Genesis 3:1

Posted on January 3, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Gn 3:1 Sed et serpens erat callidior cunctis animantibus terræ quæ fecerat Dominus Deus. Qui dixit ad mulierem: Cur præcepit vobis Deus ut non comederetis de omni ligno paradisi?

Now the serpent was more cunning than all the beasts of the earth which the LORD God had made. And he said to the woman: Why has God commanded you that you should not eat of every tree of the garden?

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Sed but / now CONJ
2 et also / even CONJ
3 serpens serpent NOM.SG.M
4 erat was 3SG.IMPERF.ACT.IND
5 callidior more cunning NOM.SG.M.COMP.ADJ
6 cunctis than all / all the ABL.PL.N
7 animantibus living creatures / beasts ABL.PL.N
8 terræ of the earth GEN.SG.F
9 quæ which REL.PRON.NOM.SG.F
10 fecerat had made 3SG.PLUPERF.ACT.IND
11 Dominus LORD NOM.SG.M
12 Deus God NOM.SG.M
13 Qui who REL.PRON.NOM.SG.M
14 dixit said 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
15 ad to / toward PREP+ACC
16 mulierem woman ACC.SG.F
17 Cur why ADV.INT
18 præcepit commanded 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
19 vobis to you DAT.PL.PRON
20 Deus God NOM.SG.M
21 ut that / in order that CONJ
22 non not ADV
23 comederetis you should eat 2PL.IMPERF.ACT.SUBJ
24 de of / from PREP+ABL
25 omni every / all ABL.SG.N
26 ligno tree ABL.SG.N
27 paradisi of the garden GEN.SG.M

Syntax

Main Clause: Sed et serpens erat callidior cunctis animantibus terræ — “Now the serpent was more cunning than all the beasts of the earth.”
The predicate adjective callidior (comparative) takes an ablative of comparison, cunctis animantibus terræ.
Relative Clause: quæ fecerat Dominus Deus — “which the LORD God had made.”
The relative pronoun quæ links the creatures to divine creation, maintaining the narrative continuity of YHWH as Creator.
Quoted Speech: Qui dixit ad mulierem introduces the serpent’s direct discourse.
Interrogative Clause: Cur præcepit vobis Deus ut non comederetis de omni ligno paradisi? — “Why has God commanded you that you should not eat of every tree of the garden?”
The subjunctive comederetis follows ut expressing the reported content of the divine command.

Morphology

  1. Sed — Lemma: sed; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: Indeclinable; Function: Transitional or contrastive; Translation: “but / now”; Notes: Introduces a new narrative phase following the previous state of innocence.
  2. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: Indeclinable; Function: Connective; Translation: “also / even”; Notes: Adds emphasis to the introduction of the serpent.
  3. serpens — Lemma: serpens; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Nominative singular masculine; Function: Subject; Translation: “serpent”; Notes: Identified as the agent of temptation; grammatically masculine though often symbolically neutral.
  4. erat — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: Imperfect active indicative 3rd singular; Function: Main verb; Translation: “was”; Notes: Expresses continuous state, descriptive narrative background.
  5. callidior — Lemma: callidus; Part of Speech: Adjective (comparative); Form: Nominative singular masculine; Function: Predicate adjective; Translation: “more cunning”; Notes: Comparative with ablative of comparison.
  6. cunctis — Lemma: cunctus; Part of Speech: Adjective; Form: Ablative plural neuter; Function: Modifies animantibus; Translation: “than all / all the”; Notes: Part of ablative comparison phrase.
  7. animantibus — Lemma: animans; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Ablative plural neuter; Function: Object of comparison; Translation: “living creatures / beasts”; Notes: Refers broadly to animals of the land.
  8. terræ — Lemma: terra; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Genitive singular feminine; Function: Genitive of possession; Translation: “of the earth”; Notes: Denotes habitat or origin.
  9. quæ — Lemma: qui, quae, quod; Part of Speech: Relative pronoun; Form: Nominative singular feminine; Function: Subject of fecerat; Translation: “which”; Notes: Refers to animantibus terræ.
  10. fecerat — Lemma: facio; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: Pluperfect active indicative 3rd singular; Function: Main verb of relative clause; Translation: “had made”; Notes: Refers to God’s prior creative act.
  11. Dominus — Lemma: Dominus; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Nominative singular masculine; Function: Subject of fecerat; Translation: “LORD”; Notes: Refers to YHWH, hence rendered in small caps.
  12. Deus — Lemma: Deus; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Nominative singular masculine; Function: Apposition to Dominus; Translation: “God”; Notes: Clarifies divine identity as YHWH Elohim.
  13. Qui — Lemma: qui, quae, quod; Part of Speech: Relative pronoun; Form: Nominative singular masculine; Function: Subject of dixit; Translation: “who”; Notes: Refers to the serpent, introducing its speech.
  14. dixit — Lemma: dico; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: Perfect active indicative 3rd singular; Function: Main verb of direct discourse; Translation: “said”; Notes: Marks initiation of speech in narrative.
  15. ad — Lemma: ad; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: Governs accusative; Function: Direction toward; Translation: “to”; Notes: Introduces addressee of speech.
  16. mulierem — Lemma: mulier; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Accusative singular feminine; Function: Object of ad; Translation: “woman”; Notes: Refers to Eve, unnamed at this stage.
  17. Cur — Lemma: cur; Part of Speech: Adverb; Form: Indeclinable; Function: Introduces interrogative; Translation: “why”; Notes: Opens the serpent’s rhetorical question.
  18. præcepit — Lemma: praecipio; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: Perfect active indicative 3rd singular; Function: Main verb of question; Translation: “commanded”; Notes: Refers to divine instruction to the first humans.
  19. vobis — Lemma: vos; Part of Speech: Pronoun; Form: Dative plural; Function: Indirect object of præcepit; Translation: “to you”; Notes: Plural pronoun addressing both humans, though Eve alone hears it.
  20. Deus — Lemma: Deus; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Nominative singular masculine; Function: Subject of præcepit; Translation: “God”; Notes: The object of serpent’s subtle questioning; not “LORD” here since Dominus absent.
  21. ut — Lemma: ut; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: Indeclinable; Function: Introduces content clause; Translation: “that / in order that”; Notes: Governs subjunctive comederetis.
  22. non — Lemma: non; Part of Speech: Adverb; Form: Indeclinable; Function: Negation; Translation: “not”; Notes: Negates subjunctive verb.
  23. comederetis — Lemma: comedo; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: Imperfect active subjunctive 2nd plural; Function: Verb of subordinate clause; Translation: “you should eat”; Notes: Subjunctive dependent on ut expressing reported speech.
  24. de — Lemma: de; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: Governs ablative; Function: Source or partitive; Translation: “of / from”; Notes: Indicates object of prohibition.
  25. omni — Lemma: omnis; Part of Speech: Adjective; Form: Ablative singular neuter; Function: Modifies ligno; Translation: “every”; Notes: Suggests serpent’s distortion of divine permission.
  26. ligno — Lemma: lignum; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Ablative singular neuter; Function: Object of de; Translation: “tree”; Notes: Represents all vegetation permitted for food.
  27. paradisi — Lemma: paradisus; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Genitive singular masculine; Function: Genitive of possession; Translation: “of the garden”; Notes: Refers to the Garden of Delight, locus of divine presence.

 

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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