Genesis 6:13

Posted on January 6, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Gn 6:13 dixit ad Noe: Finis universæ carnis venit coram me: repleta est terra iniquitate a facie eorum, et ego disperdam eos cum terra.

He said to Noe: “The end of all flesh has come before Me; the earth is filled with iniquity because of them, and I will destroy them with the earth.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 dixit he said VERB.3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
2 ad to / toward PREP+ACC
3 Noe Noah NOUN.ACC.SG.M
4 Finis end NOUN.NOM.SG.M
5 universæ of all ADJ.GEN.SG.F
6 carnis of flesh NOUN.GEN.SG.F
7 venit has come VERB.3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
8 coram before / in the presence of PREP+ABL
9 me Me PRON.ABL.SG.1ST
10 repleta filled PART.PERF.PASS.NOM.SG.F
11 est is VERB.3SG.PRES.IND
12 terra earth NOUN.NOM.SG.F
13 iniquitate with iniquity NOUN.ABL.SG.F
14 a from / because of PREP+ABL
15 facie face / presence NOUN.ABL.SG.F
16 eorum of them PRON.GEN.PL.M
17 et and CONJ
18 ego I PRON.NOM.SG.1ST
19 disperdam I will destroy VERB.1SG.FUT.ACT.IND
20 eos them PRON.ACC.PL.M
21 cum with PREP+ABL
22 terra earth NOUN.ABL.SG.F

Syntax

The divine declaration to Noe begins with the narrative verb dixit ad Noe (“He said to Noe”), introducing direct speech.
The main statement Finis universæ carnis venit coram me declares the decree of judgment: the nominative subject Finis (“end”) governs the genitive phrase universæ carnis (“of all flesh”), denoting the totality of mortal life.
The prepositional phrase coram me (“before Me”) signifies divine awareness and authority.
The next clause, repleta est terra iniquitate a facie eorum, employs the perfect passive repleta est to describe the world filled with moral evil. The phrase a facie eorum means “because of them” or literally “from their presence,” indicating humanity’s corruption as the cause.
Finally, et ego disperdam eos cum terra expresses divine resolve: ego (emphatic subject) with disperdam (“I will destroy”) forms a future declaration of comprehensive judgment upon both humankind and creation.

Morphology

  1. dixit — Lemma: dico; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: third person singular perfect active indicative; Function: main narrative verb introducing divine speech; Translation: he said; Notes: standard verb of speaking in biblical Latin.
  2. ad — Lemma: ad; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: governs accusative; Function: marks indirect object of speech; Translation: to; Notes: directs speech toward recipient.
  3. Noe — Lemma: Noe; Part of Speech: Proper noun; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: object of “ad”; Translation: Noah; Notes: Hebrew נֹחַ (Noaḥ), recipient of revelation.
  4. Finis — Lemma: finis; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: subject of “venit”; Translation: end; Notes: expresses termination or judgment.
  5. universæ — Lemma: universus; Part of Speech: Adjective; Form: genitive singular feminine; Function: modifies “carnis”; Translation: of all; Notes: emphasizes comprehensiveness.
  6. carnis — Lemma: caro; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: genitive singular feminine; Function: possessive genitive; Translation: of flesh; Notes: collective reference to living beings.
  7. venit — Lemma: venio; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: third person singular perfect active indicative; Function: main verb; Translation: has come; Notes: indicates fulfillment of divine decree.
  8. coram — Lemma: coram; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: denotes presence or audience; Translation: before / in the presence of; Notes: used in legal and theological contexts.
  9. me — Lemma: ego; Part of Speech: Pronoun; Form: ablative singular; Function: object of “coram”; Translation: Me; Notes: personal reference to God.
  10. repleta — Lemma: repleo; Part of Speech: Participle; Form: nominative singular feminine perfect passive; Function: predicate of “terra”; Translation: filled; Notes: describes the state of moral saturation.
  11. est — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: third person singular present indicative; Function: auxiliary with participle; Translation: is; Notes: periphrastic perfect passive construction.
  12. terra — Lemma: terra; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: nominative singular feminine; Function: subject of “repleta est”; Translation: earth; Notes: emphasizes the moral and physical sphere of judgment.
  13. iniquitate — Lemma: iniquitas; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: ablative singular feminine; Function: ablative of means; Translation: with iniquity; Notes: the instrument or cause of corruption.
  14. a — Lemma: a (ab); Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: denotes origin or cause; Translation: from / because of; Notes: causal sense — “because of them.”
  15. facie — Lemma: facies; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: ablative singular feminine; Function: object of “a”; Translation: face / presence; Notes: idiomatic expression meaning “because of.”
  16. eorum — Lemma: is; Part of Speech: Pronoun; Form: genitive plural masculine; Function: possessive modifier; Translation: of them; Notes: refers to humankind whose wickedness causes destruction.
  17. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: joins clauses; Translation: and; Notes: continues divine speech.
  18. ego — Lemma: ego; Part of Speech: Pronoun; Form: nominative singular; Function: emphatic subject; Translation: I; Notes: emphasizes divine authority in the impending judgment.
  19. disperdam — Lemma: disperdo; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: first person singular future active indicative; Function: main verb; Translation: I will destroy; Notes: prophetic and declarative tone.
  20. eos — Lemma: is; Part of Speech: Pronoun; Form: accusative plural masculine; Function: direct object of “disperdam”; Translation: them; Notes: refers to corrupted mankind.
  21. cum — Lemma: cum; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: accompaniment; Translation: with; Notes: expresses joint destruction with creation itself.
  22. terra — Lemma: terra; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: ablative singular feminine; Function: object of “cum”; Translation: earth; Notes: signifies inclusion of the natural order in divine judgment.

 

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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