Gn 38:28 Iste egredietur prior.
“This one shall come out first.”
| # |
Latin |
Gloss |
Grammar Tag |
| 1 |
Iste |
this one |
PRON.DEM.NOM.SG.M |
| 2 |
egredietur |
shall come out |
V.3SG.FUT.DEP.IND |
| 3 |
prior |
first / before |
ADJ.COMP.NOM.SG.M |
Syntax
Main Clause: Iste egredietur prior — simple declarative sentence.
Subject Iste (“this one”) is emphasized demonstratively, referring to the twin whose hand emerged first.
Verb egredietur (“shall come out”) is deponent, future tense, expressing the midwife’s confident prediction.
Predicate adjective prior (“first”) functions as a predicate complement describing Iste.
Morphology
- Iste — Lemma: iste; Part of Speech: demonstrative pronoun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: subject of egredietur; Translation: “this one”; Notes: Refers specifically to the twin identified by the scarlet thread.
- egredietur — Lemma: ēgredior; Part of Speech: deponent verb; Form: 3rd person singular future indicative; Function: main verb; Translation: “shall come out”; Notes: Deponent verb (active meaning, passive form), expressing forthcoming birth action.
- prior — Lemma: prior; Part of Speech: comparative adjective; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: predicate adjective modifying Iste; Translation: “first”; Notes: Comparative form used substantively to mean “the first-born.”
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.