Genesis 31:8

Posted on January 31, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Gn 31:8 Si quando dixit: Variæ erunt mercedes tuæ: pariebant omnes oves varios fœtus. quando vero econtrario ait: Alba quæque accipies pro mercede: omnes greges alba pepererunt.

If at any time he said, ‘Your wages shall be variegated,’ all the sheep bore mottled offspring. But when on the contrary he said, ‘You shall receive all the white ones as your wages,’ all the flocks gave birth to white offspring.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Si if CONJ.COND
2 quando at any time ADV.TEMP
3 dixit he said 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
4 Variæ variegated NOM.PL.F.ADJ
5 erunt shall be 3PL.FUT.ACT.IND
6 mercedes wages NOM.PL.F
7 tuæ your NOM.PL.F.PRON
8 pariebant they bore 3PL.IMPF.ACT.IND
9 omnes all NOM.PL.F.ADJ
10 oves sheep NOM.PL.F
11 varios mottled ACC.PL.M.ADJ
12 fœtus offspring ACC.PL.M
13 quando when ADV.TEMP
14 vero however ADV.CONTR
15 econtrario on the contrary ADV.PHR
16 ait he said 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
17 Alba white ones NOM.PL.N.ADJ
18 quæque each INDEF.PRON
19 accipies you shall receive 2SG.FUT.ACT.IND
20 pro for PREP+ABL
21 mercede wage ABL.SG.F
22 omnes all NOM.PL.M.ADJ
23 greges flocks NOM.PL.M
24 alba white ACC.PL.N.ADJ
25 pepererunt gave birth 3PL.PERF.ACT.IND

Syntax

Conditional Clause: Si quando dixit — introduces a past general condition; quando adds temporal indefiniteness.
Direct Speech: Variæ erunt mercedes tuæ — future indicative expressing Laban’s proposed agreement.
Result Clause: pariebant omnes oves varios fœtus — describes outcome confirming divine intervention.
Contrast Clause: quando vero econtrario ait — introduces reversal of condition; vero and econtrario emphasize opposition.
Final Clause: Alba quæque accipies pro mercede: omnes greges alba pepererunt — parallel statement revealing contrasting divine outcome.

Morphology

  1. Si — Lemma: si; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: introduces conditional clause; Translation: “if”; Notes: Common conditional particle marking Laban’s changing conditions.
  2. quando — Lemma: quando; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: indeclinable; Function: temporal modifier; Translation: “whenever”; Notes: Adds temporal flexibility, meaning “at any time.”
  3. dixit — Lemma: dico; Part of Speech: verb; Form: perfect active indicative, 3rd person singular; Function: main verb; Translation: “he said”; Notes: Refers to Laban setting the new term of wages.
  4. Variæ — Lemma: varius; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: nominative plural feminine; Function: predicate adjective modifying mercedes; Translation: “variegated”; Notes: Describes the patterned animals Jacob was promised.
  5. erunt — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: future active indicative, 3rd person plural; Function: copula in direct speech; Translation: “shall be”; Notes: Prophetic or declarative tone in Laban’s speech.
  6. mercedes — Lemma: merces; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative plural feminine; Function: subject of erunt; Translation: “wages”; Notes: Refers metaphorically to Jacob’s livestock reward.
  7. tuæ — Lemma: tuus; Part of Speech: pronoun/adjective; Form: nominative plural feminine; Function: possessive modifying mercedes; Translation: “your”; Notes: Marks personal reference to Jacob.
  8. pariebant — Lemma: pario; Part of Speech: verb; Form: imperfect active indicative, 3rd person plural; Function: main verb of result clause; Translation: “they bore”; Notes: Continuous past, emphasizing divine consistency in outcomes.
  9. omnes — Lemma: omnis; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: nominative plural feminine; Function: determiner modifying oves; Translation: “all”; Notes: Highlights universality of the flocks affected.
  10. oves — Lemma: ovis; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative plural feminine; Function: subject of pariebant; Translation: “sheep”; Notes: Represents Jacob’s livestock, used generically for flocks.
  11. varios — Lemma: varius; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: accusative plural masculine; Function: modifier of fœtus; Translation: “mottled”; Notes: Emphasizes multicolored offspring born by divine influence.
  12. fœtus — Lemma: fetus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural masculine; Function: direct object of pariebant; Translation: “offspring”; Notes: Indicates the results of Jacob’s flocks reproducing under divine providence.
  13. quando — Lemma: quando; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: indeclinable; Function: introduces new temporal condition; Translation: “when”; Notes: Shifts the clause to the contrasting circumstance.
  14. vero — Lemma: vero; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: indeclinable; Function: contrastive marker; Translation: “however”; Notes: Serves as transition between two opposing outcomes.
  15. econtrario — Lemma: e contrario; Part of Speech: adverbial phrase; Form: indeclinable; Function: expresses contrast; Translation: “on the contrary”; Notes: Classical idiom indicating reversal of conditions.
  16. ait — Lemma: aio; Part of Speech: verb; Form: perfect active indicative, 3rd person singular; Function: introduces direct discourse; Translation: “he said”; Notes: Refers again to Laban’s change of terms.
  17. Alba — Lemma: albus; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: nominative plural neuter; Function: substantive; Translation: “the white ones”; Notes: Used substantively to refer to white animals.
  18. quæque — Lemma: quisque; Part of Speech: indefinite pronoun; Form: nominative plural neuter; Function: modifies alba; Translation: “each”; Notes: Adds distributive emphasis, meaning “each of the white ones.”
  19. accipies — Lemma: accipio; Part of Speech: verb; Form: future active indicative, 2nd person singular; Function: verb of direct speech; Translation: “you shall receive”; Notes: Direct promise or stipulation from Laban to Jacob.
  20. pro — Lemma: pro; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: expresses exchange or compensation; Translation: “for”; Notes: Common in mercantile and contractual Latin contexts.
  21. mercede — Lemma: merces; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular feminine; Function: object of pro; Translation: “wage”; Notes: Indicates payment condition for Jacob’s labor.
  22. omnes — Lemma: omnis; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: nominative plural masculine; Function: modifier of greges; Translation: “all”; Notes: Denotes totality of the herds affected.
  23. greges — Lemma: grex; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative plural masculine; Function: subject of pepererunt; Translation: “flocks”; Notes: Refers to the collective animals owned by Jacob.
  24. alba — Lemma: albus; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: accusative plural neuter; Function: object of pepererunt; Translation: “white (offspring)”; Notes: Acts as a substantive, mirroring divine pattern reversal.
  25. pepererunt — Lemma: pario; Part of Speech: verb; Form: perfect active indicative, 3rd person plural; Function: main verb; Translation: “they gave birth”; Notes: Concludes the contrast, showing divine control over animal reproduction.

 

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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