Genesis 9:2

Posted on January 9, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Gn 9:2 Et terror vester ac tremor sit super cuncta animalia terræ, et super omnes volucres cæli, cum universis quæ moventur super terram: omnes pisces maris manui vestræ traditi sunt.

And your fear and your dread shall be upon all the animals of the earth, and upon all the birds of the heaven, with all things that move upon the earth: all the fish of the sea are delivered into your hand.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Et and CONJ
2 terror fear NOUN.NOM.SG.M
3 vester your ADJ.NOM.SG.M
4 ac and CONJ
5 tremor dread NOUN.NOM.SG.M
6 sit shall be VERB.3SG.PRES.SBJV.ACT
7 super upon PREP+ACC
8 cuncta all ADJ.ACC.PL.N
9 animalia animals NOUN.ACC.PL.N
10 terræ of the earth NOUN.GEN.SG.F
11 et and CONJ
12 super upon PREP+ACC
13 omnes all ADJ.ACC.PL.F
14 volucres birds NOUN.ACC.PL.F
15 cæli of the heaven NOUN.GEN.SG.M
16 cum with PREP+ABL
17 universis all ADJ.ABL.PL.N
18 quæ which PRON.NOM.PL.N.REL
19 moventur move VERB.3PL.PRES.IND.PASS
20 super upon PREP+ACC
21 terram earth NOUN.ACC.SG.F
22 omnes all ADJ.NOM.PL.M
23 pisces fish NOUN.NOM.PL.M
24 maris of the sea NOUN.GEN.SG.N
25 manui to the hand NOUN.DAT.SG.F
26 vestræ your ADJ.DAT.SG.F
27 traditi delivered VERB.PERF.PTCP.NOM.PL.M.PASS
28 sunt are VERB.3PL.PRES.IND.ACT

Syntax

The jussive sit (“shall be / may be”) establishes a divine decree: Et terror vester ac tremor form a compound subject whose authority is marked by repeated super phrases (super cuncta animalia terræ … et super omnes volucres cæli). The preposition cum with ablative (universis) introduces a comitative extension clarified by the relative clause quæ moventur super terram. The climactic independent clause omnes pisces maris manui vestræ traditi sunt uses a perfect passive periphrasis to assert accomplished transfer of dominion into human manus.

Morphology

  1. Et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: narrative connector; Translation: “and”; Notes: links to prior blessing.
  2. terror — Lemma: terror; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: subject; Translation: “fear”; Notes: first head of compound subject.
  3. vester — Lemma: vester; Part of Speech: Adjective (possessive); Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: modifies terror; Translation: “your”; Notes: 2nd-person plural possession.
  4. ac — Lemma: ac; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: coordination; Translation: “and”; Notes: often stylistic for close linkage.
  5. tremor — Lemma: tremor; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: nominative singular masculine; Function: coordinated subject; Translation: “dread”; Notes: second head of the compound subject.
  6. sit — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: 3rd person singular present subjunctive active; Function: jussive/decree; Translation: “shall be / may be”; Notes: divine grant of dominion.
  7. super — Lemma: super; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: governs accusative; Function: spatial authority; Translation: “upon / over”; Notes: introduces domain of rule.
  8. cuncta — Lemma: cunctus; Part of Speech: Adjective; Form: accusative plural neuter; Function: modifies animalia; Translation: “all”; Notes: exhaustive scope.
  9. animalia — Lemma: animal; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: accusative plural neuter; Function: object of super; Translation: “animals”; Notes: land animals in general.
  10. terræ — Lemma: terra; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: genitive singular feminine; Function: genitive of specification (“of the earth”); Translation: “of the earth”; Notes: limits the class of animals.
  11. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: indeclinable; Function: links parallel domain; Translation: “and”; Notes: balances first super-phrase.
  12. super — Lemma: super; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: governs accusative; Function: spatial authority; Translation: “upon / over”; Notes: second domain marker.
  13. omnes — Lemma: omnis; Part of Speech: Adjective; Form: accusative plural feminine; Function: modifies volucres; Translation: “all”; Notes: totality of birds.
  14. volucres — Lemma: volucris; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: accusative plural feminine; Function: object of super; Translation: “birds”; Notes: aerial creatures.
  15. cæli — Lemma: cælum; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: genitive singular masculine; Function: genitive of realm; Translation: “of the heaven”; Notes: sphere of the birds.
  16. cum — Lemma: cum; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: governs ablative; Function: accompaniment; Translation: “with”; Notes: broadens scope.
  17. universis — Lemma: universus; Part of Speech: Adjective; Form: ablative plural neuter; Function: object of cum (substantivized); Translation: “all (things)”; Notes: neuter plural collective.
  18. quæ — Lemma: qui; Part of Speech: Relative pronoun; Form: nominative plural neuter; Function: subject of the relative clause; Translation: “which”; Notes: refers to universis.
  19. moventur — Lemma: moveo; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: 3rd person plural present indicative passive (deponent-like sense “are moving”); Function: predicate of the relative clause; Translation: “move”; Notes: middle/passive sense of motion.
  20. super — Lemma: super; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: governs accusative; Function: spatial relation; Translation: “upon”; Notes: locative.
  21. terram — Lemma: terra; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: accusative singular feminine; Function: object of super; Translation: “earth”; Notes: surface domain.
  22. omnes — Lemma: omnis; Part of Speech: Adjective; Form: nominative plural masculine; Function: modifies pisces; Translation: “all”; Notes: universal subject of final clause.
  23. pisces — Lemma: piscis; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: nominative plural masculine; Function: subject; Translation: “fish”; Notes: marine life.
  24. maris — Lemma: mare; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: genitive singular neuter; Function: genitive of domain; Translation: “of the sea”; Notes: specifies habitat.
  25. manui — Lemma: manus; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: dative singular feminine; Function: indirect object (dative of possession/advantage); Translation: “to (the) hand”; Notes: legal transfer formula.
  26. vestræ — Lemma: vester; Part of Speech: Adjective (possessive); Form: dative singular feminine; Function: agrees with manui; Translation: “your”; Notes: 2nd-person plural.
  27. traditi — Lemma: trado; Part of Speech: Participle; Form: nominative plural masculine perfect passive participle; Function: predicate with sunt; Translation: “delivered”; Notes: completed transfer.
  28. sunt — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: 3rd person plural present indicative active; Function: auxiliary of perfect passive; Translation: “are / have been”; Notes: perfect periphrastic.

 

 

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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