Genesis 24:13

Posted on January 24, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Gn 24:13 Ecce ego sto prope fontem aquæ, et filiæ habitatorum huius civitatis egredientur ad hauriendam aquam.

Behold, I stand near the spring of water, and the daughters of the inhabitants of this city will come out to draw water.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Ecce behold INTERJ
2 ego I NOM.SG.PRON
3 sto stand 1SG.PRES.ACT.IND
4 prope near PREP+ACC
5 fontem spring / fountain ACC.SG.M
6 aquæ of water GEN.SG.F
7 et and CONJ
8 filiæ daughters NOM.PL.F
9 habitatorum of the inhabitants GEN.PL.M
10 huius of this GEN.SG.DEM
11 civitatis city GEN.SG.F
12 egredientur they will come out 3PL.FUT.DEP.IND
13 ad to / for the purpose of PREP+ACC
14 hauriendam to draw GERUNDIVE.ACC.SG.F
15 aquam water ACC.SG.F

Syntax

Main Clause 1: Ecce ego sto prope fontem aquæ — a deictic expression of presence. Ecce introduces immediate perception (“Behold”), ego serves as emphatic subject, and sto is the main verb. The prepositional phrase prope fontem aquæ marks proximity to the spring.
Main Clause 2: et filiæ habitatorum huius civitatis egredientur ad hauriendam aquam — future action coordinated by et. The subject filiæ is modified by a genitive chain habitatorum huius civitatis (“of the inhabitants of this city”). The verb egredientur is deponent, meaning “they will go out,” and the phrase ad hauriendam aquam expresses purpose (“to draw water”).
The sentence joins a present stance with a prophetic anticipation, emphasizing readiness for divine encounter at the well.

Morphology

  1. Ecce — Lemma: ecce; Part of Speech: Interjection; Form: Indeclinable; Function: Deictic particle introducing immediacy; Translation: “behold”; Notes: Commonly introduces self-presentation or divine manifestation.
  2. ego — Lemma: ego; Part of Speech: Pronoun; Form: Nominative Singular; Function: Subject of sto; Translation: “I”; Notes: Expressed for emphasis, though normally implied by verb ending.
  3. sto — Lemma: sto; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: Present Active Indicative 1st Person Singular; Function: Main verb; Translation: “stand”; Notes: Denotes fixed position or readiness.
  4. prope — Lemma: prope; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: Governs Accusative; Function: Indicates nearness; Translation: “near”; Notes: Often used spatially with persons or places.
  5. fontem — Lemma: fons; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Accusative Singular Masculine; Function: Object of prope; Translation: “spring”; Notes: Literal “source of water,” a meeting place motif in Genesis.
  6. aquæ — Lemma: aqua; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Genitive Singular Feminine; Function: Genitive of content; Translation: “of water”; Notes: Specifies kind of fountain.
  7. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: Coordinating; Function: Links two main clauses; Translation: “and”; Notes: Sequential addition of events.
  8. filiæ — Lemma: filia; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Nominative Plural Feminine; Function: Subject of egredientur; Translation: “daughters”; Notes: Denotes young women of the city.
  9. habitatorum — Lemma: habitator; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Genitive Plural Masculine; Function: Possessive genitive modifying filiæ; Translation: “of inhabitants”; Notes: Refers to male residents collectively.
  10. huius — Lemma: hic; Part of Speech: Demonstrative Pronoun; Form: Genitive Singular; Function: Modifies civitatis; Translation: “of this”; Notes: Proximal demonstrative pointing to the location of the well.
  11. civitatis — Lemma: civitas; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Genitive Singular Feminine; Function: Completes genitive chain; Translation: “city”; Notes: Refers to Nahor’s settlement in Mesopotamia.
  12. egredientur — Lemma: egredior; Part of Speech: Deponent Verb; Form: Future Indicative 3rd Person Plural; Function: Verb of second clause; Translation: “they will come out”; Notes: Future indicative of deponent form with active meaning.
  13. ad — Lemma: ad; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: Governs Accusative; Function: Expresses purpose; Translation: “to / for the purpose of”; Notes: Common with gerundive constructions.
  14. hauriendam — Lemma: haurio; Part of Speech: Verb (Gerundive); Form: Gerundive Accusative Singular Feminine; Function: Purpose construction with ad; Translation: “to draw”; Notes: Gerundive expressing purpose or obligation.
  15. aquam — Lemma: aqua; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Accusative Singular Feminine; Function: Object of hauriendam; Translation: “water”; Notes: Completes purpose phrase.

 

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.
This entry was posted in Genesis. Bookmark the permalink.

Comments are closed.