Genesis 45:6

Posted on February 14, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Gn 45:6 Biennium est enim quod cœpit fames esse in terra: et adhuc quinque anni restant, quibus nec arari poterit nec meti.

For it is now two years since the famine began to be in the land, and five years still remain in which neither can one plough nor reap.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Biennium two-year period NOM/ACC.SG.N
2 est is 3SG.PRES.ACT.IND
3 enim for ADV
4 quod that REL/CONJ
5 coepit began 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
6 fames famine NOM.SG.F
7 esse to be PRES.ACT.INF
8 in in PREP+ABL
9 terra land ABL.SG.F
10 et and CONJ
11 adhuc still ADV
12 quinque five INVAR.NUM
13 anni years NOM.PL.M
14 restant remain 3PL.PRES.ACT.IND
15 quibus in which ABL.PL.M/F.NEUT.REL
16 nec nor CONJ
17 arari to be ploughed PRES.PASS.INF
18 poterit will be able 3SG.FUT.ACT.IND
19 nec nor CONJ
20 meti to reap PRES.PASS.INF (DEPONENT-STYLE)

Syntax

Main clause:
• Biennium est — “It is a two-year period.”
• Subject: Biennium.
• Verb: est.
• enim quod coepit fames esse in terra = causal explanation introduced by enim + object clause.

Object clause:
• quod coepit fames esse in terra — “that the famine began to be in the land.”
• Verb: coepit.
• Complement infinitive: esse.
• Subject: fames.
• Locative phrase: in terra.

Second main clause:
• et adhuc quinque anni restant — “and five years still remain.”
• Subject: quinque anni.
• Verb: restant.

Relative clause of characteristic:
• quibus nec arari poterit nec meti — “in which neither can one plough nor reap.”
• quibus refers back to “five years.”
• Future tense verb: poterit.
• Complement infinitives: arari and meti.

Morphology

  1. Biennium — Lemma: biennium; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative/accusative singular neuter; Function: subject; Translation: “two-year period”; Notes: time span already elapsed.
  2. est — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: present active indicative 3rd singular; Function: main verb; Translation: “is”; Notes: copula.
  3. enim — Lemma: enim; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: postpositive; Function: explanation; Translation: “for”; Notes: cannot stand first in clause.
  4. quod — Lemma: quod; Part of Speech: conjunction/relative; Form: indeclinable; Function: introduces object clause; Translation: “that”; Notes: common with verbs of saying/knowing.
  5. coepit — Lemma: coepio; Part of Speech: verb; Form: perfect active indicative 3rd singular; Function: main verb of clause; Translation: “began”; Notes: takes infinitive complement.
  6. fames — Lemma: fames; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative singular feminine; Function: subject of coepit; Translation: “famine”; Notes: personified in narrative.
  7. esse — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb (infinitive); Form: present active infinitive; Function: complement to coepit; Translation: “to be”; Notes: forms infinitival phrase.
  8. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: locative; Translation: “in”; Notes: static location.
  9. terra — Lemma: terra; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular feminine; Function: object of in; Translation: “land”; Notes: refers to Egypt.
  10. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: coordinating; Function: links clauses; Translation: “and”; Notes: simple additive.
  11. adhuc — Lemma: adhuc; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: invariable; Function: temporal; Translation: “still”; Notes: ongoing duration.
  12. quinque — Lemma: quinque; Part of Speech: numeral; Form: indeclinable; Function: numeral modifier; Translation: “five”; Notes: number of future years.
  13. anni — Lemma: annus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative plural masculine; Function: subject of restant; Translation: “years”; Notes: time frame.
  14. restant — Lemma: restō; Part of Speech: verb; Form: present active indicative 3rd plural; Function: main verb; Translation: “remain”; Notes: future hardship predicted.
  15. quibus — Lemma: qui; Part of Speech: relative pronoun; Form: ablative plural masculine; Function: ablative of time within which; Translation: “in which”; Notes: refers to years.
  16. nec — Lemma: nec; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: negative; Function: links two negative infinitives; Translation: “nor”; Notes: correlates with following nec.
  17. arari — Lemma: aro; Part of Speech: verb; Form: present passive infinitive; Function: complement of poterit; Translation: “to be ploughed”; Notes: agricultural inability.
  18. poterit — Lemma: possum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: future active indicative 3rd singular; Function: main verb; Translation: “will be able”; Notes: prediction of incapacity.
  19. nec — Lemma: nec; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: negative; Function: coordinates second infinitive; Translation: “nor”; Notes: strengthens parallelism.
  20. meti — Lemma: meto; Part of Speech: verb; Form: present passive infinitive (deponent-style); Function: complement to poterit; Translation: “to reap”; Notes: famine prevents harvest.

 

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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