Genesis 27:16

Posted on January 27, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Gn 27:16 pelliculasque hœdorum circumdedit manibus, et colli nuda protexit.

and she put the skins of the kids around his hands and covered the bare part of his neck.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 pelliculasque and the skins ACC.PL.F + ENCLITIC
2 hœdorum of the kids GEN.PL.M
3 circumdedit she put around 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
4 manibus hands DAT.PL.F
5 et and CONJ
6 colli of the neck GEN.SG.M
7 nuda bare / uncovered ACC.SG.N.ADJ
8 protexit she covered 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND

Syntax

Main Clause: pelliculasque hœdorum circumdedit manibus — “and she put the skins of the kids around his hands.” The conjunction -que links this clause with the preceding verse. The dative manibus expresses the part of the body affected by the action of circumdedit.
Second Clause: et colli nuda protexit — “and she covered the bare part of his neck.” The genitive colli depends on nuda (understood as “nuda pars colli”), expressing the part possessed. The perfect verb protexit completes the description of Rebecca’s disguise preparations.

Morphology

  1. pelliculasque — Lemma: pellicula; Part of Speech: noun + enclitic; Form: accusative plural feminine; Function: direct object of “circumdedit”; Translation: “and the skins”; Notes: Diminutive of “pellis,” referring to the goat skins; enclitic “-que” connects to the previous narrative action.
  2. hœdorum — Lemma: hædus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive plural masculine; Function: possessive modifier; Translation: “of the kids”; Notes: Indicates the source of the skins; corresponds to the goats Jacob brought earlier.
  3. circumdedit — Lemma: circumdo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: perfect indicative active 3rd person singular; Function: main verb; Translation: “she put around”; Notes: Describes Rebecca’s careful application of the goat skins to mimic Esau’s hairiness.
  4. manibus — Lemma: manus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: dative plural feminine; Function: dative of reference; Translation: “(on) the hands”; Notes: Specifies where the goat skins were placed; hands being the most visible part for touch.
  5. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: coordinating; Function: links two main clauses; Translation: “and”; Notes: Continues the sequence of Rebecca’s disguise actions.
  6. colli — Lemma: collum; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive singular masculine; Function: genitive of possession; Translation: “of the neck”; Notes: Used with “nuda” to denote the bare portion of the neck area.
  7. nuda — Lemma: nudus; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: accusative singular neuter; Function: substantive adjective; Translation: “bare / uncovered”; Notes: Refers to the exposed area of Jacob’s neck; understood as “the bare part (of the neck).”
  8. protexit — Lemma: protego; Part of Speech: verb; Form: perfect indicative active 3rd person singular; Function: main verb; Translation: “she covered”; Notes: Completes the disguise by concealing Jacob’s smooth skin under goat hair.

 

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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