Genesis 2:10

Posted on January 2, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Gn 2:10 Et fluvius egrediebatur de loco voluptatis ad irrigandum paradisum, qui inde dividitur in quatuor capita.

And a river went out from the place of delight to water the garden, and from there it is divided into four heads.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Et And CONJ
2 fluvius river NOM.SG.M
3 egrediebatur was going out / went out 3SG.IMPERF.DEP.IND
4 de from PREP+ABL
5 loco place ABL.SG.M
6 voluptatis of delight GEN.SG.F
7 ad to / for PREP+ACC
8 irrigandum for watering GERUND.ACC.SG
9 paradisum garden ACC.SG.M
10 qui which REL.PRON.NOM.SG.M
11 inde from there ADV
12 dividitur is divided 3SG.PRES.PASS.IND
13 in into PREP+ACC
14 quatuor four NUM.CARD
15 capita heads / sources ACC.PL.N

Syntax

Main Clause: Et fluvius egrediebatur de loco voluptatis ad irrigandum paradisum — “And a river went out from the place of delight to water the garden.”
Subject: fluvius — the river, source of irrigation for Paradise.
Verb: egrediebatur — deponent imperfect verb expressing continuous or habitual past motion.
Prepositional Phrases: de loco voluptatis (“from the place of delight”) and ad irrigandum paradisum (“to water the garden”) define origin and purpose.
Relative Clause: qui inde dividitur in quatuor capita — “which from there is divided into four heads,” explaining the branching of the river.
Passive Verb: dividitur — present passive, describing ongoing division into tributaries.

Morphology

  1. Et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: Coordinating; Function: Links the verse to the previous narrative; Translation: “and”; Notes: Connects the description of the trees with the river imagery.
  2. fluvius — Lemma: fluvius; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Nominative singular masculine; Function: Subject; Translation: “river”; Notes: Represents the life-giving stream flowing through Paradise.
  3. egrediebatur — Lemma: egredior; Part of Speech: Deponent verb; Form: Imperfect indicative 3rd singular; Function: Main verb; Translation: “was going out / went out”; Notes: Deponent with active meaning, continuous or habitual past action.
  4. de — Lemma: de; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: Governs ablative; Function: Indicates source or origin; Translation: “from”; Notes: Introduces the point of origin.
  5. loco — Lemma: locus; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Ablative singular masculine; Function: Object of de; Translation: “place”; Notes: Denotes spatial source.
  6. voluptatis — Lemma: voluptas; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Genitive singular feminine; Function: Possessive genitive modifying loco; Translation: “of delight”; Notes: Refers to the “place of delight,” i.e., Eden.
  7. ad — Lemma: ad; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: Governs accusative; Function: Expresses purpose or direction; Translation: “to / for”; Notes: Introduces goal or function of the river.
  8. irrigandum — Lemma: irrigo; Part of Speech: Gerund; Form: Accusative singular; Function: Object of ad; Translation: “for watering”; Notes: Expresses intended purpose.
  9. paradisum — Lemma: paradisus; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Accusative singular masculine; Function: Object of ad irrigandum; Translation: “garden”; Notes: Refers to the Garden of Delight (Eden).
  10. qui — Lemma: qui, quae, quod; Part of Speech: Relative pronoun; Form: Nominative singular masculine; Function: Introduces relative clause referring to fluvius; Translation: “which”; Notes: Subject of dividitur.
  11. inde — Lemma: inde; Part of Speech: Adverb; Form: —; Function: Indicates origin; Translation: “from there”; Notes: Refers to the point of division.
  12. dividitur — Lemma: divido; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: Present passive indicative 3rd singular; Function: Main verb of relative clause; Translation: “is divided”; Notes: Describes continuous state of branching or separation.
  13. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: Governs accusative; Function: Expresses division into parts; Translation: “into”; Notes: Indicates transformation of one into several.
  14. quatuor — Lemma: quattuor; Part of Speech: Numeral (Cardinal); Form: Indeclinable; Function: Modifies capita; Translation: “four”; Notes: Specifies number of divisions.
  15. capita — Lemma: caput; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Accusative plural neuter; Function: Object of in; Translation: “heads / sources”; Notes: Refers to the four headwaters emerging from one river.

 

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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