Genesis 41:38

Posted on February 10, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Gn 41:38 locutusque est ad eos: Num invenire poterimus talem virum, qui spiritu Dei plenus sit?

and he said to them: “Shall we be able to find such a man, who is full of the Spirit of God?”

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 locutusque and having spoken NOM.SG.M.PERF.PASS.PTCP + -QUE
2 est he said 3SG.PRES.ACT.IND
3 ad to PREP+ACC
4 eos them ACC.PL.M
5 Num surely not? INTERROG.PARTICLE
6 invenire to find PRES.ACT.INF
7 poterimus shall we be able 1PL.FUT.ACT.IND
8 talem such ACC.SG.M
9 virum a man ACC.SG.M
10 qui who REL.PRON.NOM.SG.M
11 spiritu with the spirit ABL.SG.M
12 Dei of God GEN.SG.M
13 plenus full NOM.SG.M
14 sit may be 3SG.PRES.ACT.SUBJ

Syntax

Introductory Narrative Clause:
• locutusque est ad eos — “and he spoke to them.”
— locutus est is a deponent perfect meaning “he said/spoke.”
— -que links this action to the preceding verse.

Main Question:
• Num invenire poterimus talem virum — “Shall we be able to find such a man?”
— Num introduces a question expecting “no.”
— poterimus is the main verb; invenire its complementary infinitive.
— talem virum is the object.

Relative Clause:
• qui spiritu Dei plenus sit — “who is full of the Spirit of God.”
— qui = subject of the clause.
— plenus takes an ablative of fullness: spiritu Dei.
— sit is subjunctive in a characteristic clause.

Morphology

  1. locutusque — Lemma: loquor; Part of Speech: participle + enclitic; Form: nominative singular masculine perfect passive participle with -que; Function: part of periphrastic perfect; Translation: “and having spoken”; Notes: deponent verb.
  2. est — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: present active indicative third person singular; Function: auxiliary with locutus; Translation: “he said”; Notes: deponent perfect construction.
  3. ad — Lemma: ad; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs accusative; Function: shows direction of speech; Translation: “to”; Notes: standard with verbs of speaking.
  4. eos — Lemma: is, ea, id; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: accusative plural masculine; Function: object of ad; Translation: “them”; Notes: Pharaoh’s ministers.
  5. Num — Lemma: num; Part of Speech: interrogative particle; Form: invariable; Function: introduces a question expecting “no”; Translation: “surely not?”; Notes: rhetorical tone.
  6. invenire — Lemma: invenio; Part of Speech: verb; Form: present active infinitive; Function: complementary infinitive of poterimus; Translation: “to find”; Notes: expresses the action of ability.
  7. poterimus — Lemma: possum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: future active indicative first person plural; Function: main verb; Translation: “shall we be able”; Notes: expresses possibility.
  8. talem — Lemma: talis; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: modifies virum; Translation: “such”; Notes: qualitative description.
  9. virum — Lemma: vir; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: object of invenire; Translation: “a man”; Notes: refers to the ideal administrator.
  10. qui — Lemma: qui, quae, quod; Part of Speech: relative pronoun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: subject of sit; Translation: “who”; Notes: introduces a characteristic clause.
  11. spiritu — Lemma: spiritus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular masculine; Function: ablative of means or fullness; Translation: “with the spirit”; Notes: governs plenus.
  12. Dei — Lemma: Deus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive singular masculine; Function: possessor; Translation: “of God”; Notes: specifies the divine spirit.
  13. plenus — Lemma: plenus; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: predicate adjective; Translation: “full”; Notes: takes ablative of fullness.
  14. sit — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: present active subjunctive third person singular; Function: verb of relative clause; Translation: “may be”; Notes: subjunctive in characteristic clause.

 

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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