Genesis 50:22

Posted on February 19, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Gn 50:22 Et habitavit in Ægypto cum omni domo patris sui: vixitque centum decem annis. Et vidit Ephraim filios usque ad tertiam generationem. Filii quoque Machir filii Manasse nati sunt in genibus Ioseph.

And he lived in Egypt with all the house of his father and he lived one hundred ten years. And he saw Ephraim’s sons up to the third generation. Also the sons of Machir the son of Manasses were born on the knees of Joseph.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Et and CONJ
2 habitavit he lived 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
3 in in PREP+ABL
4 Ægypto Egypt N.F.ABL.SG
5 cum with PREP+ABL
6 omni all ADJ.F.ABL.SG
7 domo house N.F.ABL.SG
8 patris of (his) father N.M.GEN.SG
9 sui of his PRON.REFL.M.GEN.SG
10 vixitque and he lived 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND+ENCL.CONJ
11 centum hundred NUM.INDECL
12 decem ten NUM.INDECL
13 annis years N.M.ABL.PL
14 Et and CONJ
15 vidit he saw 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
16 Ephraim of Ephraim N.PROP.M.GEN.SG
17 filios sons N.M.ACC.PL
18 usque up to ADV
19 ad to PREP+ACC
20 tertiam third ADJ.F.ACC.SG
21 generationem generation N.F.ACC.SG
22 Filii sons N.M.NOM.PL
23 quoque also ADV
24 Machir of Machir N.PROP.M.GEN.SG
25 filii son N.M.GEN.SG
26 Manasse of Manasseh N.PROP.M.GEN.SG
27 nati born PTC.PERF.M.NOM.PL
28 sunt are 3PL.PRES.ACT.IND
29 in in PREP+ABL
30 genibus knees N.N.ABL.PL
31 Ioseph Joseph N.PROP.M.ABL.SG

Syntax

First clause: Et links to the broader narrative; the implicit subject is Joseph, understood from context.
The main verb is habitavit, governing the prepositional phrase in Ægypto and the comitative phrase cum omni domo patris sui.
The following finite verb vixitque continues with the same subject and takes the ablative of duration centum decem annis.

Second clause: Et again introduces a coordinated main clause. The subject remains Joseph by continuity.
The verb vidit takes as its object phrase Ephraim filios, with Ephraim functioning as a genitive modifier of filios.
The phrase usque ad tertiam generationem expresses the limit of this vision, indicating extent in terms of generation.

Third clause: The subject is now explicit in Filii, further qualified by the genitive chain Machir filii Manasse,
identifying these sons as descendants of Machir, who is himself son of Manasseh. The predicate is the periphrastic construction
nati sunt, a perfect passive (from a deponent verb) indicating completed birth. The prepositional phrase
in genibus Ioseph functions as a locative-expression with familial nuance, describing birth or upbringing associated with the knees of Joseph.

