Genesis 20:13

Posted on January 20, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Gn 20:13 Postquam autem eduxit me Deus de domo patris mei, dixi ad eam: Hanc misericordiam facies mecum: In omni loco, ad quem ingrediemur, dices quod frater tuus sim.

But after God brought me out of my father’s house, I said to her, ‘You will show this kindness to me: in every place to which we shall come, say that I am your brother.’”

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Postquam after CONJ
2 autem but / however CONJ.ADV
3 eduxit brought out 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
4 me me ACC.SG.PRON
5 Deus God NOM.SG.M
6 de from PREP+ABL
7 domo house ABL.SG.F
8 patris of (my) father GEN.SG.M
9 mei of my GEN.SG.M.POSS.ADJ
10 dixi I said 1SG.PERF.ACT.IND
11 ad to PREP+ACC
12 eam her ACC.SG.F.PRON
13 Hanc this ACC.SG.F.DEMONSTR.ADJ
14 misericordiam kindness / mercy ACC.SG.F
15 facies you will show / do 2SG.FUT.ACT.IND
16 mecum with me PREP+ABL.PRON
17 In in PREP+ABL
18 omni every ABL.SG.M.ADJ
19 loco place ABL.SG.M
20 ad to / toward PREP+ACC
21 quem which / whom ACC.SG.M.REL.PRON
22 ingrediemur we shall enter 1PL.FUT.DEP.IND
23 dices you shall say 2SG.FUT.ACT.IND
24 quod that CONJ
25 frater brother NOM.SG.M
26 tuus your NOM.SG.M.POSS.ADJ
27 sim I am 1SG.PRES.SUBJ.ACT

Syntax

Temporal Clause: Postquam autem eduxit me Deus de domo patris mei — Introduced by Postquam, marks completed divine action preceding Abraham’s instruction. Deus is the subject; me is the object; de domo patris mei expresses source or origin.
Main Clause: dixi ad eam — Main verb dixi governs the indirect discourse that follows.
Subordinate Command: Hanc misericordiam facies mecum — Expresses Abraham’s directive to Sara, “You shall show this kindness to me.”
Conditional Context: In omni loco ad quem ingrediemur — Specifies where the act of kindness must be performed.
Final Indirect Command: dices quod frater tuus sim — Direct speech with quod introducing a subordinate clause expressing what she must say: “that I am your brother.”

Morphology

  1. Postquam — Lemma: postquam; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: compound temporal; Function: introduces a past completed action; Translation: “after”; Notes: Used with perfect tense to indicate temporal sequence.
  2. autem — Lemma: autem; Part of Speech: conjunction/adverb; Form: indeclinable; Function: mild contrastive particle; Translation: “but”; Notes: Common postpositive introducing new clause with continuity.
  3. eduxit — Lemma: educo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: perfect indicative active, third person singular; Function: main verb of the temporal clause; Translation: “brought out”; Notes: Refers to divine deliverance of Abraham from Haran.
  4. me — Lemma: ego; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: accusative singular; Function: direct object of “eduxit”; Translation: “me”; Notes: Emphasizes divine initiative on Abraham.
  5. Deus — Lemma: Deus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: subject of “eduxit”; Translation: “God”; Notes: Denotes YHWH as the deliverer.
  6. de — Lemma: de; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: expresses motion from or origin; Translation: “from”; Notes: Indicates separation or source.
  7. domo — Lemma: domus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular feminine; Function: object of “de”; Translation: “house”; Notes: Represents ancestral household.
  8. patris — Lemma: pater; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive singular masculine; Function: possessive modifier of “domo”; Translation: “of (my) father”; Notes: Specifies lineage.
  9. mei — Lemma: meus; Part of Speech: possessive adjective; Form: genitive singular masculine; Function: modifies “patris”; Translation: “my”; Notes: Personalizes origin (“of my father”).
  10. dixi — Lemma: dico; Part of Speech: verb; Form: perfect indicative active, first person singular; Function: introduces indirect command; Translation: “I said”; Notes: Governs direct discourse of instruction.
  11. ad — Lemma: ad; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs accusative; Function: marks direction toward the person addressed; Translation: “to”; Notes: Common with verbs of speech.
  12. eam — Lemma: is; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: object of “ad”; Translation: “her”; Notes: Refers to Sara, Abraham’s wife.
  13. Hanc — Lemma: hic; Part of Speech: demonstrative adjective; Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: modifies “misericordiam”; Translation: “this”; Notes: Introduces specific favor requested.
  14. misericordiam — Lemma: misericordia; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: direct object of “facies”; Translation: “kindness / mercy”; Notes: Expresses ethical obligation toward Abraham.
  15. facies — Lemma: facio; Part of Speech: verb; Form: future indicative active, second person singular; Function: main verb of command; Translation: “you will do / show”; Notes: Futurity used imperatively.
  16. mecum — Lemma: mecum; Part of Speech: pronoun (with preposition); Form: ablative singular; Function: adverbial phrase of association; Translation: “with me”; Notes: Reflexive form emphasizes mutual involvement.
  17. In — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: introduces local phrase; Translation: “in”; Notes: Indicates spatial condition.
  18. omni — Lemma: omnis; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: ablative singular masculine; Function: modifies “loco”; Translation: “every”; Notes: Universal quantifier broadening scope of instruction.
  19. loco — Lemma: locus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular masculine; Function: object of “in”; Translation: “place”; Notes: Indicates any geographical setting encountered.
  20. ad — Lemma: ad; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs accusative; Function: expresses motion toward; Translation: “to / toward”; Notes: Introduces relative clause.
  21. quem — Lemma: qui; Part of Speech: relative pronoun; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: object of “ad”; Translation: “which / to which”; Notes: Refers back to “loco.”
  22. ingrediemur — Lemma: ingredior; Part of Speech: deponent verb; Form: future indicative, first person plural; Function: main verb of the relative clause; Translation: “we shall enter”; Notes: Deponent form with active meaning; anticipates journey motif.
  23. dices — Lemma: dico; Part of Speech: verb; Form: future indicative active, second person singular; Function: main verb of subordinate imperative; Translation: “you will say”; Notes: Expresses command-like future of obligation.
  24. quod — Lemma: quod; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: introduces indirect discourse; Translation: “that”; Notes: Links speech clause content.
  25. frater — Lemma: frater; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: predicate nominative; Translation: “brother”; Notes: Defines relational deception Abraham requests.
  26. tuus — Lemma: tuus; Part of Speech: possessive adjective; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: modifies “frater”; Translation: “your”; Notes: Indicates Sara’s supposed relationship.
  27. sim — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: present subjunctive active, first person singular; Function: verb of subordinate clause after “quod”; Translation: “I am”; Notes: Subjunctive used in indirect speech expressing reported statement.

 

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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