:1 Apparuit autem ei Dominus in convalle Mambre sedenti in ostio tabernaculi sui in ipso fervore diei.

And the LORD appeared to him in the valley of Mambre, as he was sitting at the entrance of his tent in the very heat of the day.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Apparuit appeared 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
2 autem but / and CONJ
3 ei to him DAT.SG.M.PRON
4 Dominus LORD NOM.SG.M
5 in in PREP+ABL
6 convalle valley ABL.SG.F
7 Mambre Mamre GEN.SG.PROP.NOUN
8 sedenti to (him) sitting DAT.SG.M.PRES.ACT.PTCP
9 in in / at PREP+ABL
10 ostio entrance ABL.SG.N
11 tabernaculi of the tent GEN.SG.N
12 sui his own GEN.SG.M.REFL.PRON
13 in in PREP+ABL
14 ipso in the very ABL.SG.M.DEMON.ADJ
15 fervore heat ABL.SG.M
16 diei of the day GEN.SG.M

Syntax

Main Clause: Apparuit autem ei Dominus — Dominus (subject) refers to the LORD (YHWH); Apparuit is the perfect indicative of “appareo,” meaning “appeared”; ei is a dative pronoun, “to him,” referring to Abraham. The conjunction autem marks a new episode or continuation with contrastive nuance.
Locative Phrase: in convalle Mambre — ablative of location meaning “in the valley of Mamre,” situating the theophany geographically.
Participial Phrase: sedenti in ostio tabernaculi sui — dative present participle expressing contemporaneous circumstance, “while he was sitting at the entrance of his tent.”
Temporal Phrase: in ipso fervore diei — ablative of time, “in the very heat of the day,” marking midday, the hottest time, underscoring divine manifestation during stillness and rest.

Morphology

  1. Apparuit — Lemma: appareo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: perfect active indicative, third person singular; Function: main verb; Translation: “appeared”; Notes: Indicates the completed action of divine manifestation to Abraham.
  2. autem — Lemma: autem; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: connective adverb introducing contrast or continuation; Translation: “but” / “and”; Notes: Often used narratively to shift focus or transition scenes.
  3. ei — Lemma: is, ea, id; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: dative singular masculine; Function: indirect object; Translation: “to him”; Notes: Refers to Abraham, the recipient of the theophany.
  4. Dominus — Lemma: Dominus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: subject; Translation: “LORD”; Notes: Refers to YHWH, the covenantal God appearing to Abraham.
  5. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: indicates place; Translation: “in”; Notes: Introduces a locative ablative phrase.
  6. convalle — Lemma: convallis; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular feminine; Function: object of “in”; Translation: “valley”; Notes: Specifies the geographical site of Mamre.
  7. Mambre — Lemma: Mambre; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: genitive singular; Function: modifies “convalle”; Translation: “of Mamre”; Notes: Refers to a location near Hebron associated with Abraham’s dwelling.
  8. sedenti — Lemma: sedeo; Part of Speech: participle; Form: dative singular masculine, present active; Function: dative of circumstance or accompaniment; Translation: “to (him) sitting”; Notes: Denotes Abraham’s posture at the moment of divine appearance.
  9. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: locative preposition; Translation: “in / at”; Notes: Introduces the spatial context of the participial phrase.
  10. ostio — Lemma: ostium; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular neuter; Function: object of “in”; Translation: “entrance”; Notes: Refers to the doorway or opening of Abraham’s tent.
  11. tabernaculi — Lemma: tabernaculum; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive singular neuter; Function: genitive of possession; Translation: “of the tent”; Notes: The dwelling place of Abraham; contextual parallel to “tent” in Genesis 18:1.
  12. sui — Lemma: sui; Part of Speech: reflexive pronoun; Form: genitive singular masculine; Function: modifies “tabernaculi”; Translation: “his own”; Notes: Reflexively refers to Abraham, emphasizing ownership of the tent.
  13. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: temporal preposition; Translation: “in / during”; Notes: Marks the time of day for the theophany.
  14. ipso — Lemma: ipse; Part of Speech: demonstrative adjective; Form: ablative singular masculine; Function: intensifier modifying “fervore”; Translation: “in the very”; Notes: Adds emphasis to the phrase “in the very heat.”
  15. fervore — Lemma: fervor; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular masculine; Function: object of “in”; Translation: “heat”; Notes: Refers to the midday heat, a traditional time of rest in the Near East.
  16. diei — Lemma: dies; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive singular masculine; Function: genitive of specification; Translation: “of the day”; Notes: Completes the temporal phrase indicating the specific time of appearance.

 

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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