Genesis 5:2

Posted on January 5, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Gn 5:2 Masculum et feminam creavit eos, et benedixit illis: et vocavit nomen eorum Adam, in die quo creati sunt.

Male and female He created them, and He blessed them; and He called their name Adam, on the day when they were created.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Masculum male NOUN.ACC.SG.M
2 et and CONJ
3 feminam female NOUN.ACC.SG.F
4 creavit created VERB.3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
5 eos them PRON.PERS.ACC.PL.M
6 et and CONJ
7 benedixit blessed VERB.3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
8 illis them PRON.PERS.DAT.PL.M
9 et and CONJ
10 vocavit called VERB.3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
11 nomen name NOUN.ACC.SG.N
12 eorum of them PRON.POSS.GEN.PL.M
13 Adam Adam PROPN.ACC.SG.M
14 in on/in PREP+ABL
15 die day NOUN.ABL.SG.M
16 quo when/in which REL.PRON.ABL.SG.M
17 creati created PART.PERF.PASS.NOM.PL.M
18 sunt were VERB.3PL.PERF.IND

Syntax

The sentence begins with Masculum et feminam creavit eos, where Masculum and feminam serve as internal accusatives (cognate-type objects), while eos functions as the direct object; creavit is the main verb with God as implied subject.
The coordinate clause et benedixit illis continues the divine action, with illis as dative of advantage (“He blessed them”).
The next clause et vocavit nomen eorum Adam features vocavit as main verb, nomen as internal accusative, eorum as possessive genitive, and Adam as predicate accusative — the name conferred collectively.
Finally, in die quo creati sunt is a temporal prepositional clause (“on the day when they were created”), with quo as relative pronoun linking to die and creati sunt forming a passive periphrastic construction.

Morphology

  1. Masculum — Lemma: masculus; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: internal accusative complement of “creavit”; Translation: male; Notes: forms part of the pair describing humanity’s sexes.
  2. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: coordinating; Function: connects “masculum” and “feminam”; Translation: and; Notes: joins the two genders.
  3. feminam — Lemma: femina; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: internal accusative with “creavit”; Translation: female; Notes: counterpart to “masculum.”
  4. creavit — Lemma: creo; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: third person singular perfect active indicative; Function: main verb; Translation: created; Notes: denotes completed divine act.
  5. eos — Lemma: is; Part of Speech: Personal pronoun; Form: accusative plural masculine; Function: direct object of “creavit”; Translation: them; Notes: refers to the human pair.
  6. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: coordinating; Function: links clauses; Translation: and; Notes: introduces the next action.
  7. benedixit — Lemma: benedico; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: third person singular perfect active indicative; Function: main verb; Translation: blessed; Notes: expresses divine favor.
  8. illis — Lemma: ille; Part of Speech: Demonstrative pronoun; Form: dative plural masculine; Function: indirect object; Translation: to them; Notes: recipients of the blessing.
  9. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: coordinating; Function: joins next clause; Translation: and; Notes: continues the narrative.
  10. vocavit — Lemma: voco; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: third person singular perfect active indicative; Function: main verb; Translation: called; Notes: denotes naming act.
  11. nomen — Lemma: nomen; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: accusative singular neuter; Function: internal accusative; Translation: name; Notes: object associated with “vocavit.”
  12. eorum — Lemma: is; Part of Speech: Possessive pronoun; Form: genitive plural masculine; Function: modifies “nomen”; Translation: of them; Notes: indicates possession of the name.
  13. Adam — Lemma: Adam; Part of Speech: Proper noun; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: predicate accusative complement of “vocavit”; Translation: Adam; Notes: designates collective humanity.
  14. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: introduces temporal phrase; Translation: on/in; Notes: marks time of naming.
  15. die — Lemma: dies; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: ablative singular masculine; Function: object of “in”; Translation: day; Notes: temporal marker.
  16. quo — Lemma: qui; Part of Speech: Relative pronoun; Form: ablative singular masculine; Function: connects to “die”; Translation: when/in which; Notes: introduces subordinate temporal clause.
  17. creati — Lemma: creo; Part of Speech: Participle; Form: nominative plural masculine perfect passive participle; Function: predicate in periphrastic construction with “sunt”; Translation: created; Notes: describes the state of being created.
  18. sunt — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: third person plural perfect indicative passive (periphrastic); Function: auxiliary verb; Translation: were; Notes: completes the passive sense “were created.”

 

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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