Genesis 24:30

Posted on January 24, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Gn 24:30 Cumque vidisset inaures et armillas in manibus sororis suæ, et audisset cuncta verba referentis: Hæc locutus est mihi homo: venit ad virum, qui stabat iuxta camelos, et prope fontem aquæ:

And when he had seen the earrings and the bracelets on the hands of his sister, and had heard all the words of her recounting, saying: “These things the man spoke to me,” he came to the man who was standing beside the camels and near the spring of water;

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Cumque and when CONJ
2 vidisset had seen 3SG.PLUPERF.ACT.SUBJ
3 inaures earrings ACC.PL.F
4 et and CONJ
5 armillas bracelets ACC.PL.F
6 in on / in PREP+ABL
7 manibus hands ABL.PL.F
8 sororis of (his) sister GEN.SG.F
9 suæ his GEN.SG.F POSS.PRON
10 et and CONJ
11 audisset had heard 3SG.PLUPERF.ACT.SUBJ
12 cuncta all ACC.PL.N
13 verba words ACC.PL.N
14 referentis of recounting / reporting GEN.SG.F PTCP.PRES.ACT
15 Hæc these things NOM.PL.N DEM.PRON
16 locutus having spoken NOM.SG.M PTCP.PERF.DEP
17 est is / was 3SG.PERF.IND (AUX)
18 mihi to me DAT.SG.1P.PRON
19 homo man NOM.SG.M
20 venit came 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
21 ad to / toward PREP+ACC
22 virum man ACC.SG.M
23 qui who NOM.SG.M REL.PRON
24 stabat was standing 3SG.IMPF.ACT.IND
25 iuxta beside / next to PREP+ACC
26 camelos camels ACC.PL.M
27 et and CONJ
28 prope near PREP+ACC
29 fontem spring ACC.SG.M
30 aquæ of water GEN.SG.F

Syntax

Temporal Clause: Cumque vidisset inaures et armillas in manibus sororis suæ, et audisset cuncta verba referentis — introduced by Cumque (“and when”), this subordinate clause expresses temporal sequence prior to venit. Two verbs vidisset and audisset appear in the pluperfect subjunctive, showing anterior action.
The direct objects inaures et armillas (“earrings and bracelets”) are joined by et, with in manibus sororis suæ (“on the hands of his sister”) functioning as a locative complement. The second verb audisset governs cuncta verba referentis, a genitive participial phrase (“all the words of her recounting”).
Indirect Speech: Hæc locutus est mihi homo — renders Rebecca’s reported words, “These things the man spoke to me.” The subject homo appears after the verb for emphasis.
Main Clause: venit ad virum, qui stabat iuxta camelos et prope fontem aquæ — Laban’s main action: he came to the man. The relative clause qui stabat… provides descriptive setting: the man stood by the camels and near the spring.
Together, the syntax paints vivid motion and situational awareness typical of Vulgate narrative structure.