Morphology

  1. Et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: coordinating conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: links this narrative statement to the previous context; Translation: and; Notes: standard connector in Hebrew-style narrative sequences.
  2. habitavit — Lemma: habito; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular perfect active indicative; Function: main finite verb describing where he lived; Translation: he lived; Notes: perfect tense presents his dwelling in Egypt as a completed historical fact.
  3. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: introduces a locative phrase; Translation: in; Notes: with ablative indicates rest in a place rather than motion toward.
  4. Ægypto — Lemma: Ægyptus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular feminine; Function: object of the preposition in, marking the place of dwelling; Translation: Egypt; Notes: preserves the traditional Latin form with ligature æ in the Latin, while the English rendering uses the standard name Egypt.
  5. cum — Lemma: cum; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: introduces a comitative phrase; Translation: with; Notes: marks accompaniment, indicating those associated with him in Egypt.
  6. omni — Lemma: omnis; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: ablative singular feminine; Function: modifies domo within the comitative phrase; Translation: all; Notes: agrees with domo in case, number, and gender, emphasizing totality of the household.
  7. domo — Lemma: domus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative singular feminine; Function: object of cum, indicating the household; Translation: house; Notes: here has the extended sense of family or household rather than merely a building.
  8. patris — Lemma: pater; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive singular masculine; Function: possessive genitive modifying domo; Translation: of father; Notes: specifies that the household in view is that of his father rather than his own independent house.
  9. sui — Lemma: sui; Part of Speech: reflexive pronoun; Form: genitive singular masculine; Function: refers back to the subject Joseph as owner of the father mentioned; Translation: of his; Notes: reflexive genitive clarifies that the father is his own father, not another person’s.
  10. vixitque — Lemma: vivo; Part of Speech: verb with enclitic conjunction; Form: third person singular perfect active indicative with -que attached; Function: finite verb continuing the description of Joseph’s life; Translation: and he lived; Notes: enclitic -que links this verbal idea closely to the preceding statement about dwelling in Egypt.
  11. centum — Lemma: centum; Part of Speech: numeral; Form: indeclinable; Function: numeral modifying annis in an ablative of duration; Translation: hundred; Notes: used together with decem to form the specific lifespan total.
  12. decem — Lemma: decem; Part of Speech: numeral; Form: indeclinable; Function: completes the compound number with centum; Translation: ten; Notes: numerals combine additively to express one hundred ten years.
  13. annis — Lemma: annus; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative plural masculine; Function: ablative of duration with vixitque; Translation: years; Notes: expresses how long he lived, a standard Latin construction with the ablative.
  14. Et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: coordinating conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: introduces a new but connected main clause; Translation: and; Notes: signals a further aspect of Joseph’s life, shifting from lifespan to descendants.
  15. vidit — Lemma: video; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular perfect active indicative; Function: main verb of perception; Translation: he saw; Notes: perfect tense situates the seeing as a completed historical event.
  16. Ephraim — Lemma: Ephraim; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: genitive singular masculine (indeclinable form used as genitive); Function: genitive dependent on filios, specifying whose sons they are; Translation: of Ephraim; Notes: Hebrew proper name carried into Latin; English retains the same form Ephraim.
  17. filios — Lemma: filius; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative plural masculine; Function: direct object of vidit; Translation: sons; Notes: receives the action of seeing, with Ephraim as their father.
  18. usque — Lemma: usque; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: indeclinable; Function: intensifies the prepositional phrase ad tertiam generationem; Translation: up to; Notes: often paired with ad to mark an extent or limit in time or space.
  19. ad — Lemma: ad; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs accusative; Function: introduces limit of extent; Translation: to; Notes: here expresses the boundary of generations in terms of how far the descendants extend.
  20. tertiam — Lemma: tertius; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: modifies generationem; Translation: third; Notes: ordinal numeral functioning adjectivally to specify the generation level.
  21. generationem — Lemma: generatio; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: object of ad within the extent phrase; Translation: generation; Notes: completes the expression of how many generations of descendants he lived to see.
  22. Filii — Lemma: filius; Part of Speech: noun; Form: nominative plural masculine; Function: explicit subject of nati sunt; Translation: sons; Notes: shifts focus from what Joseph saw to the sons themselves as grammatical subject.
  23. quoque — Lemma: quoque; Part of Speech: adverb; Form: indeclinable; Function: adds the notion of also, marking this as an additional detail; Translation: also; Notes: modifies the clause nati sunt, linking it with the preceding information about Ephraim’s sons.
  24. Machir — Lemma: Machir; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: genitive singular masculine (form used as genitive in Latin); Function: dependent genitive on Filii, indicating whose sons they are; Translation: of Machir; Notes: Hebrew name retained in English as Machir, functioning genitively in context.
  25. filii — Lemma: filius; Part of Speech: noun; Form: genitive singular masculine; Function: genitive dependent on Manasse, appositional descriptor; Translation: son; Notes: the phrase Machir filii Manasse identifies Machir more precisely as son of Manasseh.
  26. Manasse — Lemma: Manasse; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: genitive singular masculine (indeclinable form used as genitive); Function: genitive complement of filii; Translation: of Manasseh; Notes: Latin form of the name corresponds to the English biblical name Manasseh.
  27. nati — Lemma: nascor; Part of Speech: deponent verb (participle); Form: nominative plural masculine perfect participle; Function: predicate participle with sunt, forming a perfect periphrastic; Translation: born; Notes: deponent verb with passive form but active sense, here expressing the completed fact of their birth.
  28. sunt — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person plural present active indicative; Function: auxiliary verb with nati; Translation: are; Notes: together with nati yields a perfect sense equivalent to they were born.
  29. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: introduces locative phrase; Translation: in; Notes: marks the figurative location of birth or upbringing associated with Joseph.
  30. genibus — Lemma: genu; Part of Speech: noun; Form: ablative plural neuter; Function: object of in; Translation: knees; Notes: idiom in genibus expresses close familial care or recognition, not mere physical position.
  31. Ioseph — Lemma: Ioseph; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: ablative singular masculine (form used with the preposition); Function: complement of in, indicating whose knees are in view; Translation: Joseph; Notes: Latin Ioseph corresponds to the English name Joseph; the case value is supplied by the preposition in.

 

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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