Genesis 26:5

Posted on January 26, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Gn 26:5 eo quod obedierit Abraham voci meæ, et custodierit præcepta et mandata mea, et ceremonias legesque servaverit.

Because Abraham obeyed my voice, and kept my precepts and my commandments, and observed my ceremonies and my laws.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 eo because / on this account ADV
2 quod that / because CONJ
3 obedierit has obeyed 3SG.PERF.ACT.SUBJ
4 Abraham Abraham PROPN.NOM.SG.M
5 voci to (the) voice NOUN.DAT.SG.F
6 meæ my PRON.POSS.DAT.SG.F
7 et and CONJ
8 custodierit has kept 3SG.PERF.ACT.SUBJ
9 præcepta precepts NOUN.ACC.PL.N
10 et and CONJ
11 mandata commandments NOUN.ACC.PL.N
12 mea my PRON.POSS.ACC.PL.N
13 et and CONJ
14 ceremonias ceremonies / rites NOUN.ACC.PL.F
15 legesque and laws NOUN.ACC.PL.F+ENCLITIC-QUE
16 servaverit has observed 3SG.PERF.ACT.SUBJ

Syntax

Causal Complex: eo quod introduces the cause for the promised blessing: “because.” The content of the cause is expressed through three coordinated perfect-subjunctive verbs with understood subject “Abraham”: obedierit … custodierit … servaverit.
First Member: obedierit Abraham voci meæ — verb of obedience taking the dative (voci, modified by meæ).
Second Member: et custodierit præcepta et mandata mea — coordination of two direct objects (præcepta, mandata) with possessive mea.
Third Member: et ceremonias legesque servaverit — further coordinated objects (ceremonias, legesque) with enclitic -que binding “laws” to the preceding noun.

Morphology

  1. eo — Lemma: eo; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: indeclinable; Function: part of causal connector eo quod; Translation: “because / on this account”; Notes: Adverbial element strengthening the causal force of quod.
  2. quod — Lemma: quod; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: introduces causal/content clause; Translation: “that / because”; Notes: Here best rendered “because,” governed by idiom with eo.
  3. obedierit — Lemma: oboedio; Part of Speech: verb; Form: perfect active subjunctive, 3rd person singular; Function: first head of coordinated predicate; Translation: “has obeyed”; Notes: Oboedio takes a dative complement in Classical and Ecclesiastical usage.
  4. Abraham — Lemma: Abraham; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: subject of the three coordinated verbs; Translation: “Abraham”; Notes: Subject understood with subsequent verbs as well.
  5. voci — Lemma: vox; Part of Speech: noun; Form: dative singular feminine; Function: dative with verb of obedience; Translation: “to (the) voice”; Notes: Required by oboedio.
  6. meæ — Lemma: meus; Part of Speech: possessive adjective; Form: dative singular feminine; Function: agrees with voci; Translation: “my”; Notes: Possessor is the divine speaker.
  7. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: coordinates predicate elements; Translation: “and”; Notes: Links the second verb-phrase.
  8. custodierit — Lemma: custodio; Part of Speech: verb; Form: perfect active subjunctive, 3rd person singular; Function: second head of coordination; Translation: “has kept”; Notes: Governs direct objects “precepts/commandments.”
  9. præcepta — Lemma: præceptum; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural neuter; Function: direct object; Translation: “precepts”; Notes: Neuter plural in -a, regular 2nd declension.
  10. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: coordinates objects; Translation: “and”; Notes: Joins paired objects.
  11. mandata — Lemma: mandatum; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural neuter; Function: direct object; Translation: “commandments”; Notes: Semantically close to præcepta, kept for Vulgate parallelism.
  12. mea — Lemma: meus; Part of Speech: possessive adjective; Form: accusative plural neuter; Function: agrees with mandata; Translation: “my”; Notes: Attributes the commandments to the divine speaker.
  13. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: coordinates final member; Translation: “and”; Notes: Leads into the closing pair.
  14. ceremonias — Lemma: ceremonia; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural feminine; Function: direct object; Translation: “ceremonies / rites”; Notes: Cultic/ritual obligations.
  15. legesque — Lemma: lex; Part of Speech: noun (+ enclitic -que); Form: accusative plural feminine; Function: direct object coordinated by enclitic; Translation: “and laws”; Notes: -que encloses tight bonding with the preceding noun.
  16. servaverit — Lemma: servo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: perfect active subjunctive, 3rd person singular; Function: third head of coordination; Translation: “has observed”; Notes: Concludes the causal list of Abraham’s faithful acts.

 

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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