Genesis 41:40

Posted on February 10, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Gn 41:40 Tu eris super domum meam, et ad tui oris imperium cunctus populus obediet: uno tantum regni solio te præcedam.

You shall be over my house, and at the command of your mouth all the people shall obey: only by the throne of the kingdom shall I precede you.”

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Tu you NOM.SG
2 eris shall be 2SG.FUT.ACT.IND
3 super over PREP+ACC
4 domum house ACC.SG.F
5 meam my ACC.SG.F
6 et and CONJ
7 ad at PREP+ACC
8 tui your GEN.SG
9 oris mouth GEN.SG.N
10 imperium command ACC.SG.N
11 cunctus all NOM.SG.M
12 populus people NOM.SG.M
13 obediet shall obey 3SG.FUT.ACT.IND
14 uno by one ABL.SG.M
15 tantum only ADV
16 regni of the kingdom GEN.SG.N
17 solio throne ABL.SG.N
18 te you ACC.SG
19 praecedam I shall precede 1SG.FUT.ACT.IND

Syntax

Main Clause 1:
• Tu eris super domum meam — “You shall be over my house.”
— Tu = subject.
— eris = main verb (future).
— super domum meam = prepositional phrase expressing authority.

Main Clause 2:
• et ad tui oris imperium cunctus populus obediet
— obediet = main verb.
— cunctus populus = subject (“all the people”).
— ad tui oris imperium = “at the command of your mouth” (idiom for authoritative speech).

Contrastive Clause:
• uno tantum regni solio te praecedam — “only by the throne of the kingdom shall I precede you.”
— praecedam = main verb.
— te = object.
— uno tantum regni solio = ablative of specification (“in only one respect”).

Morphology

  1. Tu — Lemma: tu; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: nominative singular; Function: subject; Translation: “you”; Notes: emphatic placement.
  2. eris — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: future active indicative second person singular; Function: main verb; Translation: “shall be”; Notes: predicts Joseph’s promotion.
  3. super — Lemma: super; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs accusative; Function: expresses authority; Translation: “over”; Notes: common in administrative contexts.
  4. domum — Lemma: domus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: object of super; Translation: “house”; Notes: refers to Pharaoh’s household administration.
  5. meam — Lemma: meus; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: modifies domum; Translation: “my”; Notes: possessive.
  6. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: invariable; Function: connects clauses; Translation: “and”; Notes: simple linker.
  7. ad — Lemma: ad; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs accusative; Function: expresses reference/standard; Translation: “at”; Notes: idiomatic with “mouth/command.”
  8. tui — Lemma: tu; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: genitive singular; Function: possessive modifying oris; Translation: “your”; Notes: literal “of you.”
  9. oris — Lemma: os, oris; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive singular neuter; Function: genitive modifying imperium; Translation: “mouth”; Notes: metaphor for authoritative speech.
  10. imperium — Lemma: imperium; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular neuter; Function: object of ad; Translation: “command”; Notes: denotes Joseph’s authority.
  11. cunctus — Lemma: cunctus; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: modifies populus; Translation: “all”; Notes: expresses totality.
  12. populus — Lemma: populus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: subject of obediet; Translation: “people”; Notes: refers to Egypt’s populace.
  13. obediet — Lemma: oboedio; Part of Speech: verb; Form: future active indicative third person singular; Function: main verb; Translation: “shall obey”; Notes: expresses Joseph’s full executive power.
  14. uno — Lemma: unus; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: ablative singular masculine; Function: ablative of specification; Translation: “by one”; Notes: specifies the single exception.
  15. tantum — Lemma: tantum; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: invariable; Function: adverb modifying clause; Translation: “only”; Notes: restricts the exception.
  16. regni — Lemma: regnum; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive singular neuter; Function: modifies solio; Translation: “of the kingdom”; Notes: denotes scope.
  17. solio — Lemma: solium; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular neuter; Function: ablative of specification; Translation: “throne”; Notes: Pharaoh remains monarch.
  18. te — Lemma: tu; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: accusative singular; Function: object of praecedam; Translation: “you”; Notes: refers to Joseph.
  19. praecedam — Lemma: praecedo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: future active indicative first person singular; Function: main verb; Translation: “I shall precede”; Notes: Pharaoh’s sole superiority.

 

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.
This entry was posted in Genesis. Bookmark the permalink.

Comments are closed.