Genesis 45:3

Posted on February 14, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Gn 45:3 Et dixit fratribus suis: Ego sum Ioseph: adhuc pater meus vivit? Non poterant respondere fratres nimio terrore perterriti.

And he said to his brothers: I am Joseph; does my father still live? His brothers were not able to answer, being terrified with excessive fear.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Et and CONJ
2 dixit he said 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
3 fratribus to his brothers DAT.PL.M
4 suis his DAT.PL.M.REFL.POSS
5 Ego I NOM.SG.1P.PRON
6 sum am 1SG.PRES.ACT.IND
7 Ioseph Joseph NOM.SG.M
8 adhuc still ADV
9 pater father NOM.SG.M
10 meus my NOM.SG.M.POSS
11 vivit lives 3SG.PRES.ACT.IND
12 Non not NEG.ADV
13 poterant they were able 3PL.IMP.ACT.IND
14 respondere to answer PRES.ACT.INF
15 fratres brothers NOM.PL.M
16 nimio excessive ABL.SG.M
17 terrore fear ABL.SG.M
18 perterriti terrified NOM.PL.M.PERF.PASS.PTCP

Syntax

Speech introduction: Et dixit fratribus suis — “And he said to his brothers.”
• Verb: dixit.
• Indirect object: fratribus suis.

Direct speech: Ego sum Ioseph — “I am Joseph.”
• Copular clause.
• Subject: Ego.
• Complement: Ioseph.

Question: Adhuc pater meus vivit? — “Does my father still live?”
• Subject: pater meus.
• Verb: vivit.
• Adverb: adhuc.

Main clause: Non poterant respondere fratres — “The brothers were not able to answer.”
• Verb: poterant + infinitive respondere.
• Subject: fratres.
• Negation: Non.

Ablative of cause: nimio terrore — “because of excessive fear.”
• Both words ablative.

Participial modifier: perterriti — “terrified.”
• Agrees with fratres.

Morphology

  1. Et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: coordinating; Function: links narrative events; Translation: “and”; Notes: common narrative connector.
  2. dixit — Lemma: dico; Part of Speech: verb; Form: perfect active indicative 3rd singular; Function: main verb introducing speech; Translation: “he said”; Notes: perfective action.
  3. fratribus — Lemma: frater; Part of Speech: noun; Form: dative plural masculine; Function: indirect object; Translation: “to (his) brothers”; Notes: object of communication.
  4. suis — Lemma: suus; Part of Speech: possessive adjective; Form: dative plural masculine; Function: modifies fratribus; Translation: “his”; Notes: reflexive use tied to subject Joseph.
  5. Ego — Lemma: ego; Part of Speech: personal pronoun; Form: nominative singular; Function: explicit subject; Translation: “I”; Notes: emphatic self-identification.
  6. sum — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: present active indicative 1st singular; Function: copular verb; Translation: “am”; Notes: links subject to complement.
  7. Ioseph — Lemma: Ioseph; Part of Speech: noun (proper); Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: complement of sum; Translation: “Joseph”; Notes: dramatic disclosure.
  8. adhuc — Lemma: adhuc; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: indeclinable; Function: temporal modifier; Translation: “still”; Notes: implies ongoing existence.
  9. pater — Lemma: pater; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: subject of vivit; Translation: “father”; Notes: refers to Jacob.
  10. meus — Lemma: meus; Part of Speech: possessive adjective; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: modifies pater; Translation: “my”; Notes: expresses filial concern.
  11. vivit — Lemma: vivo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: present active indicative 3rd singular; Function: main verb of question; Translation: “lives”; Notes: vivid present.
  12. Non — Lemma: non; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: negation; Function: negates poterant; Translation: “not”; Notes: expresses inability.
  13. poterant — Lemma: possum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: imperfect active indicative 3rd plural; Function: main verb; Translation: “they were able”; Notes: denotes continuous incapacity.
  14. respondere — Lemma: respondeo; Part of Speech: verb (infinitive); Form: present active infinitive; Function: complement of poterant; Translation: “to answer”; Notes: expresses the action they could not perform.
  15. fratres — Lemma: frater; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative plural masculine; Function: subject of poterant; Translation: “brothers”; Notes: Joseph’s brothers.
  16. nimio — Lemma: nimius; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: ablative singular masculine; Function: ablative of cause modifying terrore; Translation: “excessive”; Notes: intensifies emotional reaction.
  17. terrore — Lemma: terror; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular masculine; Function: ablative of cause; Translation: “fear”; Notes: fear caused by Joseph’s revelation.
  18. perterriti — Lemma: perterreo; Part of Speech: participle; Form: nominative plural masculine perfect passive participle; Function: predicate describing fratres; Translation: “terrified”; Notes: depicts emotional paralysis.

 

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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