Genesis 37:30

Posted on February 6, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Gn 37:30 et scissis vestibus pergens ad fratres suos, ait: Puer non comparet, et ego quo ibo?

and tearing his garments, he went to his brothers and said: “The boy is not found, and I, where shall I go?”

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 et and CONJ
2 scissis having torn PART.PERF.PASS.ABL.PL.F
3 vestibus garments NOUN.ABL.PL.F
4 pergens going / proceeding PART.PRES.ACT.NOM.SG.M
5 ad to / toward PREP+ACC
6 fratres brothers NOUN.ACC.PL.M
7 suos his ADJ.POSS.ACC.PL.M
8 ait said V.3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
9 Puer boy NOUN.NOM.SG.M
10 non not ADV.NEG
11 comparet appears / is found V.3SG.PRES.ACT.IND
12 et and CONJ
13 ego I PRON.PERS.NOM.SG
14 quo where / to what place ADV.INTERROG
15 ibo shall I go V.1SG.FUT.ACT.IND

Syntax

Ablative absolute: scissis vestibus — expresses attendant circumstance: “his garments having been torn.” It denotes grief and mourning.
Main clause: pergens ad fratres suos, ait — the participle pergens (“going”) functions as a circumstantial modifier describing Reuben’s motion before speech.
Direct speech: Puer non comparet, et ego quo ibo? — the first clause (Puer non comparet) is a factual statement expressing despair (“The boy is not found”), followed by an interrogative (ego quo ibo?) showing guilt and helplessness.

Morphology

  1. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: coordinating conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: connects the narrative clause to the preceding verse; Translation: “and”; Notes: Simple connective indicating sequence of action.
  2. scissis — Lemma: scindō; Part of Speech: participle; Form: ablative plural feminine perfect passive; Function: part of the ablative absolute with vestibus; Translation: “having torn”; Notes: Expresses prior action conveying lamentation and grief.
  3. vestibus — Lemma: vestis; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative plural feminine; Function: ablative noun dependent on scissis; Translation: “garments”; Notes: Symbol of mourning in ancient Semitic culture.
  4. pergens — Lemma: pergō; Part of Speech: participle; Form: nominative singular masculine present active; Function: circumstantial participle modifying Reuben; Translation: “going / proceeding”; Notes: Describes Reuben’s movement toward his brothers following the discovery.
  5. ad — Lemma: ad; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs accusative; Function: expresses motion toward; Translation: “to / toward”; Notes: Introduces goal of movement (fratres suos).
  6. fratres — Lemma: frāter; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural masculine; Function: object of ad; Translation: “brothers”; Notes: Refers to the sons of Jacob; object of Reuben’s approach.
  7. suos — Lemma: suus, -a, -um; Part of Speech: possessive adjective; Form: accusative plural masculine; Function: modifies fratres; Translation: “his”; Notes: Reflexive adjective, referring back to Reuben as the subject.
  8. ait — Lemma: aiō; Part of Speech: verb; Form: 3rd person singular perfect indicative active; Function: main verb of speaking; Translation: “said”; Notes: Historic present or perfect, commonly used to introduce direct speech in narrative Latin.
  9. Puer — Lemma: puer; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: subject of comparet; Translation: “boy”; Notes: Refers to Joseph, emphasizing his youth and innocence.
  10. non — Lemma: nōn; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: indeclinable; Function: negates comparet; Translation: “not”; Notes: Creates emphatic despair in direct speech.
  11. comparet — Lemma: comparō; Part of Speech: verb; Form: 3rd person singular present indicative active; Function: main verb in first direct clause; Translation: “appears / is found”; Notes: Used in the sense “to be present or found”; Reuben’s realization of Joseph’s disappearance.
  12. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: joins the two direct clauses; Translation: “and”; Notes: Connects lament with question.
  13. ego — Lemma: ego; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: nominative singular; Function: subject of ibo; Translation: “I”; Notes: Expresses personal distress and moral accountability.
  14. quo — Lemma: quō; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: interrogative adverb; Function: modifies ibo; Translation: “where / to what place”; Notes: Indicates direction in a rhetorical question of despair.
  15. ibo — Lemma: eō; Part of Speech: verb; Form: 1st person singular future indicative active; Function: main verb of interrogative clause; Translation: “shall I go”; Notes: Future tense expresses Reuben’s uncertainty and fear of facing his father without Joseph.

 

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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