Genesis 27:41

Posted on January 27, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

41 Oderat ergo semper Esau Iacob pro benedictione qua benedixerat ei pater: dixitque in corde suo: Venient dies luctus patris mei, et occidam Iacob fratrem meum.

Therefore Esau always hated Jacob for the blessing with which his father had blessed him, and he said in his heart: “The days of mourning for my father will come, and I will kill Jacob, my brother.”

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Oderat he hated 3SG.PLUPERF.ACT.IND
2 ergo therefore ADV
3 semper always ADV
4 Esau Esau NOM.SG.M
5 Iacob Jacob ACC.SG.M
6 pro because of / for PREP+ABL
7 benedictione blessing ABL.SG.F
8 qua with which ABL.SG.F.REL.PRON
9 benedixerat had blessed 3SG.PLUPERF.ACT.IND
10 ei him DAT.SG.M.PRON
11 pater father NOM.SG.M
12 dixitque and he said 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND + ENCLITIC
13 in in PREP+ABL
14 corde heart ABL.SG.N
15 suo his ABL.SG.N.POSS.ADJ
16 Venient will come 3PL.FUT.ACT.IND
17 dies days NOM.PL.M
18 luctus of mourning GEN.SG.M
19 patris of (my) father GEN.SG.M
20 mei my GEN.SG.M.POSS.ADJ
21 et and CONJ
22 occidam I will kill 1SG.FUT.ACT.IND
23 Iacob Jacob ACC.SG.M
24 fratrem brother ACC.SG.M
25 meum my ACC.SG.M.POSS.ADJ

Syntax

Main Clause: Oderat ergo semper Esau Iacob — “Therefore Esau always hated Jacob.”
The adverbs ergo and semper provide causal and durative force.
Prepositional Phrase: pro benedictione qua benedixerat ei pater — Ablative of cause, explaining the reason for hatred.
Indirect Speech: dixitque in corde suo introduces Esau’s inner monologue.
Subordinate Clause: Venient dies luctus patris mei, et occidam Iacob fratrem meum — Future indicative predicts his violent intent following his father’s death.

Morphology

  1. Oderat — Lemma: odi; Part of Speech: defective verb; Form: pluperfect indicative active 3rd person singular; Function: main verb; Translation: “he hated”; Notes: Though pluperfect in form, functions as imperfect (“was hating”) — expresses ongoing animosity in Latin idiom.
  2. ergo — Lemma: ergo; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: invariant; Function: connective adverb; Translation: “therefore”; Notes: Indicates logical consequence — hatred arises as a direct result of the blessing.
  3. semper — Lemma: semper; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: invariant; Function: temporal modifier; Translation: “always”; Notes: Adds duration, stressing enduring hostility toward Jacob.
  4. Esau — Lemma: Esau; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: subject; Translation: “Esau”; Notes: Subject of “Oderat,” representing the offended son.
  5. Iacob — Lemma: Iacob; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: direct object; Translation: “Jacob”; Notes: Object of hatred; direct recipient of Esau’s wrath.
  6. pro — Lemma: pro; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: expresses cause; Translation: “for / because of”; Notes: Indicates the cause of Esau’s hatred — the blessing given to Jacob.
  7. benedictione — Lemma: benedictio; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular feminine; Function: object of “pro”; Translation: “blessing”; Notes: The blessing Isaac gave to Jacob, cause of Esau’s resentment.
  8. qua — Lemma: qui; Part of Speech: relative pronoun; Form: ablative singular feminine; Function: introduces relative clause; Translation: “with which”; Notes: Refers back to “benedictione,” linking Esau’s hatred to the specific act of blessing.
  9. benedixerat — Lemma: benedico; Part of Speech: verb; Form: pluperfect indicative active 3rd person singular; Function: main verb of relative clause; Translation: “had blessed”; Notes: Describes a completed act prior to Esau’s hatred, hence pluperfect tense.
  10. ei — Lemma: is; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: dative singular masculine; Function: indirect object; Translation: “him”; Notes: Refers to Jacob, recipient of Isaac’s blessing.
  11. pater — Lemma: pater; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: subject of “benedixerat”; Translation: “father”; Notes: Refers to Isaac, whose action incited the conflict.
  12. dixitque — Lemma: dico; Part of Speech: verb; Form: perfect indicative active 3rd person singular + enclitic “-que”; Function: main verb; Translation: “and he said”; Notes: Continues narrative with connective “-que,” linking Esau’s speech to his hatred.
  13. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: expresses location; Translation: “in”; Notes: Introduces locative phrase describing Esau’s internal speech.
  14. corde — Lemma: cor; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular neuter; Function: object of “in”; Translation: “heart”; Notes: Represents inner thought — common Latin idiom for internal reflection.
  15. suo — Lemma: suus; Part of Speech: possessive adjective; Form: ablative singular neuter; Function: modifies “corde”; Translation: “his”; Notes: Reflexive possessive — indicates that the thought is his own internal monologue.
  16. Venient — Lemma: venio; Part of Speech: verb; Form: future indicative active 3rd person plural; Function: main verb of indirect discourse; Translation: “will come”; Notes: Predicts a future time — the period after Isaac’s death.
  17. dies — Lemma: dies; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative plural masculine; Function: subject of “Venient”; Translation: “days”; Notes: Refers to a coming period — mourning days after Isaac’s passing.
  18. luctus — Lemma: luctus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive singular masculine; Function: genitive of description; Translation: “of mourning”; Notes: Qualifies “dies,” forming the expression “days of mourning.”
  19. patris — Lemma: pater; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive singular masculine; Function: possessive genitive; Translation: “of (my) father”; Notes: Identifies the subject of mourning — Isaac.
  20. mei — Lemma: meus; Part of Speech: possessive adjective; Form: genitive singular masculine; Function: modifies “patris”; Translation: “my”; Notes: Personalizes Esau’s reflection — “my father’s death.”
  21. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: invariant; Function: coordination; Translation: “and”; Notes: Links Esau’s thought of mourning with his intended act of revenge.
  22. occidam — Lemma: occido; Part of Speech: verb; Form: future indicative active 1st person singular; Function: main verb of the second clause; Translation: “I will kill”; Notes: Expresses deliberate intent — a premeditated decision following Isaac’s death.
  23. Iacob — Lemma: Iacob; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: direct object of “occidam”; Translation: “Jacob”; Notes: Target of Esau’s vengeance; name repetition emphasizes personal enmity.
  24. fratrem — Lemma: frater; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: appositive to “Iacob”; Translation: “brother”; Notes: Apposition intensifies moral tension — Esau’s intended victim is his own brother.
  25. meum — Lemma: meus; Part of Speech: possessive adjective; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: modifies “fratrem”; Translation: “my”; Notes: Final possessive adjective underscores tragedy and fraternal conflict.

 

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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