Genesis 46:2

Posted on February 15, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Gn 46:2 audivit eum per visionem noctis vocantem se, et dicentem sibi: Iacob, Iacob. Cui respondit: Ecce adsum.

he heard Him calling him through a vision of the night, saying to him: “Jacob, Jacob.” And he replied: “Behold, I am here.”

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 audivit he heard 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
2 eum Him ACC.SG.M.PRON
3 per through PREP+ACC
4 visionem vision ACC.SG.F
5 noctis of the night GEN.SG.F
6 vocantem calling ACC.SG.M.PRES.ACT.PTCP
7 se him ACC.SG.REFL
8 et and CONJ
9 dicentem saying ACC.SG.M.PRES.ACT.PTCP
10 sibi to him DAT.SG.REFL
11 Iacob Jacob VOC.SG.M.PROP
12 Iacob Jacob VOC.SG.M.PROP
13 Cui to whom DAT.SG.M.REL
14 respondit he replied 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
15 Ecce behold ADV
16 adsum I am here 1SG.PRES.ACT.IND

Syntax

Main clause:
• audivit eum — “he heard Him.”
Subject understood from context (Israel/Jacob).

Instrumental phrase:
• per visionem noctis — “through a vision of the night,” accusative after per; noctis is a descriptive genitive.

Object complement structure:
• vocantem se and dicentem sibi — two present participles describing what he heard: “calling him” and “saying to him.”

Direct speech:
• Iacob, Iacob — vocative form, God calling Jacob.

Second clause:
• Cui respondit: Ecce adsum — relative pronoun Cui introduces “and to whom he replied,” followed by direct speech “Behold, I am here.”

Morphology

  1. audivit — Lemma: audio; Part of Speech: verb; Form: perfect active indicative 3rd singular; Function: main verb; Translation: “he heard”; Notes: perfect marks completed action.
  2. eum — Lemma: is, ea, id; Part of Speech: pronoun; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: direct object of audivit; Translation: “Him”; Notes: refers to God.
  3. per — Lemma: per; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs accusative; Function: introduces instrument/manner; Translation: “through”; Notes: expresses medium of communication.
  4. visionem — Lemma: visio; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: object of per; Translation: “vision”; Notes: visionary experience.
  5. noctis — Lemma: nox; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive singular feminine; Function: genitive of description; Translation: “of the night”; Notes: indicates time of vision.
  6. vocantem — Lemma: voco; Part of Speech: participle; Form: accusative singular masculine present active participle; Function: object complement describing eum; Translation: “calling”; Notes: action simultaneous with hearing.
  7. se — Lemma: se; Part of Speech: reflexive pronoun; Form: accusative singular; Function: object of vocantem; Translation: “him”; Notes: refers back to Jacob.
  8. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: conjunction; Form: coordinating; Function: joins participles; Translation: “and”; Notes: links co-equal actions.
  9. dicentem — Lemma: dico; Part of Speech: participle; Form: accusative singular masculine present active participle; Function: object complement; Translation: “saying”; Notes: introduces direct speech.
  10. sibi — Lemma: sibi; Part of Speech: reflexive pronoun; Form: dative singular; Function: indirect object; Translation: “to him”; Notes: refers back to Jacob.
  11. Iacob — Lemma: Iacob; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: vocative singular masculine; Function: direct address; Translation: “Jacob”; Notes: repeated for emphasis.
  12. Iacob — Lemma: Iacob; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: vocative singular masculine; Function: second vocative; Translation: “Jacob”; Notes: divine summons.
  13. Cui — Lemma: qui, quae, quod; Part of Speech: relative pronoun; Form: dative singular masculine; Function: introduces relative clause; Translation: “to whom”; Notes: refers to God speaking.
  14. respondit — Lemma: respondeo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: perfect active indicative 3rd singular; Function: verb of speaking; Translation: “he replied”; Notes: direct speech follows.
  15. Ecce — Lemma: ecce; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: indeclinable; Function: introduces emphatic declaration; Translation: “behold”; Notes: biblical readiness marker.
  16. adsum — Lemma: adsum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: present active indicative 1st singular; Function: response to divine summons; Translation: “I am here”; Notes: expresses availability.

 

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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