Morphology

  1. Cumque — Lemma: cum + que; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: Compound conjunction; Function: Introduces temporal clause with “and when”; Translation: “and when”; Notes: Combines coordinating -que with subordinating cum, linking temporal sequence to previous events.
  2. vidisset — Lemma: video; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: Pluperfect Active Subjunctive Third Person Singular; Function: Verb of temporal clause; Translation: “had seen”; Notes: Subjunctive in cum-clause marking temporal and circumstantial action prior to venit.
  3. inaures — Lemma: inauris; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Accusative Plural Feminine; Function: Direct object of vidisset; Translation: “earrings”; Notes: Refers to gifts given to Rebecca, evidential tokens of engagement.
  4. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: Indeclinable; Function: Connects two direct objects; Translation: “and”; Notes: Basic copulative conjunction joining inaures and armillas.
  5. armillas — Lemma: armilla; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Accusative Plural Feminine; Function: Direct object of vidisset; Translation: “bracelets”; Notes: Ornamental objects; parallels inaures as visible tokens.
  6. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: Governs Ablative; Function: Indicates location; Translation: “in / on”; Notes: Locative usage meaning “on (her hands).”
  7. manibus — Lemma: manus; Part of Speech: Noun (4th declension); Form: Ablative Plural Feminine; Function: Object of in; Translation: “hands”; Notes: Refers to Rebecca’s hands; location of ornaments.
  8. sororis — Lemma: soror; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Genitive Singular Feminine; Function: Possessive genitive; Translation: “of (his) sister”; Notes: Indicates Laban’s familial relationship to Rebecca.
  9. suæ — Lemma: suus; Part of Speech: Possessive pronoun; Form: Genitive Singular Feminine; Function: Modifies sororis; Translation: “his”; Notes: Reflexive possessive agreeing with Laban (subject of main verb).
  10. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: Indeclinable; Function: Connects the two subordinate actions vidisset and audisset; Translation: “and”; Notes: Links sequential perception verbs.
  11. audisset — Lemma: audio; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: Pluperfect Active Subjunctive Third Person Singular; Function: Second verb of the temporal clause; Translation: “had heard”; Notes: Denotes action preceding venit; subjunctive per cum-construction.
  12. cuncta — Lemma: cunctus; Part of Speech: Adjective functioning substantively; Form: Accusative Plural Neuter; Function: Direct object of audisset; Translation: “all”; Notes: Emphasizes completeness of Rebecca’s report.
  13. verba — Lemma: verbum; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Accusative Plural Neuter; Function: Direct object of audisset (paired with cuncta); Translation: “words”; Notes: Represents verbal testimony recounted to Laban.
  14. referentis — Lemma: refero; Part of Speech: Participle; Form: Present Active Participle Genitive Singular Feminine; Function: Modifies sororis or implied feminæ; Translation: “of recounting / reporting”; Notes: Genitive of the person doing the action; describes Rebecca’s act of recounting the encounter.
  15. Hæc — Lemma: hic, haec, hoc; Part of Speech: Demonstrative pronoun; Form: Nominative Plural Neuter; Function: Subject of locutus est; Translation: “these things”; Notes: Refers to specific statements made by the man (Abraham’s servant).
  16. locutus — Lemma: loquor; Part of Speech: Verb (Deponent); Form: Perfect Participle Nominative Singular Masculine; Function: With auxiliary est forms perfect deponent verb; Translation: “having spoken”; Notes: Used with est to mean “spoke”; emphasizes completed speech.
  17. est — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: Perfect Indicative Third Person Singular (auxiliary); Function: Completes periphrastic perfect; Translation: “spoke”; Notes: Deponent conjugation’s auxiliary component.
  18. mihi — Lemma: ego; Part of Speech: Pronoun; Form: Dative Singular; Function: Indirect object of locutus est; Translation: “to me”; Notes: Denotes recipient of speech (Rebecca).
  19. homo — Lemma: homo; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Nominative Singular Masculine; Function: Subject of locutus est; Translation: “man”; Notes: Refers to Abraham’s servant, source of the message.
  20. venit — Lemma: venio; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: Perfect Active Indicative Third Person Singular; Function: Main verb of the principal clause; Translation: “came”; Notes: Indicates completed action—Laban’s response after hearing Rebecca.
  21. ad — Lemma: ad; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: Governs Accusative; Function: Marks direction or goal; Translation: “to / toward”; Notes: Shows Laban’s movement toward the servant.
  22. virum — Lemma: vir; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Accusative Singular Masculine; Function: Object of ad; Translation: “man”; Notes: Refers again to Abraham’s servant, the object of Laban’s approach.
  23. qui — Lemma: qui; Part of Speech: Relative pronoun; Form: Nominative Singular Masculine; Function: Subject of stabat; Translation: “who”; Notes: Introduces relative clause describing location and posture of the man.
  24. stabat — Lemma: sto; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: Imperfect Active Indicative Third Person Singular; Function: Verb of the relative clause; Translation: “was standing”; Notes: Imperfect tense depicts ongoing position or posture, giving a vivid image of the man’s stillness beside the camels.
  25. iuxta — Lemma: iuxta; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: Governs Accusative; Function: Expresses proximity; Translation: “beside / next to”; Notes: Common spatial preposition meaning “close by,” here describing position relative to the camels.
  26. camelos — Lemma: camelus; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Accusative Plural Masculine; Function: Object of iuxta; Translation: “camels”; Notes: Animals accompanying the servant, marking the wealth and purpose of his journey.
  27. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: Indeclinable; Function: Connects parallel prepositional phrases; Translation: “and”; Notes: Links iuxta camelos with prope fontem aquæ.
  28. prope — Lemma: prope; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: Governs Accusative; Function: Indicates nearness; Translation: “near”; Notes: Denotes spatial proximity, typical in descriptive narrative clauses.
  29. fontem — Lemma: fons; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Accusative Singular Masculine; Function: Object of prope; Translation: “spring / well”; Notes: Refers to the same spring where Rebecca drew water; continues the recurring motif of divine provision.
  30. aquæ — Lemma: aqua; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Genitive Singular Feminine; Function: Genitive of specification modifying fontem; Translation: “of water”; Notes: Specifies the kind of spring—natural water source symbolizing life and covenant encounters.

 

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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