Genesis 38:22

Posted on February 7, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Gn 28:22 Reversus est ad Iudam, et dixit ei: Non inveni eam: sed et homines loci illius dixerunt mihi, numquam sedisse ibi scortum.

He returned to Judas and said to him, “I did not find her; moreover, the men of that place said to me that a prostitute has never sat there.”

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Reversus having returned PART.PERF.PASS.NOM.SG.M
2 est he was / has V.3SG.PRES.IND.AUX
3 ad to / toward PREP+ACC
4 Iudam Judah NOUN.ACC.SG.M (proper)
5 et and CONJ
6 dixit he said V.3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
7 ei to him PRON.PERS.DAT.SG.M
8 Non not ADV.NEG
9 inveni I found V.1SG.PERF.ACT.IND
10 eam her PRON.PERS.ACC.SG.F
11 sed but CONJ
12 et also CONJ.ADV
13 homines men NOUN.NOM.PL.M
14 loci of the place NOUN.GEN.SG.M
15 illius of that PRON.DEM.GEN.SG.M
16 dixerunt they said V.3PL.PERF.ACT.IND
17 mihi to me PRON.PERS.DAT.SG.1
18 numquam never ADV.NEG
19 sedisse to have sat INF.PERF.ACT
20 ibi there ADV.LOC
21 scortum prostitute NOUN.NOM.SG.N

Syntax

Main Clause: Reversus est ad Iudam — perfect passive participle with auxiliary verb, expressing completed action: “he returned to Judah.”

Reported Speech: et dixit ei: Non inveni eam — direct discourse introduced by dixit (“he said”). The pronoun ei is the dative indirect object referring to Judah. Non inveni eam conveys the messenger’s failure to find Thamar.

Coordinated Clause: sed et homines loci illius dixerunt mihi — sed et introduces an additional report: “but also the men of that place said to me.” The relative clause or indirect statement follows.

Indirect Statement: numquam sedisse ibi scortum — accusative–infinitive construction following dixerunt; scortum (subject accusative) + sedisse (infinitive), meaning “that a prostitute had never sat there.”

Morphology

  1. Reversus — Lemma: revertor; Part of Speech: participle; Form: nominative singular masculine perfect passive; Function: predicate participle with est; Translation: “having returned”; Notes: Dependent verb in deponent form; expresses completed return.
  2. est — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: auxiliary verb; Form: 3rd person singular present indicative; Function: auxiliary for Reversus; Translation: “has”; Notes: Forms perfect periphrastic construction.
  3. ad — Lemma: ad; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs accusative; Function: indicates direction toward; Translation: “to / toward”; Notes: Marks movement toward Judah.
  4. Iudam — Lemma: Iudas; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: object of ad; Translation: “Judah”; Notes: Refers to the patriarch Judah.
  5. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: links clauses; Translation: “and”; Notes: Sequential narrative connector.
  6. dixit — Lemma: dīcō; Part of Speech: verb; Form: 3rd person singular perfect indicative active; Function: main verb of speech; Translation: “he said”; Notes: Introduces direct speech.
  7. ei — Lemma: is, ea, id; Part of Speech: personal pronoun; Form: dative singular masculine; Function: indirect object; Translation: “to him”; Notes: Refers to Judah as the addressee.
  8. Non — Lemma: nōn; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: indeclinable; Function: negation; Translation: “not”; Notes: Negates inveni.
  9. inveni — Lemma: inveniō; Part of Speech: verb; Form: 1st person singular perfect indicative active; Function: verb of direct discourse; Translation: “I found”; Notes: Perfect tense of completed search.
  10. eam — Lemma: is, ea, id; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: direct object of inveni; Translation: “her”; Notes: Refers to Thamar.
  11. sed — Lemma: sed; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: introduces contrast; Translation: “but”; Notes: Adds opposing clause.
  12. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: indeclinable; Function: intensifies conjunction; Translation: “also / moreover”; Notes: Reinforces addition.
  13. homines — Lemma: homō; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative plural masculine; Function: subject of dixerunt; Translation: “men”; Notes: Refers to residents of the area.
  14. loci — Lemma: locus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive singular masculine; Function: possessive genitive; Translation: “of the place”; Notes: Qualifies homines.
  15. illius — Lemma: ille; Part of Speech: demonstrative pronoun; Form: genitive singular masculine; Function: modifies loci; Translation: “of that”; Notes: Demonstrative specifying which place.
  16. dixerunt — Lemma: dīcō; Part of Speech: verb; Form: 3rd person plural perfect indicative active; Function: verb of indirect discourse; Translation: “they said”; Notes: Introduces accusative–infinitive clause.
  17. mihi — Lemma: ego; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: dative singular; Function: indirect object of dixerunt; Translation: “to me”; Notes: First-person recipient of statement.
  18. numquam — Lemma: numquam; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: indeclinable; Function: negation of time; Translation: “never”; Notes: Denies existence of action in the past.
  19. sedisse — Lemma: sedeō; Part of Speech: verb; Form: perfect infinitive active; Function: infinitive in indirect statement; Translation: “to have sat”; Notes: Complements dixerunt with reported action.
  20. ibi — Lemma: ibi; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: indeclinable; Function: locative adverb; Translation: “there”; Notes: Indicates spatial reference point.
  21. scortum — Lemma: scortum; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular neuter; Function: subject accusative in indirect statement; Translation: “prostitute”; Notes: Neutral term for “harlot,” used in Roman idiom for sexual commerce.

 

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